Introduction

Welcome to Issue 2 of Touch: The Journal of Healing.

A mother, a father, a child, a stranger - all have suffered loss of varying degrees and intensities.  In the warmth of family, we find birth and growth, yet at times we are the stranger as we move beyond the life we knew.  Often we reach out with words, hoping to find the understanding of another and offer a moment of friendship in return.  But when our experience is painful, we tend to turn inward, if only for a moment.  In these times of introspection, we see, hear, and remember snapshots of time with tremendous clarity ... the angle of his jaw line, or the texture of her hair, or the smell of rain on a hot August afternoon.  Often our best stories are forged in suffering, for they leave a lasting touch.

When we selected the cover photo, we did not fully appreciate how well it would reflect the theme of this issue: of parent and child; of caregiver and cared for.  Two stalks of allium stand close together, while a third, smaller and off to the side, is slightly out of focus.  Perhaps fading, perhaps about to be blown together in the next breeze; the breath of the many pieces in this issue narrate the struggles and adventures of life in its myriad of colors and emotions.  There are many ways to express the complexities of life's relationships, and yet each poet's unique perspective bursts forth from the common stem of the poetic art.  It is with the same awe, found when contemplating nature's blooms, that we have gathered together a collective brilliance of poems, written from the heart.

Healing is often not an easy art, nor are its lessons met with awe or acceptance.  But when we come together and share from our recollections those penetrating memories we were given, our spirits are lifted to carry on, to look forward, and to venture freely.

We extend a sincere thank you to all those who contributed to this issue; and we commend you, the reader, to the journey of sharing in these memories.

O.P.W. Fredericks, Editor

Daniel Milbo, Assistant Editor