sallymurphy.com.au

Sally Murphy, Australian author

Poetry Friday: Me and the Sea

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It’s Poetry Friday and I am thinking – a lot – about swimming. This is, in part, because in two days I will be participating in the Busselton Jetty Swim, an annual swim around a mile-long jetty.  I’ve written about that swim before here. This year will be my seventh time.

I’ve always been a swimmer – I learnt to swim on family holidays by the beach, and in our local swimming pool which, conveniently, was in the street where I lived in a town called Collie.  As soon as I was old enough I joined the Collie Swimming Club – starting in Tadpoles and working my way through to being part of the  main group and even, at one stage, club captain.

I was a good swimmer – never the best in the club, nor in my age group, but good enough to compete. And I loved it. I loved the feeling of being in the water, and I loved belonging to a swimming club.

When I left school I thought I was too old to be in a club, so my swimming changed to being for leisure, but when I moved back to to the country, I went back to lap swimming whenever time allowed.  Then, six or seven years ago, I realised that if I was ever going to fulfil a goal I had of swimming in the annual jetty swim, I’d better get serious.

So I joined the local Masters Swimming Club, put an entry in for the race, and got training.  One of the best things I ever did! Since then I have swum each year in that race, but I’ve also  rediscovered the absolute joy of swimming. I train with the club when I can, at the pool or at the beach, and I swim by myself other times.

Do I break records? Nope. Do I come out of the water with a big smile on my face? Almost every time. Because for me swimming is not just exercise – it’s therapy. It doesn’t matter how busy I am in my work life, or how worried I am about my family, or how  many rejections I’ve had for my writing, or how many deadlines I have – when I am in the water, there is only me, and the water.  Of course, when I’m swimming with my clubmates and friends, I’m not truly alone – and when we stop I adore being with them, and laughing and talking about life or empathising about sore muscles – but when I’m actually swimming, it’s just me and the sea (or the pool, but that doesn’t rhyme so well).

I’ve been trying to capture that feeling in a poem.  Here’s it’s current form.

Me and the Sea

Splash!

I’m in

And

Stroking

Stroking

Stroking.

Turn head

Breath in

Turn back

Breathe out

And

Stroke

Stroke

Stroke

Breathe in

And out

And stroke

And kick.

There is no one else here

Just me

And the sea

Washing tension from my body

Washing turmoil

From my brain

Stroke

Stroke

Stroke

I am free.

I am me.

(Copyright Sally Murphy 2023)

And here’s a poem I wrote about the jetty (and shared here before) that I wrote before I ever swam around it. You can see just what a magnificent structure it is.

 

Not every one’s a swimmer – but I think most people have something they do that really gives them joy, even if it isn’t always easy. I’d love to hear about yours!

In the meantime I am off to find more joy by reading the poetry of my Poetry Friday friends. Carol has the roundup this week.

 

Poetry Friday: A Spam Poem

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It’s Poetry Friday and when I came to my website to decide what to post, the first thing I noticed was the number of spam comments waiting for my approval – or, in fact, my non-approval, because I really do not approve of spam comments, especially ones which I know are going to lead the reader to some nefarious website.

But, because I have been enjoying writing found poems, and especially black out poetry, lately, I  couldn’t resist a quick scan of some of these messages, looking for some gems to craft a found poem. So, here you have it – a found poem crafted from my spam messages – which have now been carefully deleted.

Spam

Watch movies

before anyone else

foreign movies

master movies

every day!

Nurturing campaigns

cheap auto insurance

private advancement:

a completely new marketplace.

Congratulations!

 

Not my best ever poem – but at least I found a use for some of that spam.

As I said, I’ve had a bit of fun with found poetry lately – and a future verse novel (slated for 2024 release, so there’s a bit of a wait) makes use of the form. I’ve also been writing found poems using words from some of my reading, and sharing them over on my  Instagram account. This one came from a page of the classic book Heidi.

A little more satisfying than spam, I’m sure you’ll agree.

You know what else is more satisfying than  spam?  A midnight feast of leftovers. Jama is hosting this week’s roundup, and sharing a fun thanksgiving poem, too.  Head over there to join in the feast.

 

 

Poetry Friday: Wordy 30s

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Last week, I smiled when I read Molly’s post, where she shared her efforts writing Wordy 30s, a poetic form shared with her by another Poetry Friday friend, Mary Lee Hahn, who found it, I believe, here.

