Red, white and blue,
the flag waves and
I wave back,
hold on to its colours,
want to
hold on to the flag,
bring it here in my head,
capture its waving folds
on paper,
asymmetrical,
to show how the flag’s
colours muddle
when strong winds blow.

Sally Clarke

~~~~~

“Here Be Dragons”

Compass the courage of
ancient mariners
sail to the edge of
unknown and beyond

mystery dwells
in galaxies birthing
oceanic trenches
deep beyond fathoming

I wonder

Do leafy seadragons
float in dark blue space
between stars?

Liana Christensen

~~~~~

White Tasmanian tiger
your ribcage on show,
mourn your country
with the other ghosts.

Sue Clennell

“Acrobats of Peony Pond”

Some frogs fly
in tight formation
Some frogs leap alone

Some frogs sit
in contemplation
Each frog to his own

Liana Christensen

~~~~~

like a choir

families gather
in the spring-time
carnival of the park
bend to choose a flower
or collect a spiky cone
how the colours sing
like a choir
on a pink-perfect day

Paula Jones

Making Hay

Spilled haystack,
fired corn-stubble under swimming cloud,
cross-hatchings of three-cornered Earth.

Or let the paint be Earth, Air, Fire
and make a labyrinth like new-blown glass
with strands opaque from flame

to dream a gold transparency,
there, where our limits frame
the dance of our desire.

Jenny de Garis

~~~~~

New Equations

There is mathematics
on the land,
in fire, in the
burning earth.

Stake out
a 3-sided perimeter,
a place, a space,
angles of flickering flame.

Stretch and lengthen
yellow sparks, red coals,
and from the earth-
a new equation.

Paula Jones

This is how I remember
Buster the cattle dog.

Sally Clarke

~~~~~

Buster and His Larrikin 

Sunset explodes on Buster and I
fingers unfurl
embrace us
ageless
through mists of time

The Red Earth Spirit
remembers
Buster
and his larrikin
under the sun

Saz Campbell

Maureen Sexton

~~~~~

If I could hold
your beautiful roses
remove petal by petal
from canvas
smell their scent
their soft caress
I would braid them
into a bouquet
return them to you

Deanne Leber

These flowers stride
tall and proud
red, loud, big
they march through winter
rain streaming, sparkling
and one yellow petal
dares to be different
dreams of Spring!

Maureen Sexton

~~~~~

Faeries spinning
crystals lighting up
their cheeks
riding magic unicorns
with flowers
sparkling in their hands

You show me how to make magic
how to keep flowers in vases
pinned to the wall

Deanne Leber

With my brush I summons
Sea Dragon to our bay,
to pools of glowing corals
where sky and sunrays sway.

The next time that you dive here,
the next time that you swim,
be sure to keep an eye out –
those weed-shapes could be him!

With my brush I summons
Wild Dragon to our park
to gallop through its bushes –
Now that would be a lark!

The next time that you ride there,
the next time that you go,
be sure to look around you
because – you never know . . .

Jenny de Garis

~~~~~

“What Issa Knew”

Even though
the rainbow explodes
and pink rain spatters
the lens

Even though
the boundaries dissolve
and nothing you knew
makes sense

There is always time
for one cup of tea

a sigh and

a smile and

a friend

Liana Christensen

~~~~~

Green seahorse
arch your neck with pride,
bearer of mermen
cousin to the Scottish serpent,
only the believers see.

Sue Clennell

Sweet Tooth Music   

Lizards with letters
on lakes
   Criss cross landscape

Flashy splashy lakes
of music
   Zigzag my scape

Sweet tooth music
noisy shapes
   Criss cross me

Aeroplane jelly footprints
            jazz beats
   Zigzag with me

Saz Campbell

~~~~~

I sweep away
at your canvas
unraveling something
ancient
its karmic excavation
its pieces and fragments
you’ve rearranged
with my skin
my bones
the imprints of my dust
scattering
until
I’m longing
to be gently swept away
once again

Deanne Leber

~~~~~

Art is fun, because with the stroke of a brush,
you can connect with some.

Loud, exuberant and eternally young,
a passionate heart, crying out to be sung.

With colours flowing you are able to run,
and forever dream of what you can become.

Thus, an artistic soul is undone.

Peter Evans

Between these adults you may spot
the Blue-Bibbed Goggle Frog,
who rides on Skates
and sports with mates –
White Moonfish, Swallow-Tail
– You’ll see them all now chasing lunch –
Rouge Dragon, Numbat Prawn
– they’re such a lively bunch.

And when you’ve had your fill of this
– of watching others feed,
why don’t you climb back up the steps,
find something YOU can munch!

Jenny de Garis

~~~~~

THE WORLD MAP IN COLOUR

I like to put the world in order!
I take my food tray, that I love each day –
Bread roll, butter, soup, vegetable and meat
And at the end dessert, a rich yellow custard –
A vast yellow desert that holds the world.

