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this site is the result of frustration with the state of poetry generally, and the business of publication specifically. being rejected for publication or exhibition strikes me as an unfortunate process by which artists are denied an audience based on the opinion of one or two editors/jurors, so i decided to publish my own work in these pages. but ive struggled with the validity of writing at all in a world that needs so much more direct action. it seemed self indulgent to make pretty baubles to entertain the book-buying bourgeoisie. the writer turned court jester. this led to indecision, and confusion, because it clashed with my own experience of being saved from complete despair by a well placed word. language and reality affect each other for better or worse. i often turn to those whose words seldom fail to inspire me, (i plan to include them here as part of this site), but the most powerful idea to justify the time and energy spent writing came from an surprising source: science. while free associating online (avoiding
writing) i researched the concept popularly known as the butterfly
effect. part of chaos theory, the idea is that even the tiniest
variations in the initial conditions of an experiment, or system,
can cause very large and unpredictable results. the butterfly in
brazil causes a tornado in texas. i realized that small efforts
are worthwhile, and that just being in the world affects and changes
it. this web presence is meant to do just that. about the name: rookery: n. a breeding ground for gregarious birds (such as rooks). i love that, poems as gregarious birds. the mind is the nest where created ideas are nurtured and raised up to the world. then they take on a life of their own. rook: n. a black eurasian bird of the crow family. the lowly crow, scavenger, pest to some, but the smartest of birds and capable of that most enviable trick: flight. rook: n. from Persian rukh. a chess piece. a puzzle of limitless variety, chess requires intelligence and creativity. ive always thought of poetry that way; word combining and, like the game, some combinations are beautiful. so thats what artists can be; alchemists of ordinary elements or common language, who combine them in ways that rise above the sum of their parts. higher perches to provide new perspectives, to allow the dignity of being objective. or maybe just the pure joy of soaring above it all.
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