5:57am - Anna

Every morning at 5:57am I see the same lady on the same stretch of road at the same time every day.

She is always talking to herself. I don't know what she says because I am usually on the other side of the road. She is quite large and perhaps in her seventies.

I don't know where she is going at 5:57am. It's still dark then. The stars and moon are out. Sometimes it's frosty.

Where does this woman go at 5:57am?

(The Day) The Mist (Sucked Me In) - Anna

I woke up early and looked out the window. It was a little misty outside. I thought it would be a good start to the day to go for a walk.

I headed up the hill along the road. The road reached the forest and I turned to walk along the trail. The mist seemed a little thicker in the forest. It was enchanting. Further along the trail the mist became much thicker and I could not see more than 20 metres in front of me.

As I walked further, the mist became more intense. I noticed the birds had stopped chirping. Were they too cold to chirp in this weather or did they choose to not come here?

It was cold. The air was thick. All I could hear were my footsteps and my heartbeat. I wondered what it would be like to be enclosed in the whiteness. The mist was drawing me in. I continued forward to where the trees seemed to disappear into nothing.

Soon there was silence. I was in enveloped in the mist. I could not see anything but whiteness. I could not hear my heartbeat. I could not tell if I was moving because I could not see my feet and there was no noise. Silence. Nothing. The mist had sucked me in.

The Noise - Anna

It could take me in
and eat me up.
I don’t know where it comes from
or where it leads to.

Terrifying, no escape.
The noise is inevitable.

It happens again.
I run.
Safe again.

The same moon - Michael Bedward

This is the same moon
Backlighting the chance shapes and symmetries
Of fast moving clouds
Now a pair of hands
Now angel's wings
Now something almost recognised
Tugging at me
Fleeting

This is the same moon
Suddenly bright and unobscured
Undistanceable
But somehow the same as
The black and white television moon
Of my childhood
Closer then
Within reach

I shone my brightest torch into the night sky
Wondering if it could be seen from the moon
And knew that I would be there one day
Because it and everything was within reach
I lay in the backyard gazing up
Tucked into my imagined cramped capsule
Counting down
Ready

This is the same moon
Shining tonight on my adult head
Floating impossibly in the terrible void
That I will never cross nor comprehend
Hidden by cloud once more
It is lost
And I look down
Anxious for gravity

Flower - Michael Bedward

She holds out her hand
Palm upwards
Tiny and perfect
Flower !
A demand
But not like my demands
Hers are stronger
More certain
Empty of worry

I draw a daisy on her palm
She watches
Intent
Inspects it cafefully
Then all smiling
Shows it to me
I've studied flowers
But she knows them better