Saenz, Gil 1941–

(Gilbert Saenz)

PERSONAL:

Born October 17, 1941, in Detroit, MI; son of Valentine and Lena M. Saenz. Ethnicity: "Mexican-American." Education: Wayne State University, B.A., 1968. Politics: Democrat. Religion: Roman Catholic. Hobbies and other interests: Music.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Melvindale, MI. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Poet. Worked as a government employee in the field of information technology until retirement in 2004. Military service: U.S. Air Force, 1960-63.

MEMBER:

Academy of American Poets, U.S. Diplomatic Courier Association, Poetry Society of Michigan.

WRITINGS:

POETRY

Moments in Time, illustrated by George Perazza, privately printed (Detroit, MI), 1995.

Dreaming of Love, Pentland Press (Raleigh, NC), 1999.

Poems of Life (bilingual in English and Spanish), Laredo Publishing (Beverly Hills, CA), 2001.

Spaces in Between: A Collection of Poems, 1st Books Library (Bloomington, IN), 2002.

(Editor) The Other Side of Darkness: MDDA Anthology, MDDA of Metro Detroit (Detroit, MI), 2003.

Also author of the short work"Colorful Impressions," with illustrations by George Perazza, privately printed, 1993. Contributor to Downriver Reflections: Downriver Poets & Playwrights Member Anthology, Volume 2, edited by Bob Rankin, 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

Gil Saenz told CA: "Writing, especially the writing of poetry, has been one of my main interests for many years now. It has been a source of great friendships and acquaintances. Even though I worked for the government until 2004, I managed to fit in some type of writing activity. I would write entries in my daily log book to describe the individual calls that I received while I was working on the customer service desk; sometimes this would amount to a small paragraph of narrative comments. I wanted to be able one day to write prose or poetry that could be enjoyed and admired by my readers.

"I don't have a systematic way of writing poems. I keep my notebook handy and write down my thoughts from time to time. I can always refer back to them to see if I have some good ideas or inspirations

"My poems usually are the result of certain ideas or feelings that are very striking to me. Poetry writing is the same as other types of writing. The more you practice, the closer you get to capturing your real insights on a particular subject. In this sense I feel that I am always changing, growing, and evolving."