Knute Skinner: Three Poems
An Interesting Cover
There were two wrought-iron chairs in the park—
more or less in the middle of the park.
I sat down on one, pretending to be absorbed
in the book I held in my hands.
I was only looking at the pages.
I was only looking at the pages,
but when a jogger paused,
just long enough to ask me about the book,
I gave it inordinate praise,
and I held it up for her view.
Yes, I gave that book inordinate praise,
although—if I speak the truth—
the book was not even mine.
I had picked it up from a bulging basket of cut-rates
in front of a nearby shop.
It did have an interesting cover.
Yes, it did have an interesting cover,
but the pages inside?
Well, each page looked very much
the same as another.
I opened the book to show her the title page.
And what did that woman do?
Oh, that woman waited a well-timed minute
before she sat down on the second wrought-iron chair.
She sat on the very edge of that chair
as if she was not at all…
Madam: Archbishop Fisher (July-August 2024) does not resist the attacks on his church by the political, social or scientific atheists and those who insist on not being told what to do.
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6 mins
To claim Aborigines have the world's oldest continuous culture is to misunderstand the meaning of culture, which continuously changes over time and location. For a culture not to change over time would be a reproach and certainly not a cause for celebration, for it would indicate that there had been no capacity to adapt. Clearly this has not been the case
Aug 20 2024
23 mins
A friend and longtime supporter of Quadrant, Clive James sent us a poem in 2010, which we published in our December issue. Like the Taronga Park Aquarium he recalls in its 'mocked-up sandstone cave' it's not to be forgotten
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2 mins