With all the world in disarray,
one tender blossom survives;
In the deepest crevasse of the human soul
the kindness of heart still thrives.
—From “Reveries” by Alexandra Villard de Borchgrave, 2021
“Reveries: In Search of Love, Hope, and Courage” is a book of poetry by American writer and photojournalist Alexandra Villard de Borchgrave. Within, a trusting and compassionate hand seems to coax our fears and sorrow out from their dark prisons, and transform them, page after page.
Villard de Borchgrave is the author of six books of poetry and a biography of her great-grandfather, railroad magnate and financier Henry Villard. She grew up all around the world and worked as an international journalist in the 1960s and 1970s. But her spiritual and artistic faculties were only pressed into service in the aftermath of 9/11, when she sought to help victims heal by offering comforting poetry. Since then, readers, from terminally ill patients to grieving family members, have called her poetry profound, uplifting, and healing….