Living life can be messy, beautiful, uplifting, and soul crushing. Eric Johnson brings these emotions and more to life in his debut collection. The Conditions We Live follows a loose narrative of growing up in modern society where we are constantly torn between our better and baser natures, how to live in an increasingly fractured world, and how to find solace in the moments. When the big picture looks bleak, the moment holds a transcendent beauty nonetheless.

With approachable poems about everyday life, this collection intends to open the moments we live to find a mindful presence in our lives. Beginning with images of traveling and discovery, the collection descends into chaotic and sometimes poignant moments of growing up, no matter what our age, ultimately leading to an understanding of self and purpose. Whether you read from cover to cover, or simply dip into the middle, the poems in this collection provide a slice of life, a moment in which there is beauty to explore.

E.A. Johnson is a High School English teacher who has had the privilege of working with students in an important transition time in their life. While recently he teachers mostly seniors, he has worked with all grade levels at different times in his 15 year career. When he's not teaching, he can be found wandering in the woods looking for a good lake to swim in or playing in the back yard with his own children. And while they still get up in the middle of the night- nightmares are real-he wouldn't change a thing. You can find his previous poetry collection The Conditions We Live published by Unsolicited Press, You can find some of his other poems in The Chaffey Review (Spring 2010), The Battered Suitcase (Winter 2010), and Writing Tomorrow (February 2012). If you're looking for something a little different, he has also published a choose your own adventure story as an Alexa skill titled "Dreamweaver Unlocked," and his first full-length novel Under the Shadow's Eye, book one of the Dreamweaver Diaries. For more information or updates, check out his website: ericjohnsonwriter.com