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From: Vol.03 N.02 – Decolonisation and Geopoethics

and the rivers run with antibodies

by Julie Maclean

in blood-blue arteries of artless flight and gather

egrets meet and feed

in shallow

shadow           peace

and blue

on sand bars ochre red

beaks and birds feed as cells

cancer breeds like birds

birds in shallows         deep

eat and eat

feed in blood

in blood-blue river     river of blood

and bird

they       nod

and      nod

honed scythes innate

slash the cancer down

eat the fish

the cancer fish

fish and cancer feed

blue arteries collapse

and fold as egrets feed

on drought

rare treat

and cancer tides

Published: July 2016
Julie Maclean

Julie Maclean’s second poetry collection Kiss of the Viking (Poetry Salzburg) was published in 2014. A collaborative pamphlet, To Have To Follow, is due in 2016. Her work appears in Poetry (Chicago), The Best Australian Poetry and elsewhere. Blogging at www.juliemacleanwriter.com

An Australian and international
journal of ecopoetry and ecopoetics.

Plumwood Mountain Journal is created on the unceded lands of the Gadigal and Wangal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and to elders past, present and future. We also acknowledge all traditional custodians of the lands this journal reaches.

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