The Night Shift

24/02/2021 – Poem a Day Compilation



I hate it when you work the night shift.

The bed feels empty without you.

I don’t sleep properly not having you near

Though I slept for years on my own.



The kids have had their dinner

And I wonder if you’ll eat at all tonight

Because 6pm might be meal time here

But it’s the beginning of work for you.



I sometimes wish it would rain

So the crims would stay at home.

They’re no different from the rest of us,

They don’t want to be out in a storm.



Life here is dictated by routine,

By 9pm the babies are tucked up in bed,

But I don’t know where you are

Or what you’re having to face.



While I’m cleaning up the house

You’re cleaning vomit out of your car

From the drunk you’ve had to haul in

For picking a fight with a guy twice his size.



It’s just gone midnight but I can’t close my eyes.

You’re only half way through your shift

And I should be sound asleep

But there’s a feeling in my gut that won’t let me.



I will worry about you ‘til you return

And I can hold you safe in my arms.

My dreams are haunted when you’re away

Then I wake feeling like I haven’t slept.



I look at the clock and it’s not quite 3am.

Here, it is quiet and quiet can be

But I know you’re in the thick of it

And I wish you weren’t.



They say it gets easier to handle

But I can’t see how that is.

You are my world, my everything,

And I’d die without you here.



The 6am alarm is going off

But I’m already awake.

I think about hitting snooze

But I’m not sure there’s any point.



The sun is starting to rise now.

I know you’ll be home soon

But this is the time I fear most

Because last call outs are the worst.



But I know you’re in the right place

And you’ll come back to me each time.

I’ll get some restful sleep one day,

I just don’t know when that will be.

Yes

23/02/2021 - Poem a Day Compilation



Yes, I do want to wear a dress

Or, perhaps, a suit.

Maybe a skirt and jacket.

Or trousers and a shirt.



Yes, I do want to get dolled up

With make-up and accessories

But, also, not be bothered with any of it

Just because I can.



Yes, I want to go to the ballet

And clap very politely,

Then yell and scream my lungs out

Watching a football match.



Yes, I’d like to take extension Science

And advanced English, too, you know.

I’d really enjoy a Photography course

And learning Maths as well.



Yes, I’d like to ride motorbikes

Though dirt and mud and sand,

And I’d like to be chauffeured around

As the princess that I am.



Yes, I want to be taken care of

So I don’t have to cook and clean,

But I’m little miss independent, too

And can do this on my own.



Yes, I am full of contradictions,

They’re what make me me.

I don’t need to follow any rules

Just because I am a girl.

Without

22/02/2021 – Poem a Day Compilation



I can’t live without air

I would die

Before most songs had finished



I can’t live without water

I would perish

Before the week is out



I can’t live without food

I would succumb

Before the moon has refilled



I can’t live without love

Yet here I am

Perhaps simply existing

The New Kid

21/02/2021 – Poem a Day Compilation



Walking into school

Not knowing anyone

Far away from friends

And worried about everything

Because you don’t know

Which teachers are nice

And which kids to stay away from

Or where the best spots are

When you want to sit quietly and read.



Will the librarian be strict

Or let you take an extra book

Every now and then?



Is the sports teacher cool

Or a hard arse

Who only has eyes for the very best?



Will that boys beat me up

If I look at him funny

Or sit in his seat in class?



Is the pretty girl going to laugh

When I talk to her

Or accept me for who I am?



You don’t know what you’re getting

Until you walk through those gates

And the world closes in on you

While you find your feet

And your voice,

And maybe being different

Isn’t different here

And I’ll fit in just fine

Even though I’m the new kid.

