I was born and raised in Janesville, WI, and moved around the west for several years before coming back to the rivers and lakes, farm fields and forests of the Midwest.

While before pursuing college I read widely in modern literature and world religious literature, after encountering Old English (ca. 450-1100) poetry, my primary areas of interest and research quickly became Old and Middle English poetry, medieval Western monasticism, and the Western contemplative tradition.

In addition to my scholarship, my original verse and verse translations of Old and Middle English poems have appeared in a number of journals and magazines. My first poetry collection, Sunk in Your Shipwreck, charts a verse itinerary through different parts of my own life, different parts of the world, and different cultural and religious visions.

Over the past few years, my life and work have focused ever more on the western contemplative tradition, especially as it is presented in monastic culture, and on what it means to live in the Upper Midwest. As you browse around the site, you’ll see ample evidence of my concern with these (perhaps) strange bedfellows.

If you find yourself interested, please do reach out.