This new book of poetry by David Chorlton continues his firm legacy as a great Southwestern poet whose current Arizona roots have established him in the deserts, the wildlife, and all its surprising vegetation revived after each year’s monsoon season. These poems bring a recognition of what’s been lost among all he loves and what he discovers each day as a kind of supplement to that loss.
Born in Austria in 1948, David Chorlton grew up in Manchester, close to rain and the northern English industrial zone. In his early 20s he went to live in Vienna and stayed for seven years before moving to Phoenix with his wife in 1978. In Arizona he has grown ever more fascinated by the desert and its wildlife. Much of his poetry has come to reflect his growing concern for the natural world. He now lives in Ahwatukee in Phoenix, within easy reach of South Mountain which dominates a 20,000 acre desert park within the city.
Red Hawk’s Book of Lamentations opens with the poem, “Come Sisters, Let Us Lament,” which begins, “Where do we go, how / shall we make our way / when the Stars go out?” The collection is divided into sections of poems that seek to answer the question – or take readers on a quest of their own: Lamentations of Innocence: What is Lost, What is Gained; Lamentations of the Animals: Whose Cross is to Bear Our Pain; Lamentations of Experience: What it Costs, What Remains; Lamentations of Conscience: The Holy Ghost in Our Brains.
The author shares his experience that guides his writing, “Red Hawk is not an Indian name, nor was it ever intended to be one or pretend to be one; it is an Earth name, given by Mother Earth many years ago after a 4-day water fast at the Buffalo River in an effort to save my life in one of the darkest periods of my life. It was given as answered prayer. It indicates a deep love & reverence for the Earth which named me, and how it has shaped my life. I stand by it. Love of the Earth is my Spiritual path. It honors Her power to direct the course of our lives. I am Her legitimate son. As the illegitimate son of unknown parents, Robert Moore is my adopted name given to me by 2 people who died of alcoholism; I honor them by the way I live my life.”
Red Hawk is Emeritus Professor of English at the University of Arkansas at Monticello. He is the author of 11 books of poetry and two books on spiritual practice. He is a student and devotee of the Spiritual Teacher Lee Lozowick and of Lozowick’s Master, Yogi Ramsuratkumar, the Godchild of Tiruvanamali, India. He is also a long-time student of the Spiritual Teacher George Gurdjieff. His root-Guru was Osho Rajneesh. He is the winner of numerous national honors for his writing.
Two extraordinary North American poets have come together in this shared book of poetry that exemplifies the depth to which the natural world and our place in it is perceived. Whether it’s Silvia Scheibli’s ability to connect with a Latin American culture that has been so influential on her own work, or Patty Dickson Pieczka’s wanderings through the dream-like reality of her ever-deepening world, these are all poems from poets who have not only earned their words but lived them as well.
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