Fortnightly Poem 6.B (Karen’s)
My two poems this week were prompted by the up coming referendum on the Voice to Parliament. I have written a poem explaining why I’m voting Yes, entitled It’s the very least we can do, but it’s a bit too new and needs more editing – so here is one I wrote in 2002 after seeing the movie Rabbit Proof Fence. It’s from my collection Remembering how to Cry.
Not Just Sorry Johnny (Remembering How to Cry)
Never seen such an audience of stunned mullets
No crackling lolly wrappers.
No laborious fumbling for under seat bags.
We sat there silent, as the credits and our tears, rolled
Sitting there shaken—so many emotions:
hard to untangle:awe and respect,
despair and horror, and shame,
not just sorrow Johnny –shame
Image of ragged trudging
Wavering in the heat mist
Wild black outlines
In the sun bleached sky
Awe at courage, tenacity, survival skills
Making the laughable ‘Survivor’ even more so
We know none of us, let alone our kids
could do that, to get back to mum
We can’t cope with minimal
roughing it on camping trips
moaning when the fire won’t light
or the lilo goes down
Respect for the strength of that bond:
mothering that knows no bounds
multiple mothers always there
Or they would be,if the children were there
Long ago I cried on the tram
going to work when I left my
baby with caring strangers
Fantasised about going bush
And horror that our ‘civilised’ arrogance
could dismiss such fundamental ties-
Could not hear those heart wracking cries
of motherless children and the silence
I fiercely clutch my own (eight and
fourteen) trying and failing
to imagine if some uniformed stranger
came and took them
Stole them!
My children!
And shame at being kin to the white invaders
who stole your country and then your children
knowing I am connected to those flat haired
bureaucrats who claimed the superiority to ‘protect’.
I don’t even like social workers
or teachers who think they know
more than me about looking after
my kids, my precious kids
So many emotions
And yes, ‘sorry’ is not nearly enough
It’s shame, Johnny,
Shame