The Pencil Sharpener
It’s a bit disconcerting, the pencil fits in snugly
But sticks out at an angle to the housing.
You check and reassured start twisting gently.
Wood thinner than women’s underwear crawls over your fingers
And as long as there are no jerks or withdrawals
It continues a virgin ribbon.
The lead is shaved of powder to pinpoint tall
And the smell of Californian cedar is not forgotten.
It’s all in the position
Of a tiny blade
In a confined space.
Completing the mission
For which it was made
A salute to the human race.
Saxby Pridmore
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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
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23 mins
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2 mins