Glühwein mit Schuβ

20/02/2021 – Poem a Day Compilation



I’m not a big fan of red wine

It irks my tastebuds so

I prefer a spirit like whiskey

Or a liqueur to give me a glow



But let that red wine smoulder

And add some rum to taste

Along with a dash of cinnamon

And none will be going to waste



You could add some cloves if you like,

And I won’t say no to star anise

A sprinkling of sugar and a dash of vanilla

A slice of orange as the final piece



But it’s too hot here in Australia

To drink it at Christmas-time

So, I’ll save it for the depths of winter

When it really comes into its prime

In the future

19/02/2021 –  Poem a Day Compilation



For Joshua Garrett and his mother, Katt



In the future I will be brave

But right now, I want to scream 

I long to hold you in my arms

And hear your plaintiff cries



In the future I will remember you

When others just want to forget

Because thinking of you is hard

But forgetting would be worse



In the future I want to hear your name

Said with all the love in the world

Because you were here and I love you

Though you were barely two months old



In the future I want to reminisce

About the time we had with you

But people won’t even mention you

For fear of how they’ll feel



In the future I will still grieve

But I want there to be happy tears

When I think of that precious time we had

And not how you’re no longer here



In the future I want to celebrate you

And what you meant to me

Not hide your memory away inside

Like a secret of which to be ashamed



In the future I will say your name

For everyone to hear

For you are a part of me

To which I will never say goodbye

Why can’t girls …

18/02/2021 – Poem a Day Compilation



        Darling daughter, you look sad

        What’s on your mind, my sweet?

        You seem a little upset, my dear,

        Is there something I can fix?



My friends at school were talking

About what their daddies do

And when I said I wanted to be like them

They said they were only jobs for dads.



        What type of jobs did they mention?

        I’m sure I’ve never seen a job

        That only men are qualified for,

        Let’s see this list of yours!



Why can’t girls play football?

I can run

And kick

And tackle.



        You can do all those things

        And you could be the next Sam Kerr

        Or maybe Daisy Pearce

        If you really wanted to.



Why can’t girls be software developers?

I can code

And am creative

And have an eye for detail.



        There are many women in software

        Just ask Jaime Gunther or Jane Chau

        And they’ll give you a long, long list

        If that’s what you want to do.



Why can’t girls be farmers?

I can sheet a sheep

And milk a cow

And plough a field.



        A lot has changed in this century

        And many women run farms

        I’m sure Lorraine Gordon

        Could shed a little light.



Why can’t girls work construction?

I can drive heavy machinery

And use power tools

And push a wheelbarrow.



        There’s no part of that you shouldn’t do

        If that’s your chosen profession

        If you want a female tradie

        Then Penny Petridis is the person to ask,



Why can’t girls be engineers?

I can design technological solutions

And test production lines

And analyse risks.



        You could be a chemical engineer like Marlene Kanga

        Or do infrastructure like Elizabeth Taylor

        Maybe defence engineering like Trish White

        Or take on the civil side like Mehreen Faruqi



Why can’t girls be astronauts?

I can study the planets

And work in microgravity

And be away from my family.



        Christina Koch and Jessica Meir

        Have done a lap or two

        Around this planet we call home

        And maybe you will, too



Why can’t girls be architects?

I can design skyscrapers

And be a visionary

And plan every step.



        Have you heard of Momoyo Kaijima?

        Well, you should probably look her up,

        I’m sure he was headstrong just like you

        When she was a little girl.



Why can’t girls be firefighters?

I can hold a hose

And carry more than my weight

And risk my life.



        We’ve got captains and assistant commissioners

        Who are in the fire service

        Like Louise Livermore and Rebel Talbert

        Not to mention all-female crews!



Why can’t girls be pilots?

I can understand meteorological information

And be calm under pressure

And remember what all the buttons do.



        Deborah Wardley was told she couldn’t

        But she proved them very wrong,

        And Nancy Bird Walton

        Is getting an airport named after her. 



Why can’t girls be judges?

I can study hard

And be impartial

And uphold the law.



        I hardly think Virginia Bell

        Let a man tell her she couldn’t be a judge

        Or he’d have been appearing before her

        In a supreme case of misogyny



Why can’t girls be CEOs?

I can run a business

And handle problems

And manage money.



        Melanie Perins didn’t let being a girl

        Stop her in her tracks

        When she started up her business

        That’s now massive in tech.



So, I can be anything

Just like all those other girls?

Do you really think it’s possible

For me to be like them?



        Not only is it possible,

        It’s practically a guarantee

        And don’t let anyone tell you

        You can’t because you’re a girl.