Elias Greig on ecofascism and the settler invasion fantasy, Natalia Figueroa Barroso on Charrua language and colonisation, the winners of the Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize and Judith Wright Poetry Prize, new poetry and fiction from Angela Costi, Liam Ferney, Michael Farrell, Ouyang Yu, Tim Loveday and more.
OVERLAND 188 spring 2007 ISBN 978-0-9775171-5-2published 20 September 2007
The Garden
We’re only guessing the colours of the stars to live peacefully in the noisy garden with utter strangers Their languages sound like the birds and trust is the last thing to survive Religions save some and destroy others pounding the earth to dust and mud from up high from the heavens comes the crossfire Zhukov’s army arrives in Kustrin People run into chaos and the flames drive out the infants the garden is emptied its flowers shards of glass the air black buildings split at the roots The piano is unplayed the strangers have fled Silence is as white as snow it’s winter for the living bodies float in their ice-beds they gather together in clumps along the way an animal is dying there is nothing to eat Only no-where to go This is what happens they say This is what happens when too many strangers enter the garden their voices like birds.
© Andrea Semeniuk Overland 188 – spring 2007, p. 83
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