This work was proudly created through a Writing WA initiative.

 

Luminary

By Kathleen Dzubiel

All Rights Reserved 2024

 

 

in the cool, hazy twilight

faded blue blending into rosy dusk

honeyeaters flitting, snatching

winged insects, beaks clicking

i cuddled my toddler in my arms

strolled with him around the garden

musky, moist soil underfoot

earthy scents lingering

and pointed to the sky

asked him to repeat

what i said

 

he gazed upwards

plump face unmoving

difficult moment

to understand

his development

skewed, one of nature's

uncertainties

not like other children

happening in a different

order, language

amongst the most challenging

 

‘m-o-o-o-o-o-n'

elongating the sound

slight flattening of the vowel

in his soft, fledgling voice

deliriously excited

he could verbalise the word

 

for many nights afterwards

in the last of the gloaming

as stars emerged

he would grasp my hand

pull me outside

gesture to the heavens

and proudly pronounce, ‘moon.'

 

his eyes alight

his smile curved deep in his cheeks

just for me.

 

 

Kathleen Dzubiel writes poetry and prose. She has performed her work at numerous venues and on radio. Before the digital era, her work was published in many print journals, including Southerly, Mattoid, Going Down Swinging, Southern Review, the Courier Mail and Island. Recently, her poetry has appeared online in Creatrix.