The Angel Rose

Released to the depths of a cold, dark river by her very young distraught mother, a child finds herself in a strange new world where, if she is to become an angel, she must first find the answers to why she is there and what: "I remember her crying," will lead to. We are first introduced to an old poet, who wrote, and is still writing, the story of the Angel Rose. At first he is reluctant to share it with the child who finds him writing, alone, with his back to the world. She must lead him out of his shadows, and help him rediscover himself and his voice. Along the way she will discover her own voice, and thus the tales begin. The stories are told through the weaving together of many poems into the narrative. They are stories as old as long ago, and as new as tomorrow, asking: What would we do. They are a type of coming-of-age story, or at least, coming-of-awareness. The dedication sets the tone: The Angel Rose is dedicated to the memory of the children of Ethiopia, The Congo, Rwanda, Somalia, the Sudan, and Syria (and too many, way too many, unaccounted for others). The author then goes on to ask us to remember them, our brothers, our sisters, our sons, our daughters all. While the two tales have numerous sources for their inspiration, such as the iconic cover photo of the Afgan Girl (National Geographic, June 1985, et.al.), the author's first inspiration came in a dream recounted in his book, "The Woman I Am," another book of exploring for truth and meaning through poetry. Hopefully, after enjoying this book you will be inspired to explore more yourself, and, the author hopes, even try exploring and expressing yourself through your own poetry.