The poems in 'black seeds on a white dish' spring from the search for what is generated and discovered when loss and desire occupy the same space. But lamentation is not the primary focus-by destabilizing everything in its reach, loss disables rigidity. These poems shift widely in form and tone, and seeds invoke the creative germ that spurs the metamorphoses occupying "Nothing to do but let the form of things take over." Shapes themselves, including punctuation, become a language throughout. Shira Dentz is the recipient of numerous awards including the Poetry Society of Americas Lyric Poem Award, and her poems have appeared in many journals including The American Poetry Review, The Iowa Review, jubilat, Black Warrior Review, and Bombay Gin, as well as having been featured on Poetry Daily and National Public Radio.