Brenda Hillman read some of her poems and described background information about her inspirations. She questions what animals think and the inner spirits inside pumpkins and other elements in nature. She even used animal language in one of her poems by mimicking squirrel sounds. Brenda says, "There's a spirit inside everything". Within her poems she utilizes the scientific or Latin names of ordinary words because she appreciates the sound and beauty of the words. Her belief in the spirit world prompts her to interpret the energy given off by inanimate objects. 

Hillman's poem, Some Kinds of Reading in Childhood, describes her discovery of poetry and how it helped her through her rough childhood and may even save the world. She discusses how critical kids are of pictures of themselves and how they want to correct their flaws. Hillman says there is "incomprehensible fire" in her eyes when she looks at her packet of pictures from picture day. At Macalaster when she explained her poem she said kids view their photos "knowing what will correct themselves", meaning they can see their flaws. She took comfort in poetry and reading. Poetry saved her from the torment of self judgment and she explains that poetry has the capacity to impact many people and undo the evils within society.