So then I paint and the world unfolds
In blue and white and red all held
In that rich yellow desert of dessert.

Painting finished, I’m off for a stroll
Round the park – my world – in a wheelchair,
With its wheels squeaking, clanging, rocking
And with my I-pod in my ear
A world of music and myself cheerfully singing.

God, I love making a lot of noise!

Peter Jeffery OAM

The Blue Wrens 

Blue wrens in the Hibiscus hedge
flying to and fro with grass-stalks:
my mother’s flowers glowing gold
and red, like clouds at sunset.

My small daughter weeping,
collecting bright blue feathers;
the neighbour’s cat had waited,
watched and made the kill.

Working in London, twenty years on,
she talks about her grandmother,
the hours they spent together
watching blue wrens.

Flora Smith

~~~~~

You are the chalk monitor
on a day before whiteboards.
You beat the duster
against the black or green,
cough out the fine white particles,
fill the porcelain ink wells,
hope for a gold star.

Sue Clennell

No. 11
Artist: Avril-Jo Copping



THE TWILIGHT BREEZE

The twilight breeze
and swells of the sea
layer ocean-blue waves with a white capped glaze

The smell of the salt
belies the sweet gleam
of the sunset reflections
of pink tangerine

Movement of joy
to delight and amaze

Shimmers of colour
to comfort and please

Senses refreshed: to calm and to please

Senses caressed on the twilight breeze

Julienne Miller

~~~~~

PLEASURE

What colour is pleasure?
Should food be red,
orange, yellow or green;

and music purple,
or the colour of
midnight and dreams?

Can a song taste of
strawberries and cream,
or a chocolate sound

like angels singing?
Oh, sometimes, I could
dine out on rainbows.

Mardi May

No. 12
Artist: Emma Biasin



a custard sea

a custard
sea, an
island of
watermelon,
a jungle of
popsicles and
kiwi fruit
gelati,
a mountain of
gingernut
wafers, an
eruption
of creme
brulee

Kevin Gillam

~~~~~

AUTUMN

The river weaves a winding course
Through fields of burnished gold,
The summer sun has faded fast
As winds are edging cold.
And fiery leaves will tremble free,
Awaiting to be blown
Like dancing queens, to whirl away
To destinies unknown.

Val Neubecker

No. 13
Artist: Emma Tamblyn



Light in my darkness *

These hands have spoken, listen to my art.
Run your fingers up the lines I drew
that I may sing directly from my heart
to yours; my visions move in you.

Imagine yellow ribbons tightly strung;
sunbeams fanning sea to sky
my Jacob's ladder, carefully hung
on which your gaze may climb, and I

have drawn a red horizon for your touch.
Allow its keen vibration
to lift you, since I have made it such
that through your eyes, you will know elation.

And if you want it, ask and I'll let you be
this white Light in my darkness. May you see.

B J Thomason

* Title of spiritual memoir by Helen Keller (1927),
originally published as My religion

~~~~~

Sprites, vivid pink, a-darting

Pure joy, unfettered

by the dark spatterings

of Life.

Melanie Kwa

THE PHOENIX
      
Though by what reasoning is unclear,
I aspired to curb Arab terrorism
by slaying their fabled bird;
and so I sought it out.

Distantly heard on the breeze,
a melodious dirge my guide to its burning nest,
I hastened to watch as flapping wings
up-draughted the engulfing, spice-laden, flames.

Carefully aimed, my missile hit
and, like an exploding incendiary,
the burning body disintegrated
into a hundred widespread conflagrations.

Thinking my mission accomplished,
I watched them burn to ashes;
then, overawed, counted hundredfold
their regeneration as immortal birdlings.

Michael Williams

~~~~~

Red peacock

camouflaged with desert peas

burps blue leschenaultia.

Sue Clennell

No. 15
Artist: Emma Tamblyn



White cloud ponders
in front of Golden Trellis
Little lady, what
do you spot beyond?
                                  
Melanie Kwa

~~~~~

EMPATHETIC TEARS

A compassionate heart expressed in art,
an immaculate vision refined.

Socially inclined, friends dancing by design,
marbled magenta captured in time.

White lighting eternally shines,
reflecting a mind that’s perfectly fine.

Flowers that clime, searching for sign,
seeking love of the human kind.

For, life cannot be blind,
to empathetic tears, enshrined.

Peter Evans

~~~~~

They come the star kin
seek aid for a crippled craft
send an envoy
someone shouts 'contact.'
He is caught in the crossfire.

Jan Napier

White cloud ponders
in front of Golden Trellis
Little lady, what
do you spot beyond?
                                  
Melanie Kwa

~~~~~

EMPATHETIC TEARS

A compassionate heart expressed in art,
an immaculate vision refined.

Socially inclined, friends dancing by design,
marbled magenta captured in time.

White lighting eternally shines,
reflecting a mind that’s perfectly fine.

Flowers that clime, searching for sign,
seeking love of the human kind.

For, life cannot be blind,
to empathetic tears, enshrined.

