Voices from the Meadow of the Mind of the Wandering Spirit is a collection of poems over a life infused with the experiences, biases, and meanderings of a child of nature, growing up among Minnesota lakes and swamps, and going on to immerse himself in studies of the majestic Great Lakes for 40 years. The poems delve into the mysteries and lessons that our fellow plants and animals provide and often probes the role of humanity in causing extinctions and climate-change catastrophes. One person’s exploration of nature and humanity, this collection considers what it would be like to fly through the universe unimpeded and see first-hand, the black holes, stars, planets, and galaxies it holds.

David Jude, PhD, a fishery biologist and limnologist, joined the Great Lakes Research Division, University of Michigan in 1973, as head of a team to determine impacts of a nuclear power plant on fishes in Lake Michigan. He joined the School for Environment and Sustainability in 2002. He has studied invasive species, toxic substances, and fish populations. He discovered the exotic round and tubenose gobies from the Caspian Sea and first-time spawning deepwater sculpin. He has been down in a submarine, taught fish ecology and Great Lakes ecosystems, and participated in Great Lakes cruises aboard EPA’s Lake Guardian and University of Michigan’s R/V Laurentian. Jude grew up along the shores of Lake Wobegone in Minnesota, where the children are all above average. His latest interests include finding all the Petoskey stones in Lake Michigan and agates in Lake Superior, carving fish from driftwood, and finishing his album, Jude Unplugged.