Myperbole

My father turned 70 earlier this year and, in keeping with a longstanding tradition of familial ‘burban’ (combo of bush and urban) poetry, I penned a little tribute:

‘The Net’.

It centres on the legendary cricket net Dad built for his eldest boy (that would be me) in our suburban Brisbane backyard.  It still stands today, some thirty years after the concrete slab was first poured.  Last year, during my little family’s return to Australia for the Kindling book tour, a small ‘inukshuk’ was erected beside the net to honour our Canadian links and watch over the Old Faithful.

Read it and raise a glass: To fathers, fantasies and fields of dreams!

The Net

We all sat around sharing a few beers
The Canucks and one lone Aussie lad
And a question was raised that pricked up our ears
What comes to mind when you think of your Dad?

As the answers poured forth, I must confess
There were too many memories of fun;
Coolum Beach, the Pope and shared Maroon stress
How could it be narrowed to just one?

Cryptic clues hinting treasure of a BMX bike,
Gaythorne’s last train docking bay;
There was the ‘Sheriff of Richmond’ patrolling the dike
And the ‘Blowfly’s wobbly jaunt the next day

Then one gem burned bright like a hinterland fire,
An epic surely penned by the Bard;
A bastion of dreams, a fort of desire:
The cricket net Dad built in our yard

More

You can tell a lot about a writer’s stuff in ten pages.

Want to know where your stuff sits?

Ask the ‘Ten Page Sage’!

This special, limited-time-only mentorship service is suitable for beginners, emerging authors and Booker Prize winners (well, some of the ones I’ve read).  Perfect as a gift - for a birthday, bat mitzvah, wake, gender re-assignment or dishonourable discharge from the army.  Your special someone will be eternally grateful.

Interested?  Drop me an email:

choco_mcconaghy@yahoo.com