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Shilpa KarhikOld Man Platypus by Banjo Patterson
November 14th 2006 01:30
Old Man Platypus
Far from the trouble and toil of town,
Where the reed beds sweep and shiver,
Look at a fragment of velvet brown --
Old Man Platypus drifting down,
Drifting along the river.
And he plays and dives in the river bends
In a style that is most elusive;
With few relations and fewer friends,
For Old Man Platypus descends
From a family most exclusive.
He shares his burrow beneath the bank
With his wife and his son and daughter
At the roots of the reeds and the grasses rank;
And the bubbles show where our hero sank
To its entrance under water.
Safe in their burrow below the falls
They live in a world of wonder,
Where no one visits and no one calls,
They sleep like little brown billiard balls
With their beaks tucked neatly under.
And he talks in a deep unfriendly growl
As he goes on his journey lonely;
For he's no relation to fish nor fowl,
Nor to bird nor beast, nor to horned owl;
In fact, he's the one and only!
Banjo Patterson is one of Australia's most celebrated poets. For more info on him you can go here
Far from the trouble and toil of town,
Where the reed beds sweep and shiver,
Look at a fragment of velvet brown --
Old Man Platypus drifting down,
Drifting along the river.
And he plays and dives in the river bends
In a style that is most elusive;
With few relations and fewer friends,
For Old Man Platypus descends
From a family most exclusive.
He shares his burrow beneath the bank
With his wife and his son and daughter
At the roots of the reeds and the grasses rank;
And the bubbles show where our hero sank
To its entrance under water.
Safe in their burrow below the falls
They live in a world of wonder,
Where no one visits and no one calls,
They sleep like little brown billiard balls
With their beaks tucked neatly under.
And he talks in a deep unfriendly growl
As he goes on his journey lonely;
For he's no relation to fish nor fowl,
Nor to bird nor beast, nor to horned owl;
In fact, he's the one and only!
Banjo Patterson is one of Australia's most celebrated poets. For more info on him you can go here
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Comment by katyzzz
Photography Tips
MS Paint Art
Loved everything,
And Banjo was just so well informed, a whole biology lesson in just a few [and far more interesting} verses.
You found a great shot of the platypus, a wonderful profile of Banjo, I fell instantly in love, always was a fool for looks, and gave us a great link.
Well done, once again, katyzzz
Comment by jasmine
thanks for the nice comment. I love the old photo of Banjo too, so noble yet down too earth at the same time.
I'm just about to come over to ms paint art, see what's going on...
jasmine
Comment by Chantal
I think I studied that one at school. It's nice! I like his work!
Comment by Lily
Ars Poetica
i hope you keep posting more australian poems; you don't see a lot out there, so thank you.. the photo is a fine one of ole' Banjo, he had such a beautiful mind.
Isn't the platypus great? I do believe this creature is unique incarnate.
~Lily
Comment by jasmine
I think all Aussies (who were paying attention) would have studied Banjo at some time. Funnily enough, I can't remember studying him!
Suffice to say I have been a fan of the honest, down to earth style of early Australian poets for a long time
Jasmine
Comment by jasmine
Thanks for the comment
I am trying to have a bit of an Australian theme at the moment as it is very true that these poems rarely get any exposure. In fact I would assert that there are not even many Aussie poets who are celebrated and accessible so it may be a little bit of work to track them down. Oh well, I always did want to be a detective!
Jasmine
Comment by Lily
Ars Poetica
ahh good luck on the rare poem hunt, Jasmine...
If i come across any, i will send em over your way...
~Lily
Comment by jasmine
sounds lovely, thanks,
Jasmine
Comment by Anonymous