Echo

While Echo is a beautiful collection of art and poetry, my love of the written word made me think a lot more about the poetry. Also, I've enjoyed following the poetry career of Jamie Parsley ever since I befriended him during my year in Fargo, North Dakota.

In the "Introduction by the Poet" Jamie discusses that the death of his mother "threw [his] creative life into disarray" and how a dialogue with the artwork of Marjorie Schlossman helped him get in the regular habit of writing poetry again.

This collection of ekphrastic poetry is a real testament to how art can play a crucial role in emotional healing. The opening poems are  testimonial on the struggle to write poetry and the awareness on the emotional power of words.

Grief is an ongoing theme in this collection. In fact, the poem "Blond" is an elegy in memory of his mother Joyce. The reader feels how the poet wept with words through vibrant imagery. I ached for his loss but marveled the eloquent stanzas.

Yet joy also seeps through these pages. Joy is found  looking at the ocean in "Flourish" and "Holy Card" is an ode to sunsets. I love how Jamie invites the reader into quieting moments of wonder!

Jamie is also a priest, utilizing images from biblical stories and Christian liturgy in many of his poems. With religious trauma sometimes these are tricky areas for me to delve into. However, I appreciate that Jamie enters this realm with compassion. A  yearning for the divine underpins the religious themes.

Reading this collection touched a quiet part of my spirit that mystical poetry occasionally taps into. As a fast reader, poetry forces me to slow down. Echo proved to be worthwhile as I'm still contemplating these marvelous poems!