The Gift of Broken Things
Poetry and photography
from Erik Jacobsen
An exploration of light, language, and life.
I'm fascinated by language and light and life and how they all interact. I'm constantly awed by the richness of the world around me. I have a deep faith in a loving Creator and in the essential goodness of humanity. I love to visit new places and experience new things. I have worked to capture some of my sense of wonder and discovery in images and words – I love the richness that comes from seeing the two together. I also love books and typography and paper and am excited to publish some of my poems and photos together in this volume. —Erik Jacobsen
Reviews
“Erik’s poems and the accompanying visuals are inviting and often stunning. I read one just for the taste and then continued into the banquet. There is much here that is mind provoking and heart touching.”
— Carol Lynn Pearson, Poet and Author
“The poems in this collection are delightful and surprising, filled with ingenious word play, poignant insights, and a refreshing and remarkably deep wisdom.
— David Pulsipher, Co-Author of Proclaim Peace
“What a deeply moving book! The photographs are stunning and the verse is transporting. The poetry is by turns playful and poignant, and I have some of the phrases haunting me hours after reading. The combination of visual and verse is powerful in unexpected ways. The book is both prayer and answer, and I am moved by my encounter with it.”
— David F. Holland, Author, Professor, and Historian, Harvard Divinity School
In "Slow-moving Things," Erik Jacobsen describes a single drop of water coalescing imperceptibly and then writes: "We don't do slow like that./ It costs too much/ to fight our natural pace." But in his new book of poetry—The Gift of Broken Things—Erik invites us to do just that: slow down. Within these pages, you will find a careful observer of nature (both wild and human) and of words. Erik sports a quick wit and his writing sometimes evokes a wry smile. More often, however, his real gift is in slowing the reel to highlight a great truth evident in the most mundane of things—a crow ripping up a newspaper bag, water dripping from a faucet, swallows in Assisi, Italy. He chooses his words with a tender care that at times evokes Mary Oliver or Robert Frost. But whatever the poetic inspiration, what most consistently defines his writing is a sense of deep attention and affection for words, people, and the world around him.
— Tyler Johnson, MD, Author and Host of The Doctor's Art
