Author: colleen

Lockdown Walk No. 2 – North Beach/Lake walk by Colleen Keating

colleen Lockdown Walks , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

   

North Beach/ Lake Walk

A new lockdown walk.  We are calling it the North Beach/Lake walk. Today we set out across The Entrance Bridge,a thing I don’t normally like to do but there were very few cars today. We turned right and headed  up onto the ridge overlooking this all encompassing ocean.  Breathtaking.  It was a stunning winter day. The ocean wide and deep blue, lay out like a silken sheet loosely ruffled. Large rolling beachcombers (waves) continuously smooth and regular came in. Spindrift sprayed lightly. A few board riders demonstrated the perfect style of the waves.
Besides the photographic views to our right as we walked through the re-stabilised dunes, we enjoyed the work that the Bush Care groups have done over the years with the vegetation and bird life. 

The track, very smooth. solid, easy for Michael to walk, and the ground cover of cerise pig face,  yellow and orange gazania, pink bindweed and ground covers of daises.  it was like a rainbow carpet spreading out over the hills and down to the beach edge.

       

Growing up stands of golden banksia  with lorikeets dangling gleefully chirping, Bottle brushes, and the mallees mainly burgeoning wattle . Seagulls, magpies and in the undergrowth lots of fairy wrens . swinging on the native grasses flipping into the shrubs . We walked quietly – the sandy path absorbed the sound of our footstep.Towards the end we came across one of the volunteer workers and chatted briefly.

 

We came out and crossed the road to the lake side .  We walked along Tuggerah Lake to the Sensory Gardens  where we sat and had our picnic. 

We had come to rest and the lake slept without hardly a ripple.  A winter  afternoon sun

     

 

A blue haze enfolded everything . Reaching far into the distance the hills, the Watagans were suffused in a majestic blue to navy light. The hills looked like pile upon pile of tones of blue.  I felt I could reach out and and pull them to me.  Trees, bullrushes, small bamboos, reeds and the grasses had forgotten themselves in the daze blue. 

 

Just beyond two vegetated islands sat. On the furthest away a platoon of pelicans clustered close  . . one flew in and joined the group, cormorants diving and resurfacing, two ducks glided and then a canoeist glided past  leaving their wakes to whistle the water surface. 

Further out there was a flock of birds on the edge of a sand bank wading . We could not recognise them but had a sense it might have been the family of spoonbills we had caught in the muddy creek running into the lake over the south side. But couldn’t be sure. We were more sure of the chirping in the bamboo along the way and stood and watched the family of wrens . . .the blue fairy wrens and the flitting little brown wrens all busy about their chatter and just being.

(Interestingly earlier we saw a fairy blue wren feeding on  the nectar of a golden Banksia.  it flitted in and flitted away. For the last 100 metres we were joined by two willy wag tails chattering around our feet for awhile. They had a lot to say.  It felt they had been with us the whole way and came at the end to remind they have been watching our journey.

And we came along the lake back to the bridge to cross and our NorthBeach/Lake walk came to an end. How blessed we  are we that we can walk from home along the beach and along the lake all in 12.000  steps. 

 

Lockdown Walk No.1 Getting to know local inhabitants by Colleen Keating

colleen Lockdown Walks, Poetry , , , ,

Getting to know local inhabitants

there is no ordinary thing
the wind’s song in the she oaks drip of gold
on a pelican’s wing the whip-bird tease
the silver meddle of fish on the lake
encounters with magpie and wren, turtle and swan
ancient rocks and shift of tide
this is the joy of discovery

with snake-like neck the cormorant dives
the ibis clings awkwardly
to a branch on the Norfolk
the grey heron feeds in the light
under the brood of hills and
stillness of lake.

here is good energy to live by
each scene is startling
and poetry
to meet with hands open wide

knowing when we look
there are surprises –
other things to come
the heron’s pickax-beak wakes the stillness
wobbling the boats tied by the boatshed
the ibis lands down on the overflowing bin
and just when we are caught
in the moment
a reminder nothing is permanent

the cormorant surfaces to float idley
the grey heron cranks up
and flies into the sun
and we are left with the longing
for more of the extraordinary
or what now do we hold in our open hands?


