{"id":33,"date":"2008-03-02T20:31:48","date_gmt":"2008-03-02T09:31:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/?p=33"},"modified":"2008-03-03T04:43:08","modified_gmt":"2008-03-02T17:43:08","slug":"colin-thiele-remembered","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/?p=33","title":{"rendered":"colin thiele remembered"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s deeply gratifying for me that Adelaide Writers’ Week has opened with a dedication to the late Colin Thiele. We are only just beginning to realise what an amazing contribution Colin made to Australia’s literary heritage and our awareness of environmental issues. It’s only in recent years I’ve \u00a0become acquainted with the quality of Colin’s early poetry. The poem I wrote on hearing of his death on the same day as Steve Irwin’s is not of the same quality as Thiele’s work, but it is heartfelt.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>
<\/span>
<\/span>Elegy for Colin Thiele<\/span>\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>
<\/span>You didn\u2019t wrestle crocodiles, die tragically or young<\/span><\/p>\n

or driving cars in circles round the track.<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

Brought up in Eudunda, your praises won\u2019t be sung<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

in Washington. You won\u2019t be coming back.<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

I grew up with your Bruno, saw the sun upon the stubble<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

Your poetry was subtle, wry and deft.<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

You realized fifty years ago the planet was in trouble,<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

that if we don\u2019t wake up, there\u2019s nothing left.<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

You recognized our ancient land in all its muted beauty,<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

the pelican, the Coorong\u2019s fragile dunes.<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

Your writing and your teaching, your gift \u2013 perhaps your duty \u2013<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

May future generations hear your tunes.<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019ll be no lavish funeral provided by the State \u2013<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

You\u2019re in our hearts, though, Colin. Goodbye old humble mate\u2026<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u00a9 rob walker, September, 2006. First read at Friendly Street 03\/10\/06. First published AEU Journal, November, 2006.<\/p>\n

<\/h1>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It’s deeply gratifying for me that Adelaide Writers’ Week has opened with a dedication to the late Colin Thiele. We are only just beginning to realise what an amazing contribution Colin made to Australia’s literary heritage and our awareness of … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=33"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=33"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=33"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.robwalkerpoet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=33"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}