Peter Evans

~~~~~

They come the star kin
seek aid for a crippled craft
send an envoy
someone shouts 'contact.'
He is caught in the crossfire.

Jan Napier

No. 17
Artist: Dennis Goater



D-Day 

For years,
way out there in space
the inhabitants
of planet Rosgiallo

have planned to seek
leibensraum
on twin planets
across the universe.

Today they have launched
their missiles
as a preliminary
to their planned invasion.

Michael Williams

~~~~~

Is this a dazzling treat
for a Lover-of-Cakes?
Shuddering spurts of Honey
onto velvet violet icing!

Melanie Kwa

~~~~~

Butterfly spatter
red and yellow
organic.
What's the guts?

Jan Napier

~~~~~

Hackneyed the big bang may be
but how brilliant
how cubist
how surreal.

Sue Clennell

No. 18
Artist: Dennis Goater



Tracks

It is impossible
to drive

a blue car
on a wet beach

unless
you wish to leave

tracks on the sand

B J Thomason

~~~~~

sunrise and sunset

in a tyre tread

on  blue sky.

 Sue Clennell

No. 19
Artist: Cheryl Ham

TAPESTRY IN VERMILLION

Vermillion the colour of creation
its weft inclination
its woof desire
thread as canvas roads, valleys
weaves mountain forests where
golden mists discover new frontiers
                                    appliqué imaginations in brush strokes from within

Christopher Konrad

~~~~~

She traces
fields of red poppies
around her toes
lines them in rows
colours their centres
yellow
weaves them
around ankles
remembers
when she takes a step

remembers

Deanne Leber

on the reef

under the sunken sea
fish scales catch
and bend the sharp sun
a flicker of flashing fins
the sweep of trailing tendrils
there is movement
on the reef
unhurried
underwater
turning the smooth-sailing ocean
a careful coral hue

Paula Jones

~~~~~

WEAVED

Life’s bold pleasure to find,
Captured in a net of permeable spines.

Blotting out all that is unkind,
Sweeping the past away with artistic signs.

Matted vines, extolling blood on the twine,
A heart of gold seeping through, in dotted design.

Patterned lines, subtlety exposed from behind,
Seeking one to bind with art sublime.

Peter Evans

No. 21
Artist: Kathy Adair



as if the brush

as if the brush has caught the
thoughts and soul of cat

twitch of ear at honeyeater,
tug of paw at good cushion

elegant curve of whisker and
bend in plaintive cry

the very tabbyness of her,
the fat tabby

Kevin Gillam

~~~~~

RED

Warning!
Keep Left! Stop!
Red is anger; danger;
a Final Notice; debt.
It is blood spilled
on a battleground.

But red is also
love and passion,
straight from the heart
and good luck in life.
Red is the poppies
growing in a battlefield.

Mardi May

~~~~~

dance with the laughing
red bear
fling your arms
in the air
spin and dip
pirouette
and the scarlet bird
joins in

Maureen Sexton

VERDANT

Verdant after spring rains,
my garden now flourishes
with blossoming red.

But there is no danger here,
as bees come and go
unhindered.

Michael Williams

~~~~~

Spring and all
blooms up both sides
of our house

Nasturtiums
Snap Dragons
Red-and-Yellow Poppies

We shall make
A lover’s brew of
Petals for me and you

Spring has burst!
Worms wiggle! Birds sing!
Bees buzz above!

ANDREW BURKE

No. 23
Artist: Katie Bassett



orchidaceae

apart from the desert and the
gently grinding glaciers, we are
found everywhere, blooming
leaves long & thin or thick like
leather, depending on where
the sun sets & glares across us
, or not

. beautiful & confident, we are
anything but awkward.

Scott-Patrick Mitchell

~~~~~

If you look close, you just might see
A nymph, a sprite, an elf or fairy
      
But for me, its all the colours of Spring
With promise of new life it will bring

Winters log fire has turned to embers
Rain and hail that no-one remembers

Lambs learn to jump, chicks hatch from eggs
Spring sunshine triumphs as winter reneges

Wild flowers, bush walks, fledglings learn to fly
Fresh, crisp mornings and clear, bright sky

Days grow longer, feel your blood start to flow
Spring in the Valley, Grand Final and Perth Royal Show

Or perhaps it’s the colours of fashion at Spring Races
Champagne, cheering and smiling faces

Or soft pretty flowers tied in bunches
Strolls in the park and picnic lunches

Lollies, sweets and icing on cakes
Spearmint, strawberry and banana milkshakes

Green, yellow and pink
When you see them, what do you think?

~~~~~

A quirky posy!
Petals pointing flashing hot
The very stuff of Life!!

Melanie Kwa

pollock model of universality

inside the field all numbers are
natural, the integer an inverse
operator in an integral domain
where integrity is maintained
less the equation collapse in
on itself, sustainability in
variables varying only in
implication, not equivalence

. two constants remain: that
things are true & things are false

& that to solve an equation
is to first find it’s solution

.