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Celebrating winter light by Colleen Keating

colleen Poetry ,

 

 

It was the week before the Winter school break. We decided to come for a few days up the coast before the holiday. We believe the best kept secret is the Winter Beach.
And the past few days are the proof of that . . .
Rugged up and out walking we have enjoyed the soft landing of light on the lake, on the waves, on the birds’ wings, at dawn and at dusk .
The icing for us on our break is the waxing moon and the climax last night of the full moon, called the Strawberry Moon. We walked along the beach by the cold June sea to wait and watch for its appearance like one waits for a much anticipated celebrity. And she did not disappoint. In rich strawberry and cream she rose trailing clouds of salmon-pink, hints of saffron.

 

And Arvo Pärt seem to be with us as a Spiegle im Spiegle music played in colour and sound along the beach the moon with its golden path shimmering along the ocean dappled and rippled at the edge as the incoming tide gave the sand a mirror effect. Yes many have grappled with this celebration of light, One of my favourite artists JMW Turner is such a one with his paintings that burst with light.

Besides us on the beach was a fisherman,  four giggley girls one who told me she had already taken 200 photos, a few photographers up higher , a few seagull feeding from wet sand and a lone pelican, Michael and me.

 

Strawberry moon
a pelican and us two
drink-in the pink pool 

 

across the ocean
winter moon
unites us

our local aurora
light runs across the sky
and into my memory

How can I show we were immersed in a painting. Yes it could be a Turner?

Michael has just read a poem by Jack Cooper who calls himself an ‘observational free verse poet inspired by existence’ and this experience is a celebration for a poet.
as Mary Oliver writes about the take off of a swan across the sky,

And did you feel it, in your heart, how it pertained to everything?
And have you too finally figured out what beauty is for?
And have you changed your life?

 

 

Winter Solstice and haiku by Colleen Keating

colleen Poetry , , , ,

Monday marks the Winter Solstice.

Leading off, here is a haiku by the 17th Century Japanese poet Matsuo Basho.

Like many haikus, it is deceptively simple: each line enacted by the next.

Winter solitude
in a world of one colour
the sound of wind.

 

What is the Winter Solstice?

The Winter Solstice has been celebrated for centuries and is the shortest day and the longest night of the year. It’s a time that is known for the sun to stand still before moving forwards to the slow progression of longer days. It has carried strong symbolism and some people refer to it as a rebirth of the sun. Occurring sometime between June 21- 22 June ( December 20 – 22 in the Northern Hemisphere).

It’s a time to honour the darkness and celebrate the light. It’s the perfect time for self reflection, putting yourself on pause and going within to connect to your own darkness and let go. I’m in the process of doing just that. Taking the time out that I need to re-group and letting go of thoughts and beliefs that no longer serve me.

The Winter Solstice doesn’t have to be a dark or somber reflective experience—it can be joyful and lighthearted. Winter festivals, fire and light and social gatherings are all part of it too. Celebrate the birth or return of the light

Here are two winter solstice haiku written by one of the haiku masters

snowflakes flitting down
a winter solstice<
celebration

Issa– translated by David G. Lanoue

 

winter solstice in Japan
plum trees
in bloom!

Issa – translated by David G. Lanoue

 

 

Some of my  own thoughts:  –

winter stroll 

a celebration dance

willy wag tail         col

 

 

winter stroll 

a canteen of spoonbills

filtering the mud         col

 

winter blues

only a heron and i 

drink in the light     col

ocean squall

a hawk soars 

in a cold up-draught   col

 

winter solstice 

my grand-daughter rides her bike 

without training wheels   col

 

winter solstice 

shadow of light turns

 on the nearby hill     col

 

the year’s shortest day

the sun breaks the horizon

anew    col

winter beach

winds abrasive dance 

keeps it lonely      col

 

