Love, joy, confusion, adventure, depression, isolation. These are some of the Sounds of a Cricket. Come find his wonder in life with “Always Magic”, and “Testing Out The Universe”. Feel his longings with “If You Leave My Pond”, and “Touch”. Explore his confusion in relationships with “The Fine Art of Taming Kittens”. View history with “I Remember”, and “Red Devil/White Devil.” Follow his changing styles from his 15th birthday to his 22nd. Find a poem that relates to you. Whether your taste is traditional poetry or stream of consciousness creations. These 31 Sounds of a Cricket are for you.Bonus material:* Each poem includes a page for you to take notes, or write your own poem.* Instructions on how to create 3 different types of poetry
According to his mother, he was reading cereal boxes at the age of 3. He loved reading fiction and comic books, taking adventures to imaginary lands. His love for reading evolved into a love for writing.
When he was 10 years old a relative requested he write a short poem to be a display for pickled eggs at a local drive-in.
When he was 15 his writing exploded as he attempted to make sense of the world around him, and his relationship to it, and others. He wrote poems when he encountered beauty or sadness. He wrote prose when he desired to understand motive or situation.
In high school, he joined the Drama club and took drama as one of his classes. As he told others, "I took Drama because I wanted to understand psychology, but did not want to learn the technical terms."
Michael participated in the school production of Our Town as part of the sound effects team. Here he received the nickname 'Cricket'.
Michael entered his poems for consideration in each year's yearbook. In 1978 his poem, Keep the Rumour Goin' was published.
In 1982 Michael attended the University of Calgary. Graduating in 1988 with a BFA in Drama.
During his time at University, Michael finished his last Mitchell J. Moritz story and continued his free-form style of writing. Ending with the poem, What is it, Really?
His desire to finally publish his poems and short stories came from the grandchildren of his 2nd wife. Michael brought his poems out from storage for them to read. He discovered his words still spoke to him, and his grandchildren.
I treasured those lunch hours, sitting in the drama room, reading my latest pages to my friends gathered around. I loved when I would reach the last page, and have them ask, "What happens next?" I fed off of their interactions, their feedback on how a poem made them feel, or how a story excited them.
It is my desire to share that awe with you.
