Published in Overland Issue 237 Summer 2019 · Uncategorized In this letter, i can finally grammar yourself into a poem Duy Quang Mai dear Quang, don’t forget you are already here, sky-clean in light. doesn’t matter when this city less flame, i tell you that we stay yes, we do. so by writing you this i’m chiseling these syllables to our heart’s music. remember that sometimes, our punctuations fall apart for a reason. i think ‘chaos’ in our mother-tongue has another body, turning to ‘chào’ or vietnamese for hello. & hello a cliché that harvests the spring in your mouth you are here to give life, Quang so get up. been a while but i hope you earn a nice day (?) sorry so much for your patience (?) & everything kind regards,,,:; – (maybe a hyphen could help this continue / go on / outstretch / please / p l e a s pl e a s e p lea se / live / live / live x 10^100^10000) i miss you into a famine. i really do? Read the rest of Overland 237 If you enjoyed this piece, buy the issue Or subscribe and receive four brilliant issues for a year Duy Quang Mai Duy Quang Mai is an international student in Sydney, originally from Hanoi, Vietnam. His poems have been published or are forthcoming in The Lifted Brow, Cordite Poetry Review and Rabbit. More by Duy Quang Mai › 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 First published in Overland Issue 228 15 September 2023 · Friday Features Activating the poetic spirit as friendship John Kinsella I’ve always had the aching feeling that—as a text to be shared among friends and maybe eventually ‘enemies’—the soul-body dialogue poem is a way of arguing towards spiritual certainty in the face of earthly corruption and doubt. First published in Overland Issue 228 14 September 202314 September 2023 · Indigenous rights The ballot box does not translate ideology Jeanine Leane The Voice referendum is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the younger demographic to shape the future of the nation. Future generations of younger Australians will have to live with the outcome of October 14 for quite some time. If the referendum is defeated, it mean a nation was given the opportunity to recognise its First People and refused it.
