Tuesday poem, and doings in Yass
March 18, 2013
Today I edit the main blog post of Tuesday Poem, and it’s a wonderful work by Hal Judge that takes centre stage. Click this feather to read his poem:
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On Sunday I drove out to Yass, about 50 minutes from Canberra, where the inaugural Yass Show Poetry competition was held. I had entered a poem in the adult contemporary written category; a free verse poem about Banjo Paterson who lived in Yass as a child, and later in his life.
There was also a bush poetry section, a performance section, a children’s section, and an open mic. We read next to the exhibit of prize wool clips, and the smell of the wool permeated the readings. Here I am with Lizz Murphy, who lives at Binalong in the Yass Valley, and who has had many books of poetry published:
Sorry about the light in that photo! I am doing my best impression of a drunken owl, too, although not a dram had been taken.
I was a little nervous reading my free verse poem in a rural setting, but it was well received, and the judge, Robyn Cadwallader, was kind enough to have awarded me first prize in the written section. I listened to her very thorough judge’s report after winning and took in about 5% of what she said; I hope I get a chance to read the report. Here I am leaving the stage after reading:
Thank you to another Robyn, Robyn Sykes, for organising the event.
UPDATE: Robyn Sykes sent me a copy of the judge’s report before this was posted. Will read it at my leisure.
PS Cottier 
Congratulations PS. A very fine top trio of poets it was indeed. Btw don’t know about you but I was knackered after all that shearing 🙂
I shouldn’t have looked around –
Cos I was beaten by a blow
And cursed the old ringer
With the bare belly Jo.
Or something like that, Lizz…
And because I don’t like getting things wrong:
‘Click go the shears boys, click, click, click,
Wide is his blow and his hands move quick,
The ringer looks around and is beaten by a blow,
And curses the old snagger with the bare-bellied yoe.’
Good on you Penelope. great edit this week too. 🙂
Thank you Helen. It was good to do something outside the usual places and to meet a different group.
Congratulations, Penelope! Sounds like a great poetry gathering. And I’m still pondering the poem this week at the Hub — wonderful contribution!
Congratulations, Penelope. Is Yass on the coast or am I confusing it with somewhere else? I once surfed a beach in northern NSW starting with Y.
Have a Happy World Poetry Day.
http://aotearoasunrise.blogspot.co.nz/2013/03/world-poetry-day-waiting.html
Cheers,
Andrew Bell
Thank you Michelle and Andrew.
Andrew, the only thing you could surf in Yass would be the river, or the backs of sheep, like a kelpie. Very inland. The closest beach to Canberra is 2 hours’ drive away, just in case we were invaded by, I don’t know, New Zealand or someone.
[…] was challenging and theatrical. More conveniently for this post, within a few days of that event, I attended a bush poetry performance in Yass. (Segues as subtle as cane toads abound in my […]