Early versions of the poems in this collection first appeared between 1972 and 2016 in journals such as; Southern Poetry Review, Cold Mountain Review, Illinois Quarterly, Anglican Theological Review, Old Hickory Review, Alive Now, Weavings, Belle R ve. Still: The Journal, and The Pikeville Review. Some of these poems, such as "Take Nothing for Your Journey," On A Sermon on I Chronicles," and "A Mad King Weeps the Loss of His Son" take their inspiration from Biblical narratives. Others, like "Entering the Seminary," "Sarah's Bath" and "Tubing White Oak Creek" are based on personal experiences. Still others are based in legend and oral traditions such as "Storyway," "The Circuit Rider," "Snipe Hunt," and "Song of the Shaman." Michael Williams' first published poem appeared in the Southern Poetry Review in 1972 when he was twenty-one years old. He has published poetry in journals since then and is the author or editor of twenty works of non-fiction, Take Nothing for Your Journey is his first published collection of poems. "The Song of the Shaman" was awarded a Triton Award for Poetry by Triton College (Illinois) and appeared in the anthology, Passage. He has served as a United Methodist Pastor for over forty years and as General Editor of A Storyteller's Companion to the Bible.