Published in Overland Issue 202 Autumn 2011 · Uncategorized the purpling Kevin Gillam out, running to stand still, waiting for Venus – first up, letting the purpling do its work, sunshine seeping into pillow, dreams translating the warmth, slinking down, eyes along the surface, drowning in cuts of blue and silver and sunshine, bled of urgents, the purpling, keeping the words from the damp, brittle as kindling, stacked neat and ready ‘neath the galvanised tin of hope, doing the work, licking silence, drowning in horizon and soft focus, rolling meaning in the absence of a tongue, the purpling, left-hand fingers up and down the neck, mantra of memory, right hand drawing out breves for now, letting, cool torso of Salmon Gum, holding this tree, brailling its oneness, its purpling, in the park, rusted songs of swings just vacated, memories of play and flight, letting the purpling do its work Kevin Gillam Kevin Gillam is a Western Australian writer with poems published in numerous journals in Australia and overseas. More by Kevin Gillam › Overland is a not-for-profit magazine with a proud history of supporting writers, and publishing ideas and voices often excluded from other places. If you like this piece, or support Overland’s work in general, please subscribe or donate. Related articles & Essays 4 October 202418 October 2024 · Main Posts Announcing the Nakata Brophy Prize for Young Indigenous Writers 2024 longlist Editorial Team Sponsored by Trinity College at the University of Melbourne and supporters, the Nakata Brophy Prize for Young Indigenous Writers, established in 2014 and now in its ninth year, recognises the talent of young Indigenous writers across Australia. 16 August 202416 August 2024 · Poetry pork lullaby Panda Wong but an alive pig / roots in the soil /turning it over / with its snout / softening the ground / is this a hymn