Scott-Patrick Mitchell

~~~~~

Eyes Dance and ‘round we go
Shapes merge and colours flow
                   
Can you find where it starts?
Expression of my being, my heart of hearts

Natasha L Adams

~~~~~

Galaxies of notes
spark from each other,
intertwine,
sing the soul’s music.

Trills and riffs weave their chords
through silence
leap sounds -
link hearts-
lure minds.

Let us sing together.

Trisha Kotai-Ewers

No. 25
Artist:Laurie Coyne



one winter's day

one winter's day
at Mundaring Weir
three boys arrived
with shopping, I fear

and from their bags
they pulled many packets,
jelly crystals lemon and lime
crying "hey, here's a racket !"

they tipped them in
then off they crawled,
the result before you now,
this yellow and green waterfall

Kevin Gillam

~~~~~

A rain-washed sunset
flows rivers of smiles and tears
into my heart.

Trisha Kotai-Ewers

~~~~~

I've never been there
but I can still paint
Rome's Trevi fountain,
its colossal joke
spilling its innards.

Sue Clennell

~~~~~

a sunset forest
golden leaves slowly fall
your fire reflected
beneath a darkening sky
or fireworks
red, yellow was over us
a waterfall of sparks
smoke clouds drift
and the night sky is lit up
as the booms echo around us
                                     
Maureen Sexton

No. 26
Artist: Lisa Bernic



The Magic Tree

I knew at once it was a magic tree.
because I saw her. No ? Perhaps ?
I looked again, dusted off
the rust of disbelief and science.
Yes ! There it was on the right,
near the base of that shady tree:
a tiny flutter of mauve, the glint
of sunlight on a fairy’s wing.

I’m being silly, I heard you say,
fairies don’t really exist!
Now, fairies are truly invisible,
so only people who know they’re real
and live among us every day,
can see them and paint them like Lisa;
just like Lisa can !

Flora Smith

~~~~~

Toes are tapping,
Heart of a Rose,
pink petals holding,
enfolding
secret whispers,
hiding corners for
tiny insects.

Pink like my toes,
pink like my nose
and so much more,
Heart of a Rose.

Sally Clarke

No. 27
Artist: Matthew Bowen



Little Nemo and Me

Little Nemo
strides out
in a sea of urchins
and pompoms

Takes me out
of the blues
and the reds
of blood filled tubes

On a carpet ride
magic to be
one with the sea
little Nemo and me

Saz Campbell

~~~~~

plan of the planula

beneath the white crest of the waves
anemone purple & hue along the shelf

. genetically identical versions of
self plop them selves beside each

other as if colonising another tropical
world, one beyond the ebb and glow

of the shallow tide. as the moon fills
like foam in a pool, gametes are spawn

a head of coral give birth to, varying
themselves across the surface of

light to fuse and flow and find somewhere
new to below go so the colony can grow

. their favourite colour is blue
.

Scott-Patrick Mitchell

~~~~~

Jellyfish Dreaming.
Invisible bells
atonal
in a cumulus of blue.
Totems
adrift in tainted water.

Jan Napier

No. 28
Artist: Michael Hoey

JEWEL BENEATH THE SEA

Botanist of the sea, sky, ore
sketches unravelling of new kelp
anemones made of sinew
coral trees

He notes pulse as breeze and tide
He notes matted stems, petals, dicotyledonous vegetation
He paints unheard of copses
He notes a jewel beneath the sea

Christopher Konrad

~~~~~

so much depends
upon Nature
dancing

force that through
the green world
pulses

sunlight that licks
the leaves of
grass

bark and low and gobble of
all creatures, great and
small

so much delight in
the garden of our
Earth

ANDREW BURKE

~~~~~

Gulliver's Travels
Adventure!  ADVENTURE !!
Laughter, Twirls, Yahoos !!!

Melanie Kwa

No. 29
Artist: Robbie O'Dwyer



SMILES FOR ALL

Smiles for all,
it’s a universal call.

For, Robert speaks as one,
with his art from above.

An angelic face, reflecting it’s possible to belong,
an aura of love, that’s round, radiant and exceptionally strong.

Eyes sparkling cheekily, with awareness of insight,
understanding, perceiving what’s right.

Thus, humanity must never give up the fight,
for caring for each other is our eternal light.

Peter Evans

~~~~~

An emperor      face aflame.
Nero not only burnt his bridges
but a city too.
Thumbs down.

Jan Napier

~~~~~

Oh Olympian with your laurel leaves
did you know where Agamemnon
lay beneath his gold mask?
Whisper to me
what became of Helen.

