In addition to being a psychologist, I am a poet. I never consciously intend to write poems; the impulse just comes to me from time to time. Sometimes a line or a phrase of a poem comes into my head, or sometimes an idea or a framework for a whole poem. Then I sit down and start writing. It’s partly a process of crafting the raw material into a finished, structured whole and partly a process of remaining open, to allow other material to flow through and become part of the whole. If from anywhere, I would say that my poems come from “spiritual” states, moments of heightened awareness in which I feel connected to a deeper self, to nature, and to other people. I have noticed that I’m more likely to feel the impulse to write poems after a good meditation, after a quiet walk in the countryside, or just after a period of rest. This fits with research showing that meditation and other relaxed states of mind can enhance creativity. Many of the …