 

winter lake

a cormorant hangs his wings 

out on the wind    col

wind chilled air 

cormorants sit brooding 

on every post    col

 

just another day

three pelicans wait for

return of fishing boats  col

 

winter solstice 

apples crisp for picking 

in the nearby hills          col

winter warmth

minestrone soup served with 

home-made bread    col

 

winter drive 

to pick apples

childhood memory             col

 

 

 

 

 

winter trees

birdwatching

made weasy     col

 

 

 

family gathering

with food laden table

her last meal            col

 

Windfall: Australian Haiku Issue 9 Review by Simon Hanson

colleen Poetry , , , , ,

A great review of Windfall Issue 9 and I feel very excited to get a mention in the review and feel proud to be mentioed with such good haikuists.

Windfall: Australian Haiku Issue 9, 2021 – Review

Review by Simon Hanson

How fortunate we are  to have a journal like Windfall: Australian Haiku, showcasing as it does, the best of Australian haiku— bringing together familiar and new voices (and the new voices are exciting). This issue, like those before it celebrates many and varied aspects of Australian life in its country, coastal, urban and domestic settings accompanied by a host of perceptive observations around season, landform, flora and fauna and the lives of people.

we slow our stroll
to another time
outback town

Glenys Ferguson

perching magpie
the blackened stump
seamed with ash

Gavin Austin

 

In reviewing any journal or anthology one is invariably faced with the task of singling out particular poems for mention. There is some discomfort in doing this, made all the more acute in this instance given the quality of the entire collection. Let it be said that one could happily include any of the haiku presented in this issue as worthy of mention here. The inclusions I make here are a means of indicating something of the range of subject and style to be found in the whole issue— and a wonderful issue it is. The real task of selection has of course been done by its editor, Beverley George, choosing and sequencing 63 haiku from some 560 submitted poems, the size of the journal inevitably limiting the number of acceptances to the most outstanding haiku from the many received. We may be assured that the entire process of editing is heartfelt and undertaken with much thought and feeling over many, many weeks— as has been the case with each issue over the past nine years— what a contribution to our haiku community.

colour splashed
on a grey day canvas . . .
rainbow lorikeets

Gwen Bitti

 

warm breeze from south west
the main and jib on hard
beating to the mark

Brian English

An editor does far more than select and organise work for any given issue.  The challenge and value of quality editing is not only to give the published poets a recognised voice but to produce a publication which offers reader enjoyment and a large measure of inspiration for further creativity. Come June and July each year many of us turn our minds to Windfall: Australian Haiku, becoming perhaps a little more attuned than usual to the “…experience of urban and rural life in Australia…”. In revisiting past issues, we might gather amongst other things a sense of what might appeal, refreshed again by the creativities of others. Of course there is the occasion of ‘that moment’behind what we do in writing haiku, but I know also— there are many haiku that are written because of Windfall. Poets only partly own their creations, much of what we do is done with others in mind and always in the larger context of the broader culture of art and poetry, local and further afield, current and historical— and for this I am grateful.

autumn stroll,
on the cement footpath
a gum leaf’s imprint

Samantha Sirimanne Hyde

outdoor pot plants
a sunshower
from the watering can

Judith E. P. Johnson

There are haiku here that speak deeply to the heart, move us in their poignancy.

op shop –
all the teddy bears
sold out

Lyn Reeves

I watched that day
her last walk by the beach
. . . ebbing tide

Colleen Keating

Others of a lighter note add a touch of humour, yet we recognise them as authentic, set in familiar circumstances.

beach picnic
a dog races past with
a ball in its grin

Norma Watts

 

country show
the pink stickiness
of a child’s smile

Glenys Ferguson

There are those that speak of deep time and turn our minds to the spirituality of this land and the ancient cycle of seasons

red river gums –
guardians of stone stories
in dry hollows

Susan Grant

frog chorus
the rhythm of raindrops
on the pond

Maureen Sexton

And some that may leave one agasp for their sheer beauty

snowy eve
amid cloud tatter
cold stars gleam

Kent Robinson

 

wood duck
cracking ice puddles
pink dawn

J L Penn

Then there is this gem that in so few words, brings home once again the fleeting nature of things, the passing of time, as the years flash by, evermore quickly so it seems.