Sue Clennell

No. 30
Artist: Harry Wheeler



I make tin cans
into constellations
string them up
under the pergola
they shine
next to last year’s
Christmas lights
green and red flashing
galaxies glowing
over the barbeque
as mosquitoes
buzz their way
around
the big bang
seals their sting
into skin
with a slap

Deanne Leber

~~~~~

Sir, have we not had a charming picnic?
White yummy crumbs still linger
On green, green grass
Whilst flecks of memory glow red!

Melanie Kwa

No. 31
Artist: Vivienne Sharp



Like you, I loved to paint.
All the coloured pots in the art room,
Newspaper on the floor, giant brushes,
Basins of water, and cloths for mopping up,
And best of all to finger paint.

You tell me it true, you begin to paint
Using all your hand and more
To squeeze the cool paint between your fingers
And fill the sheet to its corners four.

To paint then is all flurry,
Eased out through our fingers,
But later in quiet time
Or afternoon nap, we meditate
On our now filled canvas.
Our loving energy is made tranquil,
To exhibit and chat with others.

Peter Jeffery OAM

~~~~~

a scrambled rainbow
etched with letters
a story perhaps?
images within an image
i see a rabbit
snakes
an angel
is this a dream
or have you taken us
to Wonderland?

Maureen Sexton

No. 32
Artist: Wayne Russell



HEART
Ascends like flute music
It speaks silently in the world of noise
It is a flamenco dance in the Gibson Desert
Castanet beating to the rhythm of dunes

Heart
Is the place we return to after long work days
It rescinds dry obligation
It adds colour to my palette of grey
Ascends like the music of a flute

Chris Konrad

~~~~~

They say
a poet
must choose
precise words
not a letter wasted
swinging on the line
F
 A
    L
      L
         I
           N
              G
leading the gaze
to imagine the rest
warm sweet bright
emptying
onto page

Deanne Leber

No. 33
Artist: Lisa Bernic



The Butterfly Effect

Jet propelled by feet
   I butterfly
      social
         gather
           create
               creatures from the deep
                  and you
                     with my
                        butterfly effect
                                                                       
                                                                       
                                                                                   Saz Campbell

~~~~~

To My Heart

Worthy of love, lovable on my own
I bask in the warmth of love you have shown

Beautiful and strong, here in my heart
For this is where all love must start

Look gently now, deep inside
This is where my true feelings hide

But hidden away, no joy it brings
So freed by your love, my spirit sings.

Natasha L Adams

No. 34
Artist: Vivienne Sharp



Portrait of a lady II

You can never be certain
that you have seen

a green scarf and
red hair of a woman

or her orange arm
waving at a bus

that captured
child and tears

until every space
has disappeared

B J Thomason

~~~~~

SMEAR

The world is all streaks and strokes,
Its colours smear into mingle and marl,
And is as ourselves, in our life pumping blood –
Oceans of salt and water and red and white –
For that’s all we are, skin and bone and fluid.

Onto this pink sheet, your finger smears
Traces of our ever present blood –
Grazed hands and knees if we stumble;
Blood nose in the summer heat;
Or prick for the daily diabetes check;
Life giving the bottles in the casualty ward;
Menses – the monthly ebb and flow!

Until this pink sheet again,
Where the baby kicks into life,
And the world smears
Its ever flowing cycle yet again.

Peter Jeffery OAM

No. 35
Artist: Julie



Rain and Wind.

I love rain.
Rain partners wind:
the two rush across the land,
brush brown paddocks green again.
All the trees dance. Trees dance with grass,
toss and weave in graceful ballet.
Small bushes shake their skirts
and laugh at the music
of the wild wind.
I love wind.

Flora Smith

~~~~~

her heart opens
to us all
she surrounds us
with love
reaches out
across the Earth
embraces
all the colours
dances with the moon
and stars
connects us
to each other

Maureen Sexton

No. 36
Artist: Graham Hoffman



Energy

Figaro and Susanna
spiral and weave;
in webs of fire
she bows her head toward him
stretches her wings;
their lips wait
for lips of another—
he twirls and she twirls
they dance and they twirl
and they kiss.

With scurrying bars
rampant drums
lyrical strings
tossed from conductor's baton
ceiling to floor
their atoms dance
to Mozart 492;
they shimmy
they glitter and spark
through us all.

B J Thomason

~~~~~

ANIMAL TRACKS

Mementoes
of a little night-time adventure

stealing
through the gate
slinking
past the bushes
silent steps
in the warm earth

…lurking…

a sudden rustle
a flash of movement

eyes darting
nose twitching
ready to pounce

but is this attack…
or courtship?

Only the traces remain.

Val Neubecker

No. 37
Artist: Graham Hoffman



WISPS OF IMAGINATION

The depths to behold
the sights and the sounds
can be found
in wisps
of imagination.

The rustle of leaves
high up in the trees
can be seen
through mists
of imagination.

The birds gliding by
quite high in the sky
can follow
the twists
of imagination.

The sounds can be heard
The sights can be seen
With just wisps
of your imagination.

Julienne Miller

~~~~~

“Salt and vinegar? Time was
We wrapped ‘em in the Daily News.
Only see it in old flicks now.

