Stone and Ice

As stone and ice shape the Sierra, forces at work in our own lives shape and transition the way we act and think. These forces-influential persons, spiritual or career junctures, or life-altering events-affect our present moments and futures. Stone and Ice, a collection of poems, describes and examines junctures and events through the eyes and mind of a genuine explorer. Poet Joseph Whitson's perspective of his surroundings, of people in his life and of specific events derives from a mix of his educational background in the sciences and his interests in backpacking, climbing, mountaineering and other adventures. The center of town becomes: Buildings pushed up from the groundIn distorted contrivances of the earth, Persons at corners like billboardsWith something to sell, gurglingWith the noise of the anger-this city. Poems of adventures transition into explorations of the awesome forces of nature or of the awesome powers of other persons. Quiet Sundays become surreal. A year of the poet's life becomes an abstract. Stone and Ice, as poem after poem unfolds into two or three levels of meaning, is the adventure!