I always wanted to write life-affirming poems: ‘A Compelling Case’ is one of those. There were poets I learned from – Pablo Neruda was crucial, and when I found Sharon Olds I was already in the right place. I think I knew by then that I had come a long way. There are a good dozen life-affirming poems in my Late Love Poems, which are included in Weathereye: Selected Poems. To say I’m grateful for that is an understatement.