The Winds of Change: Making It Through

Dealing with the sickness and death of a loved one is difficult enough. Add a job that is no longer rewarding or satisfying and children who are about to leave the nest and you have a recipe for shutting down and looking inward. In The Winds of Change, Tom Poteet takes us on a journey of discovery through his poetry. He looks at the loss of his father, who is deeply loved and admired, while studying the decline in mental attitude that life can bestow when negative feelings overcome hope. The author then uses his early morning meditative time to access the power of prayer and the love of nature; which enable him to move from inward destruction to creativity. With the Love of God and support from his family and friends, the author is then able to climb out of his abyss and face life, which is always full of the challenges it gives us. Tom Poteet takes the reader on a journey from "I don't think I can take anymore" to "Yes, I can". It is a sobering journey that is almost overwhelmed by the loss of a trusted parent; one who willingly shares his wisdom and some really good laugh-out-loud stories. Few want to see their parents depart and take on the responsibility of leading their own families. It's even tougher when we aren't satisfied as to where we are in life and feel we can do so much more. But, of course, losing a parent isn't the end of our lives and need not signal the beginning of the end. It is up to us to learn from the experience (as Tom's dad so wisely states, "It's all a part of growing up.") and move on to a fuller life.The Winds of Change moves the reader from desperation to hope and leaves us with some poems that can be read over and over again no matter where we are in our journey.