John Burroughs, a.k.a. Jesus Crisis, is a Buddho-Taoist, agnostic, liberal, poet, musician, composer, pacifist, pagan, bibliophile, family man, and philosopher in Elyria, Ohio.   Involved in the vibrant Cleveland poetry scene and founder of the burgeoning Crisis Chronicles Press and free online library, JC was born in Richwood, West Virginia, raised in Elyria, and at one point spent eleven years in prison for a crime he did not commit. While there, he was involved a series of musical theatre productions as a script and song writer, actor, musical director and more.  He tutored his fellow inmates in English and mathematics and created and taught courses in meditation, basic biblical Hebrew and Greek, music theory and conflict resolution.  JC has also spent about 20 years of his adult life studying at schools including Lorain County Community College, Ohio University and a couple of seminaries, eventually becoming a number one blogger on MySpace in 2007 before deciding to declare his independence here at www.crisischronicles.com.

JC's work was first published in Kaleidoscope in 1983.  Since then his written words have appeared in more places than he can remember, including Images, The Conch-Us Times, Inner Voices 6, the Prisoner-to-Prisoner daily devotional, Tomorrow Never Knows, Elyria's Chronicle-Telegram, Cleveland's Scene magazine, and (most recently) The City Poetry.  His new poetry chapbook, Bloggerel is available for five dollars from Crisis Chronicles Press; 420 Cleveland Street; Elyria, Ohio 44035.

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Consider this selection from Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet:

"Is not religion all deeds and all reflection,

And that which is neither deeds nor reflection, but a wonder and a surprise ever springing in the soul, even while the hands hew the stone or tend the loom?

Who can separate his faith from his actions, or his belief from his occupations?

Who can spread his hours before him, saying, 'This is for God and this is for myself;
This for my soul, and this other for my body?'

All your hours are wings that beat through space from self to self."