Kevin Anderson, a poet and psychologist, agrees with Ralph Waldo Emerson who once observed, "Every human being is a divinity in disguise." In this innovative collection of "nested meditations," he has come up with a fresh way to explore the surprising dimensions of everyday spirituality where even the most commonplace experiences and emotions are shot through with grace and meaning. Anderson's poetic sensibility is also evident in his extensive use of soul-stirring quotations by Emerson and the painting by Vincent Van Gogh on the cover — "Wheat Fields With Reaper, Auvers."

The 76 poems in this collection register on the senses as prayers, playful observations, and a continuous search for meaning. They are called "nested meditations" because each stanza contains the previous stanza along with a new phrase. Anderson suggests you read them aloud and repeatedly to see how the meanings change with each addition. He offers some guidelines for writing nested meditations in the appendix.

Here are meditations on God, the sacred self, love, sexuality, parenting, work, money, death, brokenness, and the afterlife. One of our favorites grew out of Anderson's trip with his family to the Great Smokey Mountain National Park, known as the salamander capital of the world. Whereas the author could not find one of the little amphibians in the river, his daughter had the patience and the persistence to get right down into the stream and turn over rocks. Wonder, you see, is the key to discovering ever new sources of the sacred meaning:

"What's sacred?

What's sacred
is concealed.

What's sacred
is concealed
like a salamander by a stone.

What's sacred
is concealed
like a salamander by a stone
at the edge of the narrow stream.

What's sacred
is concealed
like a salamander by a stone
at the edge of the narrow stream
of your awareness."

Whether writing about the death of his father, the suffering in the world, or the danger of being in stocks and bonds, Anderson keeps opening new doors for our appreciation of the abundant marvels in our daily lives. Here is a wonderful expression of the afterlife:

"I'm slipping, my love.

I'm slipping, my love,
into something more comfortable.

I'm slipping, my love,
into something more comfortable,
and we'll make love again.

I'm slipping, my love
into something more comfortable,
and we'll make love again
one day, perhaps, in the Great Beyond."

Anderson's nested meditations are superb examples of everyday spirituality.

For more information and examples of Kevin Anderson's work, visit Center for Life Balance.