Janna Schledorn's poetry chapbook includes a series of poems animating the experiences of Daniel the Prophet in poetic form, offered under the light of a modern cultural understanding. It also includes an additional series of eight poems, most of which also are inspired by spiritual perspective.
Those Nine Days: A note on Daniel the Prophet. If the historical account in the bible is true, the prophet Daniel led a traumatic and psychologically troubling life. As a young man, likely college-age, Daniel was captured by an enemy army and taken from his home in Israel to Babylon. The captives were castrated and forced to serve a series of kings, from crazed Nebuchadnezzar to reckless Belteshazzar, and finally the more-friendly Darius, the Mede.
While Daniel could interpret others' dreams, he was plagued with terrifying nightmares and visions. He suffered from what we today would likely call PTSD, severe anxiety, and depression. The bible records Daniel's encounters with God over his seventy-year span of exilic life: his dreams and visions, and the events of roughly nine days, here presented in chronological order.
Our own lives in the 21st century—facing political corruption, family dysfunction, and religious doubt—often parallel Daniel's psychological and spiritual upheaval. Sometimes we, too, feel like exiles trying to sort out our identity and place in an ever violent and catastrophic world. Like Daniel, we envision and await coming days of hope.
