I spent Friday night with 2 very good friends who came here to see me. One of the good friends has a big sister who had a 9 year old daughter who died in a car crash a little over a year ago. This big sister of my friend wrote us a beautiful letter and gave us 2 books. One of these books "Now we Are Four" is a collection of poetry by Petrina Barson, a woman from Melbourne whose 3 year old daughter died of septicaemia in 2006. For more about this lovely book and where to purchase, see http://www.cloudsofmagellan.net/Now%20we%20are%20four.html
Here is my current favourite poem from it:
Flemington Road
Flemington Road after dark
has never been so banal
or so appalling.
These walkers and joggers
these pram pushers and tram riders
these drivers and talkers
how can they just carry on.
As if nothing has happened.
As if my darling is not lying
back there
under a patchwork quilt
made by kind but faceless ladies.
And how is it that I place
one foot after the other
in a dogged imitation
of one alive
when my heart is a large rock
tied around my neck
and each step carries me further
from the past - the only place
we can be together.
Author's note: The Royal Children's Hospital is located on Flemington Road, Parkville.
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