Indeed Jasmineis a collection of poems that are verbal paintings, art of the particular, in which visualized thought and sensory language are born out of nothing--the place where the luminous intersects the obscure. Each poem experienced carries the reader through a journey of emotions and draws one in again and again in a fraternal embrace. These painterly poems celebrate life through the lens of family, the natural world, the spiritual world, and express how it feels to be human through the gamut of joy, suffering, and longing. Whether it be haiku, ode, elegy, lyric, or narrative, the poet invites the reader into a world of poetic conversations that vacillate between epiphany, mystery, despair, and exaltation. Each vignette is chock-full of personal witnessing. As the poet confronts grief and human relationships, lauds beauty and the enigma of the natural world, and raises philosophical questions, these poetic songs delight, enlighten, and draw the reader into a deeper understanding of the wonderment of being alive.