Toad in a Glass Jar: Stan Lake on the Full Spectrum of the Warfighter’s Experience

In episode 165, I sit down with my friend Stan Lake — author, poet, naturalist, filmmaker, and veteran — to dig into his new poetry collection, “Toad in a Glass Jar,” published by Dead Reckoning Collective. Stan and I have shared campfires, conversations about art, music, and nature, and countless stories about the weird, wild intersections of service and life after the military. His writing pulls from his deep love of nature and his lived experience as a veteran, exploring the messy integration and disintegration that comes with transition. Our discussion gets to the heart of why art and honest storytelling around combat trauma, war, and the veteran transition matter and not just for those who’ve served, but for anyone who cares about understanding real human experience in all its contradictions and complexity.

Storytelling is more than just catharsis; it’s survival. Veterans need to connect with each other and with broader audiences, to name, shape, and share their stories — including the hard and the sensitive stuff — because it’s how we combat isolation, build meaning, and lower the risk of mental health challenges that can haunt our community. As a veteran, author, and creative, I believe it’s absolutely necessary to claim the power in our own voices, whether through poetry, essays, music, or conversation. If this episode shows anything, it’s that writing and art aren’t luxuries but  essential tools for processing experience, finding connection, and supporting each other through the ongoing work of transition.

If you’ve got something to say, say it. If you need a community, build it. Your story matters. We need to hear it.

Episode Sponsors:

• VM Merch
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Intro Song composed and produced by Cleod9.

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