The teeming autumn, big with rich increase,
Bearing the wanton burden of the prime,
Like widow’d wombs after their lords’ decease.
Shakespeare Sonnet 97
Here are my contributions for the Autumn Issue-a time of pain and tears with my bull ant story, questioning drone warfare-review of Eye in the Sky, of the delights and discoveries of the Raven and reading about Magda Szubanski’s intense struggles in Reckoning.
The alien bull ant attack -a cautionary tale
On Fridays I care for my grandson Isaac who is nearly three years old. We were out in our rocky Eltham garden throwing stones into the pond running around, playing on the swing-seat and generally having a good time. We decided to do some weeding and Isaac is very energetic about how he helps.I thought I knew where the bull ants were located in our garden, having had other experiences of their attacks.
Eye in the Sky: ethical and moral questions
The film, Eye in the Sky opens with the statement, ‘In war, truth is the first casualty’ and this alerts us to what is to come. This powerful political thriller engages each of us in questioning the morality of modern warfare and by extension the justification for any war. I am a pacifist.
The Mythical and Intelligent Raven
Throughout time ravens and crows have been given sacred and symbolic meaning, and inspired countless myths and legends. As foretellers of omens they are said to bring both favourable and unfavourable messages. In some European traditions the raven was thought to possess a magical stone, which could help treat various human illnesses. There are also many stories about how the raven became black.
This is a story about a family of Australian Little Ravens (Corvus mellori) who have inhabited a thirty-five metre high spotted eucalyptus in our garden for the last five years.
Reckoning by Magda Szubanski
‘If you had met my father you would never, not for an instant, have thought he was an assassin.’ Thus begins Magda’s extraordinary story.
Fragments of memory & thought 
Having endured an attack by bullants (savage bastards !), being unable to elevate the advantages of drones in warfare above the life of an innocent civilian child, watching, spellbound, the ingenuity of the crows and having been capitivated by Magna’s book, the authors intent to ‘put’ , her rage, anxiety, joy and desire were vicariously experienced! Her objective to express those emotions by her cleverly constructed script is heartfelt and beautifully portrayed.
LikeLike