Constant movement
of departure bound travellers
contrasted with
flocks of waiting passengers:
dozing,
reading,
coffee drinking,
internetting
while waiting their connecting flights.

People of many
nations,
languages,
faiths,
cultures
pass each other
as the Muslim call to prayer
echoes through the airport halls,
shoes obediently stand in line
outside the prayer room.

We, too, wait our flight,
trying not to snooze.

© 2011 Trevor Hampel
Dec 5^th 2011

All rights reserved.

Notes: we were on our way to visit our daughter who was teaching in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We had a  hour wait for our connecting flight. To fill the time I wrote in my journal and then wrote this poem.

Late last year there was a family situation which required a great deal of my time and energy, and then my wife and I left Australia for a six and a half week holiday in Ethiopia, Morocco and Spain. I had limited internet access during that time so no posts appeared here. Besides, we were having too much fun exploring new countries and having wonderful experiences. I’ll be writing about these experiences and showing my 1000s of photos on my other sites, Trevor’s Birding and Trevor’s Travels.

While I was away I still kept up my writing. Every day I added new entries in a journal. In all I wrote nearly 140 pages describing what we’d done and seen, and responses to those experiences. Much of that journal will be expanded and posted on my travel site. The beauty of having a book to write in as my journal was the convenience factor. I didn’t take my laptop with me though I could have used my daughter’s computer. Instead, I could write in my journal anywhere: on the plane, in the waiting lounge of airports, on a train (we used trains a lot in Morocco and Spain), in bed or even in the garden.

Taking a notebook with you wherever you go is an important way of keeping your writing moving along and developing. You can jot down anything that comes to mind: a scene, a description of a character based on a real person, accounts of little scenes that may make it into a novel or short story, or even a poem or two as you are having a coffee break.

During my travelling time I wrote in my journal every day. But I also wrote a great deal of poetry. I usually can only produce a dozen or two good poems a year, but in the last 7 weeks I’ve written 55 poems, so inspirational was the journey. Some are haiku but most are much longer impressions of what I was seeing and doing. All the non-haiku poems were free verse. Some will find their way onto this site in coming weeks.

We went to Ethiopia first to visit our daughter who had been teaching in an international school in Addis Ababa. What they are doing there is inspirational and she is planning on returning in a few years’ time. After two weeks there, my wife and I, accompanied by our daughter, toured Morocco and Spain, spending two weeks in each. Many of our experiences will inevitably find their way into short stories, more poems and even a book or two. My wife has already come up with a picture book idea based in Ethiopia.

Good writing.

Australian Magpie (male)

Celebrating dawn’s
Soft glow the magpie trumpets
The new day with joy.

 

All rights reserved.

Copyright 2011 Trevor W. Hampel

Over the last few years the group is also venturing out into country areas. Two years ago I attended the inaugural meeting here in my home town of Murray Bridge. I particularly appreciated having only a 5 minute drive to the venue on a pleasant Sunday afternoon. Normally I can’t attend the meetings in Adelaide due to other commitments on the regular nights on which they are held.

On that occasion I wasn’t brave enough to take along any of my poems for reading, and last year I had another commitment. Two weeks ago, however, I managed to attend – and read two of my poems. It felt good – and I enjoyed the rest of the poetry read during the afternoon. The poems ranged from the hilarious to the deeply serious through to the cheekily risqué. Reading one’s poems during the open mike sessions usually allows one to contribute the poems read for consideration in the annual anthology.

Links:

• Friendly Street Poets – click to view their website which has details of meeting times and venues as well as membership, publications and plenty of other information.

Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens

 

Scarlet petals glow
In dawn’s new rays – a beacon
Heralding the sun.

© 2010 Trevor W. Hampel

All rights reserved.

 

To read more of my poetry, click here.

Wedge-tailed Eagle

Wedge-tailed Eagle

Imagine
How awesome
To soar over mountains and valleys,
To rise majestically
On thermal currents
Transported effortlessly
Over a patchwork quilt
Landscape.

© 2011 Trevor Hampel

All rights reserved.

To read more of my poetry click here.

The Wedge-tailed eagle is Australia’s largest bird of prey with a wingspan of up to 2.8m (about 10 feet). They are found all over Australia where suitable habitat exists. You can read more about Australian birds on my site Trevor’s Birding.

Wedge-tailed Eagle

Common Blackbird

At first light of dawn
Crisp white frost covers green grass.
A lone blackbird sings
His rich, melodious song
Of praises to the new day.

Copyright 2011 Trevor Hampel

All rights reserved.

Read more of my poetry here.

A Promise of Peaches by Valerie Volk

Published in 2011 by Ginninderra Press.

A Promise of Peaches is Valerie Volk’s second book of poetry. I reviewed her first book, In Due Season a few days ago. Actually, to call this new work a book of poetry is to do this volume a disservice. It is a verse novel.

