Universe

“The streets were full with empty life” Poetry is a powerful source of emotional release, like a cathartic experience; however, far too often poetry is belittled and rarely ever taken seriously. Poets find refuge in their words, and use them to ask piercing questions about the realities of the world. In Universe, J. Larry Nance’s mission is to prove the seriousness of poetry while answering questions about the cosmos. Have you ever wondered about the mysteries of life and death? What happens before we’re alive, and do we return to the same point after death? Nance’s poems are thought- provoking and evoke questions about our existence. Who are we and why are we here? Universe is a compilation of poetry addressing the unique issues of cosmology. “The streets were full with empty life,” a poem in the “IO Saturnalia” compilation, discusses the ethereal elements of one’s life. The beautiful aspect of poetry is that it is open to myriad interpretations. This poem epitomizes the chase tha

Twisting and Turning J. Larry Nance’s Universe stimulates thought about the way the world works—from life and death to nature and the cosmos. Through Nance’s poetry, the reader gets the sense that even when we are long gone, the universe will continue to run its course. With imagery such as, “in the sky, in the flying of clouds”—we sense that life is fleeting. “Twisting and Turning,” in particular, presents the forces of the universe that are in motion, working together seamlessly. This poem glorifies the complex nature of the universe, while questioning where do life and death fall into place in the grand scheme of things? Contemplating the universe often results in utter amazement and sheer bewilderment. What we know is amazing, yet there is still so much we don’t know about our universe that is thoroughly perplexing. There are plenty of questions about life, death, and what makes the cosmos tick, and while Nance’s Universe doesn’t seek to provide pat answers to all of our questions, it does stimulate thought. To be sure, this compilation is a must-read. The precision and clockwork with which the universe operates is likened unto the inner working of a clock in “Twisting and turning,” as it impels one to think that there is an underlying force that controls the universe. With such images as spirals, as in spiral galaxies, and the double twisting of a dna strand reflected in the image of a clock’s springs, and the circular figures that are found throughout nature, Nance presents a universe that operates with mind boggling precision. The following is a sneak peak at Nance’s captivating talent: Twisting and turning, the spiral tracks there, in the sky, in the flying of clouds writing the natural secret ... and in the gentle shell, twisting ever this way and that, slowly turning in the spiral marked force mystery that writes the foundation of the universe, every upward goes the gyre, twisting and turning the advent of life and perhaps too, but hidden still, in death, the reverse spiral to twist toward life and reverse again. Cycles and measures of circles infinite, circles of whatever devices are God‘s seeing, scattered everywhere as reminders or maybe just universal watch springs, main springs, forcing the movement, the circle, they cycle, waxing and waning by the micro second to the infinite time measures ... around and around, smoke in nature, twisting and turning in blind acknowledgment of the ultimate mystery beyond gravity, the ultimate force that sends the earth around ... the moon

J. Larry Nance is the author of "If This Be Real", "The Texas Courthouse" with Dr. June Rayfield Welch, and numerous newpaper and magazine articles. He writes, paints and photograhs in Dallas, Texas and Santa Fe New Mexico.