As I was in the valley at the time, and lived next door to the KV School which my three children attended, I knew most of the children featured. Of course, they are now mothers and fathers of their own children, and some no longer live in the valley.
Since there are many poems in the booklet that I thought appropriate to publish in the Voice, perhaps a couple could appear in each issue, which will take several months of submission. The foreword to the booklet just about sums up the wonderful minds and lives of children aged from 5 to 12 in their own world, so I have reproduced the following from the book.
“When our children pick up a pen to draw, or a brush to paint, we witness art in its purest form. That splatted dandelion is an orchid, the stick person is someone dearly loved, the spiked blob, a brilliant moon. When children write poetry they paint pictures with words, brushing in that same raw honesty. As we grow older these primitive pictures fade and poetry loses its colour, its essential truth, and more often its simplicity.
The poetry of our children’s world is irreplaceable.
In this collection of poems by the children of Kangaroo Valley, the child in you will live again, refreshed by the beauty, tragedy, and humour of a child’s world, painted in words.
It is also a tribute to our teachers at Kangaroo Valley Public School and the parents who encourage and inspire our children to write poetry.
We hope you enjoy the collection of poems.”
Sadly, Julie Meddows passed away a couple of years ago.
Kathryn Morgan (9)
Fantasy 1
A Unicorn, a magic wand
Secret mermaids in a pond
Why aren’t they on your mind list?
Why say they don’t exist?
Go visit the land of mystery
It’s much more than history….
Fantasy 2
A Mermaid sitting on a mossy rock
A clock ticking, tick tock
Time will fly, fantasy will die
A Mermaid sitting on a fossil rock.
Fantasy 3
A cut down tree, a bird to free
No more magic wonder bee
Say magic is true and don’t be blue
Cause maybe a fairy’s watching you.
Phoebe Garrett (9)
Dinosaurs
Millions of years ago
When dinosaurs ruled the land
The earth was covered with dinosaurs and sand
Some dinosaurs were fierce
Some were scary
Some were strange
Some very wary
Some liked swimming
Some did not
Because the earth
Was very hot
But then, oh no
The great ice age
The dinosaurs
They died out quick
The dinosaurs became extinct
Which is why? I say
You will not see a dinosaur today!!!
Madeleine Jeffery (7)
Autumn
On cold days I run through the fallen leaves
Laughing and giggling all the while big.
I am throwing leaves and crumbling them
With my friends
I like looking at beautiful, coloured leaves
Falling down like snowflakes
Falling down on my face
Spring
In spring all the flowers bloom
And I like to sail in a balloon
Sailing East, North, West and South
Do as I please
I swing on a trapeze
“Oh, what fun,” I say
As I fly about.