A word from Monte

My writing began as a desire to understand myself, find my place in the world and perhaps relate my experiences to others.

After many years of unfulfilling and physically demanding jobs, I returned to school, as a mature and ‘non-traditional student.’  It was in my English Literature class that I began to find myself through words; the way they developed across the page, as I processed the multitude of guilt, anger and disappointment the previous years had evoked. It integrated well with my endeavor to abstain from alcohol and drugs as that involved taking a personal inventory of my past and attempts to make amends to the people I had harmed. I wrote the truth of my past – filled with behaviors that led to things I had done to myself and others. It seemed to have opened a door for writing poetry—something I had no idea existed within me.

I wrote hundreds of poems from the mid 90’s through the mid 2000’s. They ranged from love to war, family, environment and the emotional healing I found in the silence of nature. Many of the poems written during this time are in my first book of poetry, “Heart of the Desert.” Along the way, I had many amazing friends and opportunities that supported my creativity and encouraged me to continue writing. This became my escape and process to better understand myself in the world that, up to this point, had little meaning. I became involved in ‘Performance Poetry,’ which further developed my love for this medium. I recall one friend in particular who often stated that ‘the rule of poetry is that there aren’t any rules,’ from which ensued friendly debates among my literary group. Nevertheless, it set the stage for fun events and, reciting my own and other authors’ poetry, helped polish my writing skills and diminished my fear of public speaking.

I embarked on a new career, serving those experiencing homelessness in Salt Lake City, which kept my writing to a minimum. However, after 30 years of doing the work, I retired and found myself again with a pen in hand. This ‘work’ drastically altered my preconceived ideas of why, and then how, people became homeless. I learned a great deal about human behavior and received many lessons from homeless men and women about what we can do, what people will accept and when to just be present. My writing in general has been influenced by the people I worked with and, at times, felt as if I gained more than what was given. All in all, it was a challenging occupation that was exasperating and fulfilling, often at the same time. In my next collection of poetry, you will find poems inspired by these experiences.

My first book of poetry, “Heart Of The Desert,” was a dream for too many years. I kept ‘putting it back on the shelf,’ thinking I would get to it, one day. Quickly, days turned into years and now, my first book is published and I am grateful to Merry Robin Publishing for their invaluable assistance in making a dream come to life. This journey has entailed many emotional reconnections to a self I thought had been lost in the quagmire of maintaining a livelihood and I can see a new chapter emerging.  

For the future, I am working on my second book of poetry; a children’s book about life lessons learned from the care of horses, particularly my first horse given to me at 10 yrs of age, and I am getting back to a book I started many years ago that will tell the stories of our homeless whom I had direct and lengthy interactions with. I am not sure if my second book of poetry will come out first in 2024 or the children’s book. That depends on where my writing takes me, as it has a life of its own that often feels directed by an unknown source, rather than from the mind of this man.

Thank you for visiting my site and may you find my writing enjoyable and perhaps even enlightening.  Please leave a review on Amazon and leave a comment or question at www.life-onpurpose.com/montehanks and I will get back to you.

Safe journey, my friends.

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