For Those Whose Lives Have Seen Themselves

The lyrical, often elegiac poems in For Those Whose Lives Have Seen Themselves explore the act of seeing not merely as observation but as insight, revelation and often epiphany. Set in countries around the world as well in America, Stewart Moss looks out and back at his own life experience to reflect deeply on those he has known, as well as on himself. These poems also function as a kind of reportage and witness about places - including Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Lebanon, Turkey, and Syria - during times of peace and just prior to outbreaks of unrest and civil war, when, as the title poem states, our shadows may "disappear forever/in the darkening, unholy cities." Regardless of where they are set, these poems celebrate the act of discovery and the richness and music of language.