Notes About The Poem
Entered Engaging all the Senses contest sponsored by Natasha Scragg
Engaging all the Senses
Recently I cut and delivered leaves of banana arrowroot and cassava
to feed my daughters goats
For a week they had been surviving solely on dried oats
We filled our arms and began our approach
From fifty metres distance I watched biliies nannies and kids
run towards us heard them begin to bleat
I wondered was it sight or smell maybe both
that stimulated a desire for something else to eat
Returning now to the past times over sixty years ago
I recall my days of boyhood raised upon a farm
we had horses sheep and cattle ,each and including also the rabbit and a dog
goats and people too have a most individual distinctive smell
Many times I rode my horse that had been saddled
I loved the summer when dressed in shorts
I would ride bareback feel the warmth of the horses body
and the softness of her hair upon bare legs
Today was the day to muster up some sheep
I took note of the length of dirty wool
the olfactory sense ignited by the smell of lanolin in the fleece
which languishes in the air
As we drive the sheep toward the shearing shed
A sound of a lyrebird mimicking the call of another species
Briefly he revealed himself his colour all over dark brown
An exquisite patterned lacy net woven as the tail
Now closer to home we encounter an inquisitive emu or two
They come closer seemingly intrigued by our presence
Then they turn and run they don't seem to have a knee that bends
Sometimes I'd dismount and lead the horse feel the reins dangling in my hand
walk bare feet through grass tussocks also a boggy marsh
Feel the glorious joy of mud squelching through my toes
We cross a little brook, where we quench our thirst
we kneel down to sip and savour the taste of cool clean clear spring water
Heard for many miles the distinctive call "CURRAWONG, CURRAWONG", which gives this black bird it's name
we hear "caw, caw, caw", the calling of the crow
Silhouetted against an azure blue summer sky with two metre wing spans
three wedge tailed eagles gliding on thermal movements in the air
A black and white willie wagtail with nerves of steel chases off a hawk ten times his size
We both now become jockeys our horse race is on
the starting block three hundred metres distant
We're off ! We give the horses their head
Hear the thumping sound of the hoof beats as we gallop up the hill
The air is whistling through my hair What a thrill
Exhilaration in this clear crisp mountain air
My cousin has arrived we now ride tandem
from behind I feel her arms around my waist
feel her breath as she whispers sweet nothings in my ear
The sheep all penned up we remove horses bridles and leather saddles
An awesome sight, now given freedom the horses gallop and buck
Lay down upon their bare backs and roll from side to side
There's still now some time to go down and swim in the creek
we dip our toes to check the temperature, we're not yet brave
I watch some fish swim away , tadpoles moving upstream
A water beetle darting here and there dragonflies flick the water
An eastern water lizard colloquial name cocky john joins a frog already paddling away
We brace ourselves dive in but not for long
were out, shivering covered in goosebumps
Sunlight streams upon bare skin we start to tingle
Meal time and thunder in the distance is echoing round the hills
Moon has disappeared clouds cover her face
Bolts of lightning Torrential rain upon a corrugated iron roof muffles conversation
Just one day in the summer school vacation
Back to the present I have retired to my bed my intention is to sleep
my inner wisdom decides not, there is more to reveal
I visualise the connection with Bonnie who is my horse
We stand beneath a shady tree I let my hand trail along her body
stroking the arc of her rump feeling the softness of her pelt
Along the curvature of her spine I find her narrow neck
Every now and then she swishes her tail to scare flies
Long eye lashes surround beautiful large soft brown eyes
The skin around her nostrils is softer and darker than her bay body colour
Her upper lip muzzles and tickles my palm. Another horse comes near
In recognition of its presence Bonnie utters a short soft muffled whinny
I ride Bonnie along the edge of a narrow gravel corrugated road
through farmland where sheep and cattle graze
Now through bush the scent of a golden yellow flowering wattle
Bonnie stops to drink from a pond. I've heard it said that
wherever a horse will drink the water is safe for people
Mauve flowering lillies float upon this on this pond
Red flowering mistletoe hangs from the boughs of many gum trees
The mistletoe bird responsible for it's spread is perched upon a branch
The mistletoe seed must pass through its namesakes gut to germinate
I arrive at the farm where Bonnie is to be mated with a stallion
Four weeks later I return to bring her home It is my final ride
I was fifteen when Bonny died whilst giving birth to her stillborn foal
Sadness leaves a bad taste in my mouth
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