in a puddle
for this moment
fast train

John Low

Windfall: Australian Haiku is literally pocket or handbag sized. It couldn’t be easier to take on the bus or train, to the park or garden bench, or when visiting friends. In fact, to take anywhere. With a handsome cover created by Ron C.  Moss, the whole booklet beautifully designed and laid out by Matthew C. George and the whole enterprise so ably managed and published by Peter Macrow for his Blue Giraffe Press. And as a nice touch the inside back cover lists an annually updated list of recent Australian Haiku Titles.  Pocket sized yes, but huge on stature.

The next issue of Windfall will be the last— it will mark ten years as one of our premier haiku journals; an Australian treasure; something to celebrate…

Simon Hanson
Secretary, Australian Haiku Society

White Pebbles Haiku Group : Winter Ginko 2021

colleen Poetry

White Pebbles Haiku Group Winter 2021

 

 

At our Seasonal  –  Winter Meeting. The Edogawa Commemorative Gardens, East Gosford.

How lucky are we to have this beautiful Japanese gardens adjacent to the vibrant Gosford Regional Gallery. With its white pebbled garden, raked in swirls around feature rocks, it’s Monet style bridge, traditional Tea House, pergola and wonderful topiary of trees and shrubs and we  have a few hours each new season to walk in its peace and tranquillity and using the technique of REGARDE, REGARDE and of course listening and jotting down our observtions to share with the group. And especially a wonderful group convened bythe renowed and award winning haikuist,  Beverly George .

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

 

BEVERLEY WROTE :

At our winter meeting the seven members who attended were joined by two welcome guests, Carol Reynolds and Margaret Mahony. Another member, Samantha Hyde, although unable to be present, sent a completed worksheet well ahead of time and we were glad to include her valued poetry in our workshopping session.

As always we met at 10 a.m. for coffee and informal chat before heading off at precisely 10:30 on our ginko. The weather was cold but fine and the garden so delightful to view from the many aspects its winding pathway affords. A large Japanese maple stirring in the breeze drew the attention of every poet.

Ginko completed, we gathered at the round table in a downstairs room of the gallery premises, so glad to be in each other’s cheerful company. To start our meeting, we asked Margaret Mahony to read aloud a haiku which had appeared on Echidna Tracks that morning, which, accompanied by an apt photograph by Gavin Austin, fitted so well with the koi activity we had just seen in the pond fringed by white pebbles.

autumn deepens
a splash of orange
in the fishpond

Louise Hopewell
(Echidna Tracks, Issue 7)

Brief business of the day included announcing that the closing date of the 13th Yamadera Bashō Memorial Museum English Haiku Contest has been extended this year until August 31st. Six White Pebbles poets had work published in the 12th Contest Collection. (This remarkable Museum is one I visited with 12 Australian friends in 2010 and the curator, Noboru Oba-sensei is still in touch from time to time to remind Australian poets of the contest.)  We also shared recent news of work on Echidna Tracks and remembered that Windfall: Australian Haiku issue 10 (the final one) will be open for submissions in July. More news about Windfall will appear on the Australian Haiku Society web-site very soon.

Our worksheet for this meeting included a brief haibun and three haiku prompted by today’s ginko: The haiku topics were white pebbles or rocks; a seasonal haiku that doesn’t mention the word ‘winter’; something we are hearing. The request for each person to bring a favourite haiku by Bashō sparked enjoyable listening and a relevant discussion about the varying subtleties and differences of translations.

