Topographies of Light
by
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Lost Languages Uncovering lichens from the frosted stones we find words we meant to use long ago. Some meant feathers fallen from ancient flights or watery gifts to the parched lips of dawn when sand was the only light. What then do we do when another language dies? No anthropologist’s notes record the soul or the gestures of verbs conjugated in the wake of awe. Something like a glacier grinds to a halt and skies pale when the moons rise. Lizards and birds hide their colors from us. Flight no longer seems real and words become as silent as the untouched patina of the rocky walls.
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About the Book
In Topographies of Light, the reader is taken on a journey from the high desert of the Southwest, across the Midwestern prairies to New England, and along the North Sea Coast. Rich imagery, real and imagined landscapes, and a final section of ekphrastic work inspired by artists from Breughal to Dan Namingha complete this deeply meditative volume by David Rachlin.
About the Author
David Rachlin has taught writing for many years to students of all ages, and currently teaches poetry, professional development workshops, and the pedagogy of writing to graduate students and educators. Widely traveled across the United States and Northern Europe, he finds inspiration from small pebbles to majestic cliffs and from petroglyphs to paintings.