Let's make this birthday one to remember.

72 years old (Born on March 18, 1953)

Happy Birthday, Franz Wright! May your day be filled with poetic inspiration and fewer existential crises than usual. Winning the Pulitzer Prize for "Walking to Martha's Vineyard" was impressive enough—though we suspect you secretly hoped it came with a lifetime supply of vineyard wine.

From exploring profound depths in "Kindertotenwald," finding tranquility amid chaos in "God's Silence," to pondering life's mysteries in "The Beforelife," you've given us poetry that resonates deeply (and occasionally confuses delightfully). Here's wishing you another year of brilliant verses, quiet contemplation, and perhaps finally discovering what exactly happens before life—or at least before coffee.