May 2, 2016

Readers,

I welcome you to The Haven, my sanctuary, a place where nothing exists but the simplicity of the written word. I have prepared several pieces for your enjoyment, each polished and summarized for you in the boxes provided on the landing page. You will find a selection of different styles (casual to formal), subjects (natural to personal), and forms (poetry to prose).

The pinnacle of this body of work is the lengthy, elegiac poem Seasons. A great deal of thought has been put into this work, a piece that I have been attempting to write for several years. Seasons is intended to be set to music as an art song for voice and piano, with a possible orchestral arrangement as well. Like the seasons themselves, this poem has come full circle, beginning as a natural poem describing in great detail, then evolving into a set of poems evoking different sun-deities, and finally back to the natural. Pieces of both styles have been forged together in the final version, carrying the content from the original and the form from the latter drafts.

The remainder of my work falls into two categories. Some pieces exhibit my interest in the Eastern ideas of simplicity and finding beauty in the present moment. Examples include Friday, a short vignette describing beauty in a mundane task, and April Haiku, a series of twenty-five short poems depicting a single moment’s observation or feeling collected throughout the month of April.

The second category of work takes a darker approach to life. It showcases the personal struggles in my life, from Aging, the litany of sufferings that ail me, to Nobody, a testament to my loneliness.

You will find links to my complete body of written nonfiction (polished and otherwise) to the left. I appreciate that you take the time to read my work. Hopefully you will find something interesting, touching, or stimulating.

Enjoy at your own pleasure,

Thomas Maresh