The Poem in the Parrot, the Boy in the Bird single work   essay  
Issue Details: First known date: 2022... 2022 The Poem in the Parrot, the Boy in the Bird
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'My son's first words are nearly all bird names. We give him a plastic duck when he lies on the change table, to try and distract him so he stays on his back, doesn't roll. One day we don't and he says, 'Duck, duck, duck'. The next week we are at the zoo, it is thirty-six degrees at 4Pm in the afternoon, we are regretting our choices until, walking through the wetland aviary, he points at the water: 'Duck, duck, duck' From there, we get `coco' for cockatoo, 'gaga' for galah, `bamingo' for flamingo, then goose, budgie, emu and peacock. Owl is said as in howl, like a bird struggling free from the throat of a wolf. ' (Introduction)
 

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    y separately published work icon Westerly vol. 67 no. 2 2022 25521160 2022 periodical issue

     In approaching this issue's publication, we found ourselves reflecting on a line by the poet Yirga Gelaw Woldeyes, from his poem ከዋክብት መንገድ  / The Journey of Black Stars. In translation, Yirga writes, 'little things cast big shadows' (36). Small actions, In a poem, a story, or in any moment of contact, cast their ripples and edge out into the world, producing the unexpected. Contemplating the themes prominent in the works collected here, among them closeness, joy, sympathy and connection, we began to recognise one of those ripples as a possible catalyst for the works we have gathered, even if its effect wasn't noticeable at the time of curation. (Editorial introduction)

         2022     pg. 62-72
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Last amended 8 Dec 2022 07:19:02
62-72 The Poem in the Parrot, the Boy in the Birdsmall AustLit logo Westerly
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