We do a good chip here,
You won’t hear no complaints
From the little tykes …

Here’s a hint, a nod to the wise:
a glass of cold amber fluid
relates subtly to the batter -

and brings out the best in ya,
if you know what I mean!
No flies on you, mate.

You take the little nippers home now
and may the Man in the Moon
bring you and yours joy and laughter!”

ANDREW BURKE

No. 39
Artist: Timothy Schraman



THE JOURNEY OF SUN

At sunset
day melts into the sea,
flows over the edge of the world.

On this perpetual
path of light,
the relentless journey
of bright hours and
their marching minutes,

At daybreak,
the sun rises once more
into the waiting sky.

Mardi May

~~~~~

IS THAT A MAP OF AMERICA?

Is that a map of America you’ve made?
Like the British empire drenched in red,
No Stars and Stripes or the Old Glory!
Beneath that big mass, of the USA
The world drifts away,
As with Bush after 9/11
Saying “First and last and always the USA!”
In his address before the launch of war,
So where do the rest of us fit in
With his grand vision of a New World Order?

Perhaps it’s not this at all
But a triangle of a red trailing
In an ocean of the blue, turning all purple,
To give us your pleasant happy world order,
Of hugs and smiles and endless chats,
Over a long table with many a dish,
And to regale our ears Pavarotte
Making our celebration of life, pure grand Opera.

Sing on, dear Tim, hug and embrace us all!

Peter Jeffery OAM

No. 40
Artist: Graham McNally



Today’s village square -
the shopping mall –
backdrop for words,
exchanges.
Where stories surge together,
mingle,
then draw apart.

Infinity in a passing glance.

Trisha Kotai-Ewers

~~~~~

ROAD RAGE

They call it road rage
but it doesn’t end there,
for it can lead to physical assault.
Not just man to man, but car to car
at one hundred k.
on the freeway.

The successful assailant,
horrified at the fire-blistered wreckage,
realises that all that remains
of his opponent lies on the roadside,
with burned out tyres,
and lots of blood.

Michael Williams

No. 41
Artist: Graham McNally



Lava lamps gloop here
blobs of colour spittle
change from skinny to fat
like in a carnival fun house,
it's all done with mirrors.

Sue Clennell

~~~~~

Friend

When I stop and truly listen
I hear your heart sing, feel your soul glisten
Inner most beauty and spirit shine
I see you now clearly, o friend of mine

Natasha L Adams

No. 42
Artist: Raymond Thomas

Constellations hide
under your skin
separate sky
from pores
slipping across
galaxies
in your eyes
they rise
as I
collapse
in your irises
so many bright lights
spinning against the dark

Deanne Leber

~~~~~

THE OPENING CHORD

they wait

bearded
dread-locked
pierced

jeans tight-stretched,
singlets black a la mode
slashed with
lightning bolts

guitars and keyboard
plugged in,
drummer poised

tattoos quiver

three…two…one…
FULL BLAST!

Val Neubecker

No. 43
Artist: Tony Santoro



CREATION

In the beginning
an idea
a wild possibility
exploded into galaxies.

On the third day
a single cell
a random fusion
the creation of life.

And then
a word
a sentence
the birth of language.

And from
one note
a simple melody
the world of music.

Mardi May

~~~~~

exercism

red hot, the
vice’s gotcha

. at the edge of
action, white

spasms to
explode, bones

glow, the collar
stains with

sweat. go, and
don’t stop

until the body
does
.

Scott-Patrick Mitchell

ESPRESSO IN THE MORNING

Pizzazz !
Pizzang !

The eyes open up

Pizzazz !
Pizzang !

The skies brighten up

Pizzazz !
Pizzang !

There is no need for yawning

Pizzazz !
Pizzang !

Had espresso this morning

Julienne Miller

~~~~~

many fingers

a thumb, many fingers,
sandpaper of angst scratching sky

a bloodied attempt to
prop up the clouded roof of day

the way you might read your hour,
thick in now, spraying out with
endless hyphens of choice

No. 45
Artist: Tony Santoro



THE PROPOSAL

One breathless day in summertime,
We dined, my love and I,
Beside a vineyard, underneath
A blue Italian sky.

The pasta, sweetly basil-fumed,
The olives so sublime
And shards of ripened parmesan -
This surely was the time.

A  passing cloud smiled down on me,
The words ran through my head,
I reached across to take your hand,
Oh, no – the glass of red!

Val Neubecker

~~~~~

a blue sky
with white clouds
so boring
let’s paint the sky red -
but we won’t
brush it on
in even strokes
or roll it on
neatly
in geometric lines
no, lets throw it on
a dash here
a splash there
spatters and splatters –
let’s be daring
courageous
and then –
we could paint the ground
yellow …

Maureen Sexton

No. 47
Artist: Laurie Coyne



my ink in you
abandoning skin
splashing
down my cheeks
there are too many tears
slipping my pen
find rainbows in you
colour them in

Deanne Leber

~~~~~

RAINSTORM

Rain sheeting down on the window,
Blurring the garden in sight,
Smudging the pink of the blossoms,
Casting a spiritless light. 

