Craddock has taken themes of nature, time, cosmic consciousness, mysticism, transcendentalism, personalism (which Walt Whitman explored in his esteemed volume of poetry Leaves of Grass) and has pursued their meaning with contemporary scientific discoveries. There are tides in nature and tides in human societies, countries, and civilizations that embrace, interact, or reject changing perspectives of nature. Eagles Soar on High Thermals highlights and explores individual and social awareness sown into contemporary and past perceptions of life and nature. The reader will embark upon a fascinating, refreshing journey into nature encompassed within the cosmic galactic to the microscopic ecosystems of life from natural landscapes to human interactive sentiment and viewpoints of lifestyles, merging into mystic perceptions. This is a must-read for inquisitive minds desiring to pursue poetic expression, thoughts engaging with insights into enduring mysteries of life and nature.

From biblical times to today, humans have found meaning and significance in the actions and symbolism of birds. We admire their mystery and manners, their strength and fragility, their beauty and their ugliness—and perhaps compare these very characteristics to their own lives in the process. Though admired today, the birds of Scripture are largely unseen and underappreciated. From the well-known image of the dove to the birds that gorge on the flesh of the defeated “beast” in Revelation, birds play a dynamic part in Scripture. They bring bread to the prophets. They are food for the wanderers. As sacrifices, they are the currency of mercy. Highlighting 10 birds throughout Scripture, author Debbie Blue explores their significance in both familiar and unfamiliar biblical stories and illustrates how and why they have represented humanity across culture, Christian tradition, art, and contemporary psyche. With these (usually) minor characters at the forefront of human imaginations, poignant life lessons illuminate such qualities as desire and gratitude, power and vulnerability, insignificance and importance—even as readers gain a better understanding that God’s mysterious grace is sometimes most evident in His simplest of creatures.

Aspiring travel writer Eddie Rock has hit hard times. Drowning in a midlife crisis of fear and debt, he looks for a second chance.A night of debauchery with a sexy hippy girl on the west coast of Ireland and A fortuitous encounter with false a prophet in Artic Canada triggers his story with warnings in the not-so-distant-futureAn unfortunate brush with the law, and an unforgettable stag party in Amsterdam set the tone for Eddie's timeless European misadventure. Following in the footsteps of countless saints and sinners before him, Rock travels the well-trodden road to Santiago de Compostela in search of enlightenment, salvation, and forgiveness, with a full cast of strange and interesting characters, spectacular places and plenty of wine.Eddie Rock's book is honest, entertaining, a warts-and-all romp as he takes us on a long walk of alcoholic indiscretions, more brushes with the law and accidental applications of deep heat, all the while providing an entertaining commentary of his surroundings and never taking himself too seriously. It makes for a refreshing change from the usual run of Camino stories, treating the whole thing as some reverential sacred cow!

A celebration of and practical guide to Europe's areas of incredible natural beauty. Step into a world boasting hilltop coastal villages, frozen Arctic landscapes and sweeping mountain ranges - and discover the 60 most breathtaking national parks, as well as itineraries for experiencing their top sights and activities. The beautiful hardback includes: Suggested itineraries for long and short visits The essential activities for every season Awe-inspiring landscape photography How to get to each park and where to stay Illustrations of local wildlife to look out for Europe's national parks are incredibly diverse - and that's what makes them so special. They protect areas of coast, high-altitude peaks in the Pyrenees and Alps, and even parts of the frozen Arctic, and include wildlife from Carpathian squirrels and fin whales, to peregrine falcons and polar bears. Setting out to choose Europe's top 60 national parks was no easy task, so we called on our expert writers and well-travelled editors. We asked them to tell us which parks provide the best experiences and why. The final selections were those that offered something truly unique, often an enthralling mixture of stunning natural beauty, incredible wildlife, fulfilling activities, local culture and, occasionally, a compelling history too. We hope the following pages inspire you to explore more of Europe's wild and wonderful spaces. Includes 60 national parks: Abisko Abruzzo Aiguestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici Arcipelago di La Maddalena Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park Dolomiti Bellunesi Berchtesgaden Black Forest Brecon Beacons Cairngorms Carpathian Cinque Terre Connemara Curonian Spit Dartmoor Donana Durmitor Ecrins Etna Gauja Golfo di Orosei e del Gennargentu Hardangervidda Hohe Tauern Hortobagy Jostedalsbreen Jotunheimen Killarney Kornati Lahemaa Lake District Lake Skadar Lemmenjoki Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Marine Park of Alonnisos Northern Sporades Nordvest-Spitsbergen Ordesa Oulanka Paklenica National Park Peak District Pembrokeshire Coast Peneda-Geres Picos de Europa Pirin Plitvice Port-Cros Pyrenees Retezat Sarek Saxon Switzerland Sierra Nevada Slovensky Raj Snæfellsjokull National Park Snowdonia Swiss National Park Tatras Triglav Valbona Valley Vatnajokull Vikos-Aoos National Park Wadden Sea About Lonely Planet: Since 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world's leading travel media company with guidebooks to every destination, an award-winning website, mobile and digital travel products, and a dedicated traveller community. Lonely Planet covers must-see spots but also enables curious travellers to get off beaten paths to understand more of the culture of the places in which they find themselves. The world awaits! 'Lonely Planet. It's on everyone's bookshelves; it's in every traveller's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the Internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.' -- Fairfax Media 'Lonely Planet guides are, quite simply, like no other.' - New York Times Important Notice: The digital edition of this book may not contain all of the images found in the physical edition.

“One of the most original and poignantly authentic poets writing in English.”—Harold Bloom A three-part, epic work challenging our notions about the environment by Australia’s preeminent poet of the natural world. Consisting of Purgatorio: Up Close, Paradiso: Rupture, and Inferno: Leisure Centre, John Kinsella's "distractions" on Dante's Divine Comedy journey through time and space. Set in a wheat-belt Western Australia, these poems are a phantasmagoria of the real and imagined, depicting nature in its full regalia, resisting forces of environmental damage and human indifference.

Galicia is a fascinating part of Green Spain, the northern part of the Iberian Peninsula, and sits in the north western most part, surrounded on two sides by the sea and on a third by Portugal. This short anthology contains writings about Galicia, including several pieces about the Ribeira Sacra, the Sacred Riverbank. Included are stories and articles about its people and its landscape, including the seasons in the vineyards. Wine is a liquid that flows throughout Spain, and in the deep valleys of the Ribeira Sacra region the grapes and their harvest hold an even more special place in the hearts of the people. Galicia is a also a land of close families and small villages that have existed almost unchanged for centuries. We hope you enjoy this brief look at an ancient land, one full of generous people and natural splendours, and agree that there is indeed a lot of good in a life in Galicia.

Over several years, David Shapiro taught a creative writing/critical thinking course in one prison yard in Arizona, where more than half the students are serving life sentences for murder. Though most of them never completed high school, their responses to some unusual writing assignments show an unpolished brilliance that ranges from transcendent enlightenment to raw pain and suffering.