Sawdust to Stardust
The 1st Book
From workshop benches to whispered prayers, Sawdust to Stardust blends humor, wisdom, memory, and heartfelt reflection across more than 100 original poems.
Shaped by a life of work, family, music, loss, laughter, and a fair amount of sawdust, the collection moves through moments both mighty and mundane: the aroma of fresh-cut hardwoods, the echo of rock and roll legends, the quiet strength of service members, the joy of a child’s laughter, and even the occasional bit of gnome-sized mischief.
Each section invites the reader to pause, whether for a grin, a tear, or a thoughtful nod. The poems celebrate handcrafted words, shared memories, and the stubborn courage it sometimes takes simply to keep showing up.
Divided into themed sections, Sawdust to Stardust ranges from workshop wisdom and musical tributes to parenting, patriotism, reflection, and playful pieces for the young at heart. Poems such as The Quiet Promise, Shifting Auras, and Before the Applause sit alongside philosophical punchlines and everyday observations in the voice of The Sawdust Sage™.
Whether you are a woodworker, a dreamer, a rocker, a veteran, or simply someone trying to make meaning out of the mess, there is likely something familiar in these pages.
This is poetry for readers who believe verse does not have to be pretentious to be powerful, and that sometimes the truest wisdom comes covered in sawdust.
How Sawdust to Stardust Began
Sawdust to Stardust became the first book I published, but it did not begin with the idea that I was setting out to write “my first book.”
It grew from material that was already there: poems, observations, memories, bits of humor, reflections on work, family, music, service, aging, and the ordinary things that tend to stay with us longer than expected.
Over time, those pieces began to look less like a loose collection and more like something that belonged together.
The voice that eventually became The Sawdust Sage™ was already there too: part craftsman, part observer, part storyteller, with enough humor to keep the heavier thoughts from taking themselves too seriously.
Once the poems were gathered, organized, and shaped into themed sections, the collection became Sawdust to Stardust.
Publishing it turned out to be more than releasing a book. It became the starting point for everything that followed.
What began as a collection of poems became the first published step in a much larger writing journey.