The optional theme for the month was, fittingly, titled “Sunshine” as the day was a beautiful sunny Qld winter day, almost perfect. We started off the afternoon with a visit from Tash a Journalist student from Bond Uni that did some interviews and a filmed some of our poets performing poetry, for her class presentation. She and her cameraman said they enjoyed the visit and will send me a copy of the video that will be destroyed after she presents it to her teacher only, not her class. Roger sent apologies as he is off to the UK and Joan attended as she had just returned three days ago from her dream of a lifetime European cruise holiday.
We had five new people attended on the day and all had been prompted to come along after hearing the talented “Banjo” last month then our other little Aussie mate the “Mudgeeraba Budgerigar”, Bob on 91.7 ABC Coast FM radio with Peter Scott this month. We now have a regular spot on the Saturday prior to our poetry afternoon and we will take turns reciting each month amongst those keen to recite ‘on-air’!! Invites will go out soon.
Marjorie, Leonie and Jeannie all attended for the first time and all came along separately, all three of them said they would just listen and may recite a poem next month. Jeannie and Leonie said that they were made to feel so much at home by such lovely people, and that they felt so comfortably accepted into our group that they both overcame first time nerves and recited some beautiful poetry. Marjorie was similarly so impressed that she walked home and got one of her poems and made it back in time to recite!! Two gentlemen, both poets sat at the back and were keen to return next month.
Bob started the day off with a great poem about Sunshine and nearly everyone had written on the optional theme and most had also written using the optional first line, “Softly she trod o’er the damp grass…..”. The theme prompts so many different interpretations of the themes and it make for a great variety and bring out the differences in us all. The standard of the poetry is so good and diverse, bringing comments of praise and support from all present. His second poem was another divulgence of one of Bob’s dreams titled “Food Fantasy” as it detailed his reminiscence of old fashioned true blue Aussie style food. Bob closed the day brilliantly with a unique and comical description of a very unique Aussie garage/lawn sale, (you had to be there because my Mum said I’m not allowed to write those sorts of words!!)
Joan educated us on S.A.D and told us all how to get a pick me up from the sun and to avoid depression by spending more time in our beautiful Aussie outdoors. Her second poem was titled ‘Eucalypt’ and was a great tribute to our Aussie gum trees, remembering her childhood and adult experiences beneath and beside them, especially in the NT. Joan assured us that a few poems inspired by her travels will be forthcoming in the next few months.
Gloria told us how she once spent $1000.00 on an amazing find ‘yourself’ weekend with a genuine miracle producing Guru!!, but sadly she is still looking for that elusive other independently super wealthy self that drives around in a 918 Porsche Macan. In Gloria’s second poem she shared her feelings with her poem titled “Children are our future”, it was lovely poem reminding us of the circle of life and our duty to care for the little ones as we make our way along life’s great journey.
David’s first poem was about all the great things that the “Sunshine” provides to our beautiful planet and how our very existence depends on it 100%, along with every life form down here. David then shared his “Sunshine”, poem co-written by himself and his eleven year old granddaughter; as he wrote the first verse then mailed it her and she mailed back the second then she wrote the third and she replied with the fourth and fifth. David is really trying hard to get young people into writing poetry and it is a long held passion of his that he will continue to pursue.
Alex recited the poem that he revealed to us two months ago titled written in 1974 by Scottish poet, Robin Williamson; titled “Me and the mad girl” a really great poem, thanks Alex. His second poem was a short meaningful poem written by Les Murray titled the “Meaning of existence”. His third poem was a short one tilted “The Bedside Clock” and was nicely written, it was another of his great, ‘deep’ poems as was his fourth poem about the innocence of youth and how a friend went ‘missing’ and he dint understand why or how.
Manya wrote a very good poem about the “she trod…..” theme and it was as funny as it was unique and it was very well received by all. Manya shared some family history as she proudly told of how her mother has just recently survived a heart attack at 99 years of age, how her mother had raised her and her three siblings as children, living for years in Japanese Prison of war camp and that her Father had been one of those unfortunates working on the infamous brutal ‘Burma Railway’; her poem spoke of the trials and tribulations of family and how we are forced to look at our lives and loves when we are united by tragedy and grief, titled “To be Human”.