The inspiration for this novel came from Valerie’s own experience as a child, but I hasten to add that it is in no way autobiographical. It first existed as a short story. I remember when Valerie read this story which was an assignment when we were part way through our Master of Arts degree. The suggestion was to expand it into a novel. A little later I recall that our lecturer suggesting that she rewrite it as a verse novel. I think at the time Valerie claimed not to have ever read anything in this specialised genre before, but typically, Valerie threw herself into research mode and the idea grew into the book.

A Promise of Peaches traces the life of Claire, from her early memories as a young girl growing up in post-war Melbourne through to her frustrations in an aged-care facility. Her parents take in as boarders a Czech refugee couple, Viktor and Irena. The story, told in a variety of poetic forms, reveals the feelings and thoughts of each character. Each poem is short, often no more than a page or two at most, and every one sketches a poignant vignette of the inner feelings of the character. Valerie has used different, distinctive voices for each person, a difficult task for any writer and one she succeeds in achieving.

The initial excitement of the struggling post-war Australian suburban family in welcoming a couple from a totally different culture and social background is soon swamped by misunderstandings, rising tension and frustrated passions. Claire’s own innocent sexual stirrings, aided by Viktor, add to the tension and conflict. The author has skilfully woven all of these emotions into the beautiful fabric of her narrative. Her poems are often sparse, tight and understated, sharpened down to bare essentials. I particularly like the three special blues poems inserted into the text late in the writing process.

Somewhere in the night a child is crying.
Somewhere in the blackness of the night a child is crying bitter tears.
Scorching searing tears that never seem to end.

From: Claire, Blues Interlude 3 p.163

In the very next poem we read how Claire sees Viktor only once many years later. She recognises him instantly, but he doesn’t know her, nor the profound effect his actions have had on her throughout her life.

I highly recommend this verse novel, not because Valerie is a valued colleague and friend, but because it is a captivating read. Many readers have told her that they couldn’t put it down, that they read all the way through in one sitting. Even though I’d read the manuscript in several of its draft forms, I too found myself reading right through (though I admit to stopping for lunch at one stage, only because it was my turn to cook).

By the way – it’s not every day one gets to read one’s name in the acknowledgements page of a novel. Thanks for sharing the journey with me Valerie; it was fascinating.

You can buy this, and her other book online on her website: Valerie Volk

In due season: poems of love and loss

While it it is a slim book physically, one cannot say that about the poems. All the poems have an impact on the reader. One is taken on a journey through her life – of joys, delights, deep emotions, frustrations, fears and faith. It is a journey from first love to deep loss, from deep contentment to the emptiness of death.

Valerie’s poems poignantly trace the roller coaster ride she encounters in 2008 when her husband is diagnosed with cancer. Some poems hark back to the early days, from their first meeting, first passions of love and the demands of young family life. Other poems are filled with agony as she sketches in verse form the deterioration of Noel’s condition. And the final poems highlight her response to his death, the experience of feeling numb at the time of his funeral, the emptiness of their home without her love and the slow and sometimes painful climb up the mountain of normality.

‘How am I?
Hard to say. I veer between
a stoic resignation – “Wonderful,” I hear them say -
and silent screams of anguish.
Somewhere in me there’s a deep gaping hole
as if a vital part has been ripped out.’

from ‘A Kindness of Strangers’ p.59

I met Valerie during the time we were both completing our Master of Arts course. She has become a respected writing colleague and encouraging friend, one I deeply admire and whose comments on my own poems are highly valued.

Some of the poems in this volume I have a personal connection with, because Valerie presented them in writing workshops for critiquing during our studies for our degrees. One couldn’t help but be touched deeply by the grief she was enduring at the time but still she pressed on professionally.

Highly recommended reading.

Order the book on Valerie’s web site:

• Valerie Volk - you can order any of Valerie’s books on her website. You can also read about Valerie’s academic achievements as well as writing awards she has gained.

The photo (above right) is from the cover of her book. It has deep significance to Valerie – but you’ll have to read the book to find out why.

Reference:

Volk, Valerie, 2009. In due season: poems of love and loss. Pantaenus Press, Adelaide.

Penguin Point, Marion Bay, South Australia

My wife and I have just arrived back from a short holiday on Yorke Peninsula here in South Australia. We stayed in a holiday unit in the coastal town of Edithburgh. Despite the weather being wild with gale force winds and heavy showers of rain, we managed to get out and about and have a good time. While I’ve done quite a deal of reading recently, I have not had the chance to do a great deal of writing.

On the positive side, the short break has recharged the batteries and I’ve taken lots of interesting photos, some of which I will be sharing on my other sites. You are welcome to have a look at what we saw here:

• Trevor’s Birding – about Australian birds
• Trevor’s Travels – stories about our travels with plenty of photos.

The recent reading I’ve been doing will result in some interesting reviews coming up soon in this site, and the magnificent and rugged scenery of the peninsula has inspired me to get back into writing some poetry.

Stay tuned.

Good writing.