If you’ve never seen a huge flock of corellas you’re missing out. Come to Australia!

Thanks Speck once again for the perfect music and Freesound 388730 and 166210 for the excellent corella recordings.
Echuca is an indigenous word for “Meeting of the Waters” since the town is at the confluence of the Campaspe and Murray Rivers. In its heyday the town was a major river port in the age of the paddle-steamer when the mighty Murray was Australia’s equivalent to the Mississippi.

Dawn, Old Echuca Wharf

curled blank paper
littering the tops
of grey river red gums
unfurls

and it is corellas awaking.
they unquiet
a raucous pushing of the bandwidth
ripping open the blue morning

then in ones and twos peel off
from the mob creaking
squealing a memory of unoiled
steam engines and chaffcutters

a fog rolls tumbles wheels flows
over still brown river,
a two-storeyed fluidity

corellas form their own clouds
broadcast tumultuous joy in all directions
over Moama and Echuca

smearing their sound and light
across two states.

glorious dischords
unzipping a new day.



(First published Adelaide InDaily, Feb 28, 2018)
https://indaily.com.au/arts-and-culture/books-and-poetry/2018/02/28/poems-lime-green-paddocks-river-red-gums/