Traveling Through: Poems and Reflections

By William Yager

As a teacher-poet, William Yager uses the metaphor of traveling through to symbolize our lifes journey, suffused by innumerable unique and individual encounters and experiencessome with other people, some with nature, and some with the spirit of God. In his first book, Dr. Yager suggested that we may all need a wayside, a place or state of mind where we can stop and take a reflective breath. In Traveling Through, he explores, at a deep and intuitive level, our encounters with nature, the extravagant spirit of God, the culture surrounding us, and the countercultural essence of the authentic Gospel of Jesus.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Sep 19, 2016
• ISBN: 9781524542382

William Yager

William Yager experienced his early adolescent years in the midst of the redwood forests of Northern California. In retrospect, his spiritual sensitivity and deep love of nature took root during this time. Following degrees in mechanical engineering from the University of California–Berkeley and an MBA from the Harvard Business School, he was in systems engineering and management in the computer industry in San Francisco for fifteen years. A year of reflection and reassessment resulted in making the transition to the Pacific Northwest, and a teaching career was launched at Whitworth College in Spokane, Washington. In 1984, Bill and his family moved to Eugene, Oregon, where he completed his PhD at the University of Oregon in international strategic management. Now retired after twenty years on the faculty of the School of Business at Pacific Lutheran University, he is able to appreciate all the more the profound God-given gifts in nature and to indulge in his love of reading and writing. He and Pat have six adult children and nine grandchildren, and they live in Tacoma, Washington.

Book preview

Copyright © 2016 by William Yager.

ISBN:      Softcover      978-1-5245-4175-0

                eBook           978-1-5245-4238-2

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 09/15/2016

Xlibris

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

731447

Contents

Dedication

Preface

Odysseys’ End

Christmas Gift

Tribute

Evening

Breath

The Pond

Blood Money

Big Lagoon

At Titlow

Confident Crow

Calliope Song

Gift

A Name

Allium

Choice

Autumn

Belonging

Fog

September Musing

Fall

Going Home

On the Patio

Gifted

Grounded

Creeper

Impact

In The Garden

Boundaries

Spring Recital

Irony

Green

Emergence

Commodity

Seventeen Crows

Morning Grass

Meadow

Trillium Surprise

On Chambers Bay

Thank You

Palisades

Poppy

Pneuma

Violet

Spring Morning

Soos Creek Pond

Psalm

Life

High

Relevance

Scotland Sunset

First Lily

Surveillance

Sun

The Leper’s Bell

Last Lilies

Expressing

Where

Uniqueness

Snow

Surf

Rose

Spent

The Birdbath

Reckless

Scent

Wednesday Morning

Offering

Seen and Unseen

Trillium Testament

Seaside Reflection

Red

Gray

Tradition

What If

Inimitable

Reach

Tree Top Barber Shop

Thornrose

Material

Time Out

The Journey

Rhododendron

Shoreline Senses

Unless A Seed Falls

Valentine

Waves

Yellow

Without a Sound

Parabola

Trillium Gift

At the Palisades: The Water View Room at Five

Rest

Soos Creek Closing

About the Author

Dedication

For Pat, beloved supporter, encourager without peer.

Preface

For most of my adult life I have been writing down my thoughts and reflections emerging from life around me, especially the beauty and wonder in Nature and that miraculous God-given process that envelops all of us. I have always maintained that these were Notes to Myself, intended only to help structure and clarify my own thinking. But now in the sunset years of my life, I have been convinced to share these Notes with others.

There are some very special times when words make music and have rhythm. Sometimes insights and concepts come clearer in a new and different and unexpected context. A hummingbird’s hovering, movement of the sun to catch a blossom just so, a leaf fluttering to the ground. At these distinctive moments, it seems that there is a metaphorical message, maybe even truth, buried within common surroundings and experiences waiting to be