Time went by so fast and unfortunately by the time we thought about a group photograph two of our busy members, Marilyn Humbert and Verna Rieschild, had just left. However here are the rest of us, in a photograph kindly taken by Deb Robinson.

left to right: Kent Robinson, Maire Glacken, Gwen Bitti, Margaret Mahony, Carol Reynolds, Beverley George, Colleen Keating

Report by Beverley George
Convenor White Pebbles Haiku Group

Strands and Ripples by David Atkinson to be launched by Colleen Keating

colleen Poetry , , , ,

 

 

A great privilege to be asked to launch David Atkinson’s second book of poetry Strands and Ripples, published by Ginninderra Press.  To be launched on Sunday 11 July 2021.

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‘In this, his second collection, David Atkinson continues his themes of memory, especially of growing up on a farm in southern NSW, and the natural world, including the wildlife and people that surrounded him then and do so now. In this collection David’s scope is also wider as he extends our perspectives on the human condition. His poems are sharp in their imagery and dramatic in their language. His forms range from the traditional to the stunning use of free verse. This book is highly recommended.’ – John Egan
‘David Atkinson enables us to see things in a new light. Every theme in this collection of poetry challenges us to let him show us aspects of life from a fresh perspective. Widely published in literary journals nationally and internationally, David’s poetry always repays a careful reading. It is with enthusiasm that I welcome this new collection.’
– Colleen Keating
‘David Atkinson’s latest collection is a cornucopia of the poetic spectrum; it confirms that he is one of Australia’s finest poets. David brings a deft touch to the human condition, celebrates the wonders of nature and takes a fresh look at memories. This is a worthwhile addition to any bookshelf.’ – Decima Wraxall
David Atkinson is a retired lawyer who lives in Sydney. His poems have been published widely in Australia, the USA and the UK. David’s previous collection, The Ablation of Time, was published, also by Ginninderra Press, in 2018. He is a poet of memory, the human condition and the natural world.
978 1 76109 108 7, 120pp
Now up on the web site and for sale. Highly recommended

Versions

Paperback

9781761091087
$25.00

 

Eucalypt: A Tanka Journey celebrating 30 issues by Colleen Keating

colleen General , , , , ,

 

Exciting to receive the latest Eucalypt: A Tanka Journal in the mail.  This month celebrating 30 issues of Tanka.

(Beverley George always  acclaimed for the first 20 issues.)

Thank you to the editor, Julie Thorndyke and congratulation on her very creative and thoughtful presentation of our tanka. Proud to see my name twice and feel privileged being included in every Eucalypt since I began writing Haiku and Tanka . . . the succinct intimate Japanese form of poetry.

Julie has her own new collection of stories Divertimento: Stories by Julie Thorndyke publ. Ginninderra Press 2021,  just recently published by Ginninderra Press so this is double congratulations  to her.  Julie spoke at Society of Women Writers of NSW last meeting  in Member Bites 

Ginninderra Press sends us exciting mail

colleen General , , , , , ,

 

You have Mail

How exciting, double exciting,  to receive two emails one after the other, from the award winning publisher Stephen Matthews OAM  at Ginninderra Press regarding our poem entries for  Ginninderra Press’ new anthology Milestones. 

Michael and I are both  thrilled to have our poems:  

cherishing the moments by Colleen Keating

Reset by Michael Keating 

selected for inclusion.

Hello Michael,

Thank you for submitting a poem for inclusion in our 25th-anniversary anthology Milestones. I’m delighted to inform you that your poem has been selected for inclusion in the book. In due course, you will receive a proof to check before publication. Covid permitting, we hope to launch the book later this year.

Regards,

Stephen

Hello Colleen,

Thank you for submitting a poem for inclusion in our 25th-anniversary anthology Milestones. I’m delighted to inform you that your poem has been selected for inclusion in the book. In due course, you will receive a proof to check before publication. Covid permitting, we hope to launch the book later this year.

Regards,

Stephen

(Stephen Matthews  and yours truly at the launch of Mountain Secrets)

 

Just reflecting . . .

I have been priveleged to have a poem in each of these past Anthologies :

Michael after reading a poem at the Writers Festival in May 2018 at Varuna Writing Centre Katoomba

in the autumnal beauty of the Blue Mountains NSW