Judi shared her poem on ‘Sunshine’ with a nice positive reminder of all the good things in life and how we can all get out in the garden and produce wonderfully fresh fruit and vegetables while basking in the warmth of the sun. Judi’s second poem was very well written and it was on the “She trod..” theme as told of a friend struggling with walking on the ‘wet’ grass of life and how she wished the good days would come and the struggling and pain will become a distant memory.
Banjo recited a poem by my favourite Australian legend Mr Henry Lawson first published in October 1981, titled “My Literary Friend”, a great poem with a great message that at first, had seemed to come from within our group!! His second poem was penned by my second most favourite Australian Poet A.B ‘Banjo’ Patterson, titled “Story of the Mongrel Grey”, a poem about the intelligence and nature of one of God’s greatest gifts to the world, the horse, if you’ve ever been lucky enough to have had one as a friend you’ll know where the heart of the story comes from.
Ted’s poem on ‘Sunshine’ was written only four hours earlier and it was a pretty good effort for a lazy Sunday morning, questioning life and all its wonderful colours along with the decision to be a giver or a taker. ‘Softly she trod…’ was the opening line for his second poem and it was a very well written poem about Mary Magdalene and her compassion and devotion to the Son of God.
Trish told us all that her “Mother Said” lots of things to her and taught her all about the world in a wonderful way, Trish wrote her poem so that the last word of each line became the first word of the next line and she wondered if that was a particular style of poetry writing, no one present knew the answer and Google came up with nothing!! Her second poem was about the day she was attacked by a screaming mad swooping attacker that tried to stab her with their thorny appendage and terrified her to her very core, it was tilted “The Plover”!!!
Joyce wrote a poem in the second person pretending she was Mac writing about her and how she bought a shelf from Ikea and then she couldn’t put it together and then finally did and after all that it didn’t fit in the designated cavity because she didn’t measure it properly and then blamed Mac!! Mac lovingly after 66 wonderful years of marriage, a poem about Joyce being Joyce and creating a shelf that stands in the middle of the room with nowhere to go except maybe to ‘Lifeline”!! Joyce’s other poem was a tricky one about a lonely homeless lady wandering the streets at night looking for a warm place to sleep, the twist at the end was that the lady was in fact a cat, well how about that that!! Mac’s other poem was on the “she trod… “theme and he wrote about the sunshine state, which he believes is called God’s country, FN QLD.
Eoin wrote on the ‘Sunshine’ and also prompted us all to get up and go outside and enjoy life to the limit, take it all in as we wander and explore all about this beautiful land. His second poem was a sad but true tale of a lost little red book, the journalist’s best friend, companion and soul mate, oh note pad where art thou?????
Jean travelled all the way from Kingscliff again to be at our group and it was well worth the trip as she recited on the “she trod… “ theme, a very nice and funny poem about love, eloping, impulsiveness, wills, car crashes and lost love!! Her second poem was on the ‘Sunshine’ theme and she also encouraged us with her words to go out and seize life, share goodness and partake in random acts of kindness to strangers and loved ones.
Pat returned to the group for the first time this year as she recited her poem detailing her wonderful recent holiday in the UK, travelling around with her granddaughter that lives in London, sounds like they both had a great time and it was great poem.
Leonie recited a nice poem about a nice young lady being ‘led down the path’ buy a young lad, it ended with a twist as it was the farm hand taking the cow for milking. Her second poem was a tale of love between a rose and a bush rose, the story bloomed for a while then ended in a pruning tragedy beyond compare.
Jeannie recited a funny poem about her husband and his male passion to buy stuff at garage sales because you just never when one day you just may need those extra twenty fishing rods and that fourth power saw under the eight bar stools in the corner of the half full garage cause it won’t fit in the shed!! Her second poem was a heartfelt verse dedicated to those struggling farmers that are forced to shoot their stock when the drought goes on forever and the sales just don’t happen, such a painful life at times forged on this land that at times can be as harsh as it is rewarding.
Marjorie waked home and came back with her really nice poem about words and her lines all ended with a ‘tion’ such as recitation indication hesitation and contemplation and it was written about this great nation and we listened with much anticipation and we were not kept waitin!!
Thank you everyone for a great day of poetry and thank you sharing the day with the film crew and for putting up with the dodgy book created by a dodgy author who at times puts out dodgy flyers with dodgy words and even missing words at times!! See you all next month, with thanks from Jeffrey Irene Joan Bob Judi Banjo Gloria Trish and all the Poets in Paradise.