In short, the form is simple: write a poem with exactly 30 letters.

Wait, that isn’t really simple – to share a complete thought in just 30 letters? And there’s one more rule. Every line must have exactly the same number of letters. So – 6 lines with letters each, or 5 lines with 6 letters each, or even three lines with ten letters each.   If you are a Wordle-devotee like me, you will possibly see that this is a bit like wordle-poetry – except instead of guessing the five letter word (or six, or whatever), you need to find a way to make the words say something. And, because it’s poetry, they should be considered, organised and, well, poetic.

It took me a while to get started, but eventually I came up with a 6 x 5 about the thing that has been most on my mind this week: my new furbaby George. And why wouldn’t he be front and centre on my mind, having been with me only since last Friday? Anyway, here’s what I came up with

George

brings

warmth

wisdom

gaiety.

  © Sally Murphy 2022)

But, once I’d written a 6 x 5, I knew almost straight away I had to try a 5 x 6. I  also (nor surprisingly) spent a great deal of this week thinking about poetry – and, wouldn’t you know, it – poetry has five letters.  And  poetry makes me feel as happy as this guy, so why wouldn’t I write about it?

Bug

Write

poems

share

poems

smile

relax.

 ( © Sally Murphy 2022)

Okay, job done. Except, just like Wordle, this form is a little addictive and I couldn’t stop. I started wondering whether it would work for a 10 x 3. Could I actually use 10 3 letters words in a row and still make sense? You can decide:

Top

hat

and

bow

tie.

Off

for

tea

and

jam.

(  © Sally Murphy 2022)

I dunno – but maybe this is someone setting off for a Poetry Friday tea party?

Not done yet, I figured I’d try a 3 x 10. I knew this one would be hard, but maybe my little bug friend was dancing in my brain my then because this is what I came up with (after scouring a list of 10 letter words, looking for connections:

 

Quicksteps

Hokeypokey

Joypopping!

(© Sally Murphy 2022)

And then, of course, my mind wandered to the final combination – 2 x 15. Possible? Again, I’m still not sure, because again, all I could do was scour a list of 15 letter words and look for connections. I found one in books:

Journalisations

bibliotherapies.

(  © Sally Murphy 2022)

Not sure it’s a poem – but it was good exercise.

Lastly, I knew there was one possible last way of doing this: to find a single 30 letter word, which spoke all by itself. A search found only 1 30 letter word. And it’s a medical term. So, the only way I could  try to make it poetic was to add a title, which I guess is cheating, but here goes:

1 Thing I Hope I Have not Inherited

Pseudopseudohypoparathyroidism

( © Sally Murphy 2022)

And of course, this search led me to consider just how long a word can be. According to Wikipedia – the answer to this question is ‘it depends’. It depends on whether we accept medical and technical words, or nonsense words. If we accept both, the longest word is – wait for it – 189,819 letters long. Which I can’t even fit into this post, let alone ever attempt to use in a poem.

Another thing to watch is all the other amazing posts for Poetry Friday. This week’s roundup is hosted by Matt. Head over to his blog later today to see the full list of Poetry Friday goodness. 

 

Oh, in late-breaking news, George has decided he wants to be part of Poetry Friday too. He’s posted a Georgeku on Instagram. Clever George!

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Guru George (@georgesguidetolife)

 

 

 

Poetry Friday: Leisure

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Not so many beach walks, and no snorkels, this week. I have been busy, but it’s actually the weather that has kept me inside – bitterly cold and a lot of rain.  I don’t mind one or the other, but when both hit, I am firmly an inside person. which, in a busy week, is not a terrible thing. I got a lot done this week.

One evening as I was  reading in my recliner with my weighted blanket and the heater blasting warm air I came across this poem – new to me, and nodded my agreement, then laughed at myself because I was kind of doing the opposite right there and then.

Leisure

by W. H. Davies

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?—

No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep and cows:

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass:

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night:

No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance:

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began?

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

 

And then, I realised that sometimes we just can’t be out and amongst this treasures of nature – especially in this Covid world, where so many are in lockdowns or isolation. And I reread the poem, and realised it isn’t saying we have to be doing those things all the time – just that when those things are there, we should allow ourselves leisure (rhymes with pleasure!) to enjoy. You don’t have to be on the beach or in the woods, or snorkelling to notice a moment of beauty.  I call them ‘this’ moments. When I spot a tiny spider clinging to a web, or the way the sun shines through my back window making  silvery fairy dust and I give myself a second, or a minute or whatever to think ‘this’ – this is lovely, or this is awe inspiring, or even this is kind of cool. Sometimes my ‘this’ comes when I am curled up inside with a wonderful book of poetry.