Squalls lashing red bottlebrushes,
Spiralling leaves to the ground,
Bruising a tormented rosebud
As raindrops continue to pound.

Val Neubecker

No. 48
Artist: Kristen Cameron



Leaping Frog

White-water rush in my ears,
grey-green wall of leaves,
down the pony trail to the brook.

My favourite walk, my world.

A frog leaping suddenly, bright
apple-green against dark blue;
my world changed colour.

Was he seeking something too ?

Flora Smith

~~~~~

We are scattered haphazard
across the earth
since the Tower of Babel,
insignificant
in our hundreds and thousands,
yet never underestimate
the power of one.

Sue Clennell

~~~~~

To the right: a chinese character
in blue. A wise man, musing?
To the left: a scatter of tiny sticks
The blessings of every day?

Melanie Kwa

No. 49
Artist: Kristen Cameron



not forgottens

these six not forgottens,
blue for a winter of reasons,
on the surface, sunlight through them

they've keened their way forward,
swum to the front of the temporals
these six not forgottens

in the pink lake of memory,
beyond salted froth of angst, now
on the surface, sunlight through them

you left them in a train, of course,
in a tea chest, art deco frame,
these six not forgottens

you left them, only these ripples
aren't from wind or tide,
across the surface, sunlight through them

you make a ladle with your hand,
scoop, but they evade,
these six not forgottens,
on the surface, sunlight through them

Kevin Gillam

~~~~~

WATERCOLOUR

Beyond the winter window
rain blurs clear outlines,
softens the hard edge of summer;
a watercolour landscape,
wet-on-wet technique
across a grey wash of sky,
window-framed and hung to dry.

Mardi May

No. 50
Artist: Katie Bassett

SHOPPING SPREE

Like racing car drivers
Zoom here and zoom there
Many great places to go

Oh, look at what’s here
And what I found there
It’s just what I need, don’t you know?

‘This one is new’
‘Here it’s so pretty’
‘That one is blue’
‘That one’s quite witty’

That’s why…
I simply must do more rounds

I’ve got shopping spree fever
And am busy as a beaver

‘Cause I…
know there is more to be found!

Julienne Miller

~~~~~
Action! Lights!

yellowness of yolk echoes
yellingness of children
laughter of birds

The painter is painting
Psychedelic jellyfish
Beyond words

we’ve let out
our thoughts
to play J

Action! Lights!

ANDREW BURKE

No. 51
Artist: Kathy Adair



I wanted to write about roses
the way you dried them
on the page
in the sun
alphabetical potpourri
sprinkled in the air

Deanne Leber

~~~~~
blackbirds dance
above a winter forest
they flit, flutter
flap and flicker
through leaves
of blue
their feathers
float in the treetops
like tracks
for the clouds to follow
without a care
they sing their songs
to the rain and the wind

Maureen Sexton

No. 52
Artist: Kathy Adair

Voice flowers catherine-wheel
in my mind.

Speak presence –
Speak you –

As words explode in notes
that laugh with trees.

And the sky smiles.

Trisha Kotai-Ewers

~~~~~
the autumnal leaf

the autumnal leaf
breathes softly,
winter's chilled swab
hovers close

breathing softly,
mottled siblings
hovering close,
forgetting the dance

mottled siblings feel
winter's chilled swab,
forgetting to dance
the autumnal leaf

Kevin Gillam

No. 53
Artist: Meryl Harris

1. Can you see the crossroads of our lives ?
Can you see bright possibilities and new directions ?
Will it be safe to go there, or should I go there instead ?

2. Do you see people on street corners ?
Or do you dash over when the lights change
and never look at others rushing too ?
No wonder it’s called Rush Hour !

Flora Smith

~~~~~
Score

birds in the rain
    two violins twitter
you arrive
    fine green lines of flute
talk with me
    purples hum in my head
the space around us opens into song

small explosions of mauve and ochre
    splash on the road where leaves land
your feet brought you to me
    sunbursts smile, scattering notes
that chuckling, tiptoe out
    where you will leave
warm echoes to pace my day
    green lines of flute lingering
two violins
    birds in the rain

Jenny de Garis

No. 54
Artist: Meryl Harris

pink fairies
love to fly
over fields of yellow clover
on dark nights
after the rains
their magic wands
sparkle with light
and they sprinkle
red fairy dust
among blue blackbirds

Maureen Sexton

~~~~~

i trace 
the gentle padding
of my cat’s feet
across page

what flowers has
she dipped her paws into

what delights did she find
in dusty corners today

Deanne Leber

“Monet’s Miracle”

Quick, Claude,
the cataract when the sun fell
in your pond was spectacular
you should have seen the water
fall

Don’t cry, Claude
see
all is clear now
pink yellow green and blue

Liana Christensen

~~~~~
Face in the Sky

Cool-coloured clouds
I see your smiling face
In the please-purpled sky
Light as floating fairy floss
Blue is for the mischievous seas
Of your open eyes
Yellow is the sunshine
Of your busy hands
And pink are the apples
That ripen when you smile.

Paula Jones

No. 56
Artist: Name withheld

Dark night
shimmers with setting sun,
moonlight joins daylight,
bursting blossoms,
a new pink dress.

Night
turns into day,
sun sets, moon rises,
light becomes dark,
turns to light again.

Through the window,
day and night,
my brilliant sky show.

Sally Clarke

~~~~~
Genie

There now is a Genie so keen
she can breach any window unseen.
As she dares their diagonals
with her vivid imaginals
she’ll take you where you’ve never been!

