Avian Effects II
1
Those throaty wattlebirds,
What do they gargle?
The flame-trees’ nectar?
A fragrant breeze? Sunlight?
2
The origami moon,
A paper-white egret.
It thermals gently
On the morning’s blue.
3
Spoonbills in the paperbarks.
Below them the lake deploys
A vast expanse of sky,
Mirrorous, full of water-birds.
4
The crow’s eye is Arctic,
Feathers like black permafrost.
Not even this balmy day
Can melt its disposition.
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.
Aug 29 2024
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
Aug 16 2024
2 mins