This morning, though, the rain has stopped for a while, and I was lucky enough to get back onto the beach. And it was a great big ‘this’ I was thinking as I strolled along the sand. I captured a minute of it in the hopes it might give someone else a this moment.

I hope there are lots of thises in your day.  You might start by saying ‘this’ as you nod along to the poetry goodness being shared by other Poetry Friday bloggers. The round up is being hosted by Carol.

 

Poetry Friday: Lurkers and Liquid Wonder

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In case you’ve not noticed, I have been taking every opportunity to get into the water and snorkel.   In spite of my  great love of the beach and of swimming, until last year, I had never been snorkelling, and so it is a fresh, exciting hobby.

This week, I got up early and went for a pre-work dip at Omeo Wreck,  one of my favourite spots. Great for a beginner like me, but also always something new.   I spotted a  spotted leatherjacket and followed it for a while. When it stopped under a little arch of wreckage, I took the opportunity to practice my new diving skills, took a breath, aimed my gopro and swam down.

I knew I had the fish in shot, but it wasn’t till later, at home, that I was able to check it. I then took a still shot from the footage, and shared it with friends on facebook. I’m glad I did – because a friend pointed out something I had missed. I wonder if you can see it in the moving footage – which is the view I had in the water:

Did you spot it? The photobombing lurker? If not, don’t feel bad – because I didn’t see it either.
Here’s the still shot:

copyright Sally Murphy, 2021

If you still can’t see it, look  at the sand on the right. Sand with eyes? And a sinister grin?

Now I don’t know if Mr Flathead was thinking of eating Ms Leatherjacket for dinner, and I  can reassure you that when I left, the leatherjacket was still very happily swimming around, but I knew there was a poem in this.

Welcome

Come right in!

Come right in!

You’ll feel welcomed

By my friendly grin.

Can’t see my smile?

You soon will

When I open wide

To let you in!

(Poem copyright Sally Murphy, 2021)

Not to be outdone, my follow-up trip the next morning proved to be even more amazing, though I have not yet captured the poems for this breathtaking octopus encounter:

At the end of this video, you might sense that, while awestruck by the octopus, I was being increasingly aware of what was happening behind it. I spent the next 15 minutes floating and wondering and nearly crying with the joy of this:

I’ve been trying ever since to find the words to capture these amazing moments, so watch this space.

In the meantime, today’s Poetry Friday has lots of Poetry Goodness. Swim over to Heidi’s blog where, she is not only hosting the roundup but also  all the Poetry Friday posts but also celebrating her birthday.

Poetry Friday: Hounds and Birds

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Yesterday I had a visiting hound for a few hours. Sos is a big, gentle greyhound, and spent much of the visit sleeping on my loungeroom floor while I worked nearby. At one point, though, a noise made me look up and I laughed to see Sos  running in his sleep. His legs twitched back and forth, his tail straightened and I swear he was smiling.

Sos  was here while his owner was off working, so I’m convinced he was dreaming of  going home and having his daily walk. When Is napped this photo a little while later, I knew I had to caption it,  with a poem.

Dreams of home, dinner

and morning walks play through mind

of a sleeping hound.

(poem and photo copyright Sally Murphy, 2021)

It was only later that I realised I was writing to the same theme as last week’s post where I wrote about echidna’s dream. Perhaps I am slightly obsessed with sleep at the moment?

Something else I am obsessed with is getting poetry out into the world and into the hearts and hands of readers. So I am delighted that today’s Poetry Friday host, Kathryn Apel, has a brand new book out this week: The Bird in the Herd.

When I saw the title of this book, the rhyme just wouldn’t let me go, and I wanted to play with it. This is for you, Kat:

Have you heard

about the Bird in the Herd?

The Bird in the Herd

is good I’ve heard!

So spread the word

about the bird

the bird in the herd

now that you’ve heard.

And, as I played with birds and herds and words, I also started singing, because it reminded me of this song. If you haven’t heard it for a while, you are welcome for the ear worm I am about to give you:

Congratulations Kat for your new book baby!

You can head over to Kat’s blog to learn more about The Bird in the Herd, and to see the Poetry Friday roundup  Muster.  Have a wonderful Friday!

sallymurphy.com.au