Driving Home
When we were lighter on our feet
our evenings among friends
were filled with coq au vin
and smoke and rowdy songs
that woke the kids upstairs
but what the hell, and anyhow
at midnight, pink with amitié
we kissed each other’s wives
and let our headlights guide us home.
Our long, ungainly, unexpected lives
ran off ahead of us, like frightened animals.
Many will disagree, but World War III is too great a risk to run by involving ourselves in a distant border conflict
Sep 25 2024
5 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