To take a liberty with lexicon
is remiss in the circumstances
of the curlew
with diminished habitat.
It reprises every day,
and the mudflats
sheeted by the in-
sweep of tide leads it to the mowed
grass in front of the Bantry
lifeboat, across
the harbor’s mouth
from the pier, that “extra” beak-length
(of curlew and figuratively of pier)
a segment of curve
into earth as much
as water, casting around with a pair
of oyster catchers, three ravens
and a hooded crow,
telepathically swapping
views around issues of solitariness,
solitude and broader community,
differences in flights,
states of nature.
John Kinsella’s new selected poems, The Darkest Pastoral, has just been published, and a collection of new poems, Aporia, will appear mid-2025. His awards include the Australian Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Poetry, the Victorian Premier’s Award for Poetry, and the John Bray Poetry Award.
