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An explanation from the poet: ?This is a book from me unlike any you have read before. Oh, it is poetry, with a flourish of styles and language and intensity...but the difference is the focus. Having a lifetime of poetry in which I have obscured the identities of those who have inspired me, to protect them from scrutiny and harassment (it has happened), I am focusing on and dedicating this volume to Mariya Andriichuk, my friend and Constant Collaborator who has contributed so much to the imagery and vision of my works, her photography and form taking its place in my books and other media, enhancing the vision and resonance of my works. But more than that, I must confess a deliberate and intense affection, a passion for her. A few years ago, I even proposed marriage to her. She turned me down, and it hurt, a lot, but I'm a big boy and my heart remained fixed on her. We have remained friends and collaborators, and I retain hope that one day I will inspire in her the fire that I carry for her. In some ways it will be a measure of how competent a poet, a composer of amomancies, that I am. More than once I have confronted the possibility that remaining steadfast in my love might mean I will live out my days alone, extending my current monastic existence for the rest of my days. It has been a choice of torments, as I am by nature a passionate romantic, and such isolation is not my preference. But here it is, EROica, in part a tribute to her, in part a tribute to my passion and acknowledgement of passion for her, in part about the complexities brought on by the recent invasion of her homeland, Ukraine. I am a pacifist, but I respect the fierce determination with which her people have responded and how she has stood by them. Mariya has featured heavily in many of my books over the 14 years since I first encountered her, but this is her tribute, revelatory as it is in how I think and feel. But also about her courage and talent as she endures the fates and tides of history. I will make certain that she approves this introduction (she did), as I have no desire to put her in an awkward position, and the fact that you are reading this means I have sought and obtained her approval to include this introduction. I am grateful for this. Respectfully, and with abiding love.
