
When in the door still glancing back your eye
You see fresh light demur upon the bed
And hear the lonely wind knock at the pane
Think then how small the room you leave behind
How shrinks the colder passages of time
But though this room to smaller eyes grows small
And you cannot return and nestle in
A wider world and strange must grip your heart
So larger steps a larger hope can win

Todd Anderson (Stuff of the Rind, Sand and Sail, The Reluctant Prophet) writes the newsletter Mirth to share a behind-the-scenes look at his writing process as well as to offer readers the first fruits of his poetry and reflections. He grew up in the forests of small-town Ontario, contending against nature in all its beauty and harshness. His training as a literary scholar of Latin and English literature inflects his love of poignant turns of phrase, but it is the influence of his family and their myriad adventures together that infuses his story-telling and poetry with its substance and power. Todd lives and writes in Ottawa with his wife and six children. If you are interested in supporting Todd’s work, please follow the links below to donate or buy his books.







