ABPA - Australian Bush Poets Association

G'day All

For myself, I think it would have been when I was in about year 4 of school when I first remember learning part of a bush poem, CJ Dennis's "The Circus". This was in a period where the teacher that I started with in that year, Mr Thompson, retired and Batlow's school principal, Mr Lockley, was looking after the class before we got our new teacher, Miss Henderson. So Mr Lockley taught the class the poem - we only had to remember a couple of lines each, the way it was recited.

I can remember reading Thomas E Spencer's "How McDougall Topped the Score" and John O'Brien's "Said Hanrahan" with my year 5 teacher, Miss Rowan. It was while I was in this class that I made my first attempt at writing limericks. I also remember writing some longer rhyming poems as well: one about a very bad student who killed teachers and destroyed the school; and another about a goblin that had a taste for some pretty bad foods (various types of what could at best be described as offal). Subjects that were possibly pretty typical of an eleven year old boy.

It was when I reached year 6 that I had a teacher that was really enthusiastic when it came to poetry, Mr McLean. Reading and reciting of poems was something that we did regularly - not necessarily all bush poetry but certainly all rhyming poetry. As far as the non-bush poetry goes, I can remember the class reading Tarantella, learning to recite "The Wind in a Frolic" by William Howitt and learning to recite Doug Macleod's "Granny Appleby" (Australian writer of children's poetry but since his poems aren't necessarily Australia, Australians or Australian way of life they are not necessarily bush). The class learnt to recite "The Man from Snowy River" and I can remember reading other poems by Paterson, Lawson and CJ Dennis.

The fact that my parents bought books of Banjo Paterson's and Henry Lawson's poems and I bought a book of Doug Macleod's poems during this time also helped to fuel my own interest in bush poetry.

Having the influences both at home and at school, I am sure have contributed greatly to my interest in bush poetry.

Regards


John Peel

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John Peel - The Man from Gilmore Creek

Heather. You've said it !!!, I forgot about nursery rhymes.

Surely everyone was influenced by nursery rhymes. I've still got an audio tape which is over thirty years old that has my children on it reciting Baa Baa Black Sheep and Incy Wincy Spider.

And I remember my sister when she was very young playing hopscotch with her friends, they had some sort of rhyme that they chanted as they did the steps.

The thing with nursery rhymes is that even as a child, I took it that they were not really related to actual experience. The sunday school rhymes were different, I accepted them as speaking about some mysterious reality of experience that captured my thinking, which I think is more to do with poetry than mere rhythmic verse.

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Neville
Singleton Bush Poets.

G'day Neville,

There is no doubt that Louisa Lawson exercised great influence over Henry.
She was an amazing woman who deserves far more recognition than she has so far received.
Louisa led the charge in this country for woman's rights and was acknowledged as the first suffragette.
She was a an inventor, poet, writer and political activist, leader and publisher of the first important woman's magazine in Australia.
It was Louisa who was responsible for raising the money to have the monument to Henry Kendall erected over his grave,
though after much hard work her efforts went largely unrecognized.
As far as I know Louisa had two books of poetry published.
Perhaps the fact that in old age she died in an insane asylum has dissuaded some from recognizing her marvelous contribution to the country or perhaps her left wing political views were to blame.
Really encourage you to google her name and learn more about this wonderful woman.
There is absolutely no doubt, in my mind at least, that without the influence of Louisa we would not have had the genius of Henry.

Vic

I'm sure nursey rhymes would have featured in all our lives at some stage, even the not so repeatable ones, my Dad used to love "Little Tom Titt", funny how we remember these, probably because of the fuss Mum made when he told us, I remember Mum telling me ''Two Little Dickie Birds'' and playing a game with her fingers while she told it, must have been around three years old. The first poem I remember from school was "Miss Polly Had A Dolly''I played the role of Miss Polly in the school play in kindergarten. The other poems that stand out were ''Today''Thomas Carlyle, ''I Wandered Lonely As A cloud'' William Wordsworth, ''Anzac Cove'' Leon Gellert, I was in grade 4, and had a teacher who dedicated a lesson every week to poetry, and I've loved it since then. There was a copy of Patersons works that used to lye around the house, rather bedraggled looking from everyone having a go at it, but there was nothing better than when Dad would pick it up and recite from it, far better than reading it yourself, so as a child I had influence both from home and school. When I met my husband, he too was a big Paterson fan, influenced by his dad. When our children came along, he would love to recite ''The Bush Christening'' to them at bedtime, and his now doing the same with the grandchildren. I only started writing poetry early this year, but I've always loved it. One of our Grandaughters attends A B Paterson college on the Gold Coast, so poetry is very much a part of their agenda, and she has had some of her work published in their school magazine, so poetry is very much alive in our household.
Sue

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the door is always open, the kettles always on, my shoulders here to cry on, i'll not judge who's right or wrong.

Thanks Vic, I will follow up on some research into the life and work of Louisa Lawson.

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Neville
Singleton Bush Poets.

I'm not quite sure where my love of poetry came from. Certainly no one in my family was interested in the slightest, still aren't, except for Adam of course. I can remember reading and writing poetry at school and into my teens. I had a great high school teacher who loved poetry and always managed to make it interesting, at least for me. Her first love was rhyming poetry too, although not necessarily 'bush' poetry. One of her favourites was 'Tiger Tiger' or more correctly as she would point out 'Tyger Tyger'. Yes Miss Lanham, I remember. I can't remember her ever reading free verse to us.

I wrote the odd poem here and there over the years but only got really into it again in the last two or three years and it was Adam who re-introduced me to it by giving me a link to a poetry site he was a member of. It was mostly free verse though and I went searching for a site for rhyming poetry and found this one. It wasn't the 'bush' part that got me in though, it was purely because it was predominantly metered rhyming poetry.

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A signature spot is where there ought to be
something profound and inspiring to see
but I’m afraid all that I have to say
is – “sorry the brain isn’t working today”.

I remember thinking recently when I read the biography of Henry Lawson, what an amazing woman Louisa was for her time. Given an education and the rights of today's women she would have been a powerful force. I'd love to know more about her too Neville and wonder if there are any books written about her. Does anyone know if her poems are available? She also had mental health issues.

As for nursery rhymes. I was writing a poem not that long ago and a nursery rhyme (can't remember it now - too tired) kept popping into my head. I think my poem had a similar metre.

My kids are past nursery rhymes now but I read to them a lot when they were little. Recently when looking after two year old Charlotte I was reading them to her and it was lots of fun. Doctor Foster, Hey diddle diddle, this little piggy, round and round the garden, Old mother hubbard, on and on...

Heather

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Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take,
but by the moments that take our breath away!

I was talking to the managers kids today and one said he was saving up to buy one of my cd's because I was famous ? His birthday is coming up so he might get a suprise. I asked him if he liked poetry and he said yes so I've now got him and his two brothers and sister doing The Man From Ironbark at the first of our dinners for the Grey Nomads this year.

He also asked me if I had a poem that he could learn and recite at the dinner.

Thay are out there and sometimes it is only by accident that we find them.

Bob

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The purpose in life is to have fun.
After you grasp that everything else seems insignificant !!!

But more often Bob, I suspect it is people like you who inspire them. We need more Bob's and inspirational teachers like John had out there to encourage the kids.

Heather

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Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take,
but by the moments that take our breath away!

Just got to get to them before girls invade their life.



Bob

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The purpose in life is to have fun.
After you grasp that everything else seems insignificant !!!