Jenny de Garis

No. 57
Artist: Timothy Schraman

Passions

a wide smile
weighted hugs
Pavarotti with
new food only
hide this red
cloud thundering
over my heart

Frances Macaulay Forde

~~~~~
Oh Vesuvius
how you cluttered
clustered your minions,
how you preserved in ashy amber
Roman greatness, folly.
How you still sit in prey,
waiting.

Sue Clennell

~~~~~
The vats have tipped gloop    glug    glop
 puddles of thick sticky
 strawberry   caramel  lime
 aura the factory floor.
 Sugar hits an all time low.

 Jan Napier

No. 58
Artist: Dennis Goater

Racetrack

The static audience is a smudged yellow blur
as my Formula Ford whizzes past the stands, in blue.

Around the chicane the red Ferrari takes the inside
and I glide past, pedal to the metal with a grin.

You won’t catch me - I’m every colour of the rainbow!
Tho’ purple blobs try, they’ve got no space, in my race.

Frances Macaulay Forde

~~~~~
Yellow bull whirring
with Mycenaean youths
vaulting your horns.
Your father stalks
labyrinthed underground,
awaiting the end result.

Sue Clennell

~~~~~
Embodiment

I am an oarsman
Scudding by
Late afternoon
Along the Swan
Searing solar glare
On ripples
And on my oars
All strength used
Propulsion
Against the flow
I pass the kayak, red like fire
See me settle into my skin
I find my rhythm
Leave a trail of gold in my wake.

Cathy Szathmary

~~~~~

Official chops*
seal the deal.
Cargo is loaded
in illicit hours.
The boatman swings
away from corruption
and current events.
The emperor's anger
looms large
clouds the outcome.

Jan Napier.
*'chops' are seals (as in sealing letters etc)

No. 59
Artist: Vivienne Sharp

Coral Bay

Snorkelling with rainbows
just past the breaking surf,
I see the red rocky shores
of the North West Cape.

Shimmering white sands where
Coastal Daisies, Starflowers
and Sturt Peas grope to grip
harsh hot terrain in fighting wind.

At Easter, a hundred yards off 
the bay, coral triggers upside down
snowstorms to invite gentle giants
from the depths of Tantabiddi to feed

whilst in my imagination, I squeeze
the fish colours through my fingers
to paint pictures and feel myself
swimming with whale sharks.

Frances Macaulay Forde

~~~~~
Nature’s Chapel Window

Sunlight glitters through
Leaves gently turning red and gold
And every hue
between

Arc  of purity,  sky blue,  
brown bony limb
Still a lingering few
of green

Cool breeze
tickles skin,
leaves  flutter
Curl like butter

Bittersweet  glimpse
As the season’s pass
Nature’s chapel  window
Glorious stained glass!

Catherine Szathmary

~~~~~
Wildflowers bloom
beside a sleepy creek.
Here the lion
laid down with the lamb.
Wisps of wool
attest to the fact.

Jan Napier

No. 60
Artist: Unnamed



Rush Hour in the Rain

Each one alone
the sting of rain tattooing
down to the bone

Bent heads are shown
the loss of joy in living
each one alone

all who have known
the wear of tears eroding
down to the bone

must we atone?
duty beyond bearing
each one alone

such seeds were sown
before we knew the sharing
down to the bone

colours run creating
each together blooming
each one alone
down to the bone

Liana Christensen

~~~~~

There's excitement in the city.
People walk forward
leaning towards Mecca.
Faces down,
smudges of colour,
their quickness blurring
shocking.

Sue Clennell

No. 61
Artist: Unnamed



The Octopus on Mars

The octopus on Mars 
gardened long before
blue green algae
bloomed on Earth

The octopus on Mars 
discarded the avant garde
favours formal composition
sombre symmetry

The octopus on Mars
creates bouquets of courtly
colour that make vegetable
love look fast

The octopus on Mars
practices artforms unknown
to the pelagic schools
of the ocean planet

The octopus on Mars
can be understood only
in the bronze half-light
of a red and waterless place

Liana Christensen

~~~~~
Tree of Knowledge

Dear Eve,
Don't guzzle the fruit
or let the juice escape your lips
too easily.
Take care,
chew each mouthful with forethought,
then may your digestion be wholesome.
Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Lilith.

Sue Clennell