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L i o n e l F o g a r t y - t h r e e p o e m s Lionel Fogarty has been acclaimed as a strong and authentic voice emerging from a radical new generation of Australian Aboriginal writers. Deliberately using the creole language of the Murri Aboriginal people in preference to standard English, Fogarty's poems are gauntlets thrown down in front of the white reader, and powerful litanies for his own people. Read an Interview with Lionel Fogarty |
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Remember Something Like This Long ago a brown alighted story was told As a boy, looked up on the hall walls water flowed to his eyes for Starlight was carrying snake in his shirt gut belly and around the fires a tall man frightened the mobs that black eyes promised that night at giant tree, way up bushes crept in the ant hill was the wild blackfella from up north, they said. Soldier cained him down at the waterhole but as they bent to dip, sip behind their backs, old man Waterflow flew clear, magic undoing the shackles, without keys or sounds of saw saw ... nah ... you didn't saw him. He's old Waterflow, even I'm too young to remember everything. Yet clever than pictures them show off |
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boonah : peace maker |
making fun of old Boonah sitting outside waiting for dreaming to come to reality. After that somebody broke into the store. Oh, the police were everywhere at every door, roof, in laws Where's this and that, you know. So they find out where him came from by looking at the tracks. He's headed for the caves just near the Milky Way. Happy in strength, we took off but the hills hid this tribal |
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bull-roarer : a flat piece of wood, a few inches to a foot in length, fastened at one end to a string. When swung around in the air, it sets up sound waves, thus producing a whirring or howling sound likened to those of animals or spirits. |
bull-roaring feather foot under Jimmy's Scrub place up deep where you have to leave smoke if you want to hunt there If you don't, you'll get slewed ... On earth our people are happy but we couldn't find that food. Musta been up the Reservoir or expecting a life to run over near Yellow Bar cave again. But we bin told, one man got badly porcupine. Bring him home and not supposed to. So him get sick, all life time like green bands touch Murri legs that's why you don't swim too late at this creek created. A spoiled boy one afternoon, went repeating the bell bird singing. And he went and went and sent to Green Swamp, back of the grid. Then as eels were caught Aunties sang out, this the biggest I've ever seen. Come boys get more wood, we'll stay here all night. So sat waiting, a bit dark, tired light the lines pulling in slowly for fish seem to be in message but two-headed creature appeared legs chucked back fires went out the fish swarm back we raced home. All cold that night, back of the bend and rocks. you can see this middle age woman, long black hair walk past our Nanna Rosie's place up to the graveyards but she flows |
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corroboree : large tribal gathering featuring singing and dancing, often of religious significance |
Just near the bunya tree and many a moons came shone in our minds watching Dimmydum and Kingy doing corroboree on stage in front of the children. A light story past thru windows on to you all never forget remember more ... No Grudge |
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koories : Australian Aborigines
murri : the tribal grouping of Aboriginal people with whom the writer is affiliated yubba : baby brother |
Let's radio opinions, koorie side effects in death Commercial educationalists to draw intwined listeners is what brother about. Craze sensationalism they scraped him individual respective broadcasting. The overstressed question was impartial but we demand out radio persuasive black free editors. The reason advertising is koori airing Sponsoring bulletins informing is what this murri news attracts 'bout. Don't bias, buy blocked broadcast on susceptibility, around this murri for capable brothers and sisters combining a wave vital vital to benefit all societies. Yet we the penniless millionaires imagine views saving for time, income wanna infuses discontent over rich people. Our educationalist is the yubba on the koori radio. Nudge nudge human new one up-man-ship run by himself. But community be at each others throats but we should consider advocating a hurray wireless playing. Blackfella media, not political foot-balling loud-mouth, perturbed. A happy-go-lucky re-echoing broadcaster is one tribalism sparkling radio disk-jockey we seem to criticise 100 psychological conditioning. Let the yubba mass translate a mouth communicating Suppression, hot reply. Frisky Poem and Risky Regarding respects I'm fully purchased within my own exchanges Please give my regards to our God down and above I would also like more spirits so the list can be send Before receiving your hearing I had to write to a conference Sincerely I'm yours against all evil co-ordinators I decided from myself stems a meaning and a creation The prices I payed in every eye ear and tongue will wish they gave the correct addresses My project have been pulsed by blacks, and repriced rejected too personally politically This document I place, will be the birth shown A division by me is true of knowledge in poetry I've got history information My date rave into sane real I am amended then lended Are you prepared for the Nee Nee who died I anticipated my pissed mind I wish to withdraw all my poems from the building and put in the open spaces. As for gardens of me growing out to another country I may do honestly My heart ain't pure love My brain ain't poison daze |
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Ngunda : messenger of God
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Ngunda Bimiai spoke the message. All I did was draw this. All I did was pass on But one thing they gave me is my own selfing self. Read Philip Mead's interview with Lionel Fogarty in this issue of Jacket. Lionel Fogarty's New & Selected Poems(ISBN 1 875657 18 5)is published by Hyland House, 387 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne VIC 3205, Australia - e-mail hyland@peg.apc.org You can order it from the Australian bookstore Gleebooks in sunny Sydney - on the Internet or by e-mail or phone (+612) 9660 2333 . . . fax (+612) 9660 3597 Back to the top of the page . . . back to Jacket # 1 contents page Visit Jacket's Homepage |