napowrimo-april-9th - Your Mission

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to:


Use at least twelve words from this list: flap, winter, torch, pail, jug, strum, lever, massage, octopus, marionette, stow, pumice, rug, jam, limp, campfire, startle, wattle, bruise, chimney, tome, talon, fringe, walker;
Include something that tastes terrible;
Include some part (from a few words to several lines) of a previous poem that didn’t quite pan out; and
Include a sound that makes you happy.
Write a poem

Bush encounter.

The snow covered winter roof of the wagon
The chimney belching it's grey smoke
The campfire with it's warmth and glow
All invite the walker to boldy approach.
Startled, the Gypsy looks up
Beckons the stranger to sit down
Stow his pack on the fringed rug
Inside the wagon near the pail.
He pours water into the billy from an old jug,
Sits down and leans against the Wattle tree.
Waiting for the tea to bubble and boil
The visitor talks of trouble and toil.
Politely he swallows the hedghog stew,
Washing it down with the offered brew.
Wanting to please he tries not to gag
But secretly spits most into a rag.
The fire lulls with warmth and sound
The travelor makes his bed on the ground.
When life throws boomerangs that hit you hard,
A night in the bush under a sky that's starred,
A friendly chat and a guitar strum,
The eucalypt scent of an aging gum,
Work their enchantment, bringinging release.
Soon all is quiet, a calming peace.

© Ingeborg Apfelbaum, April 2010.

Well... that was a mouthful. Had no idea what line of a previous poem I could use until I found one that I had started ages ago and only completed 3 lines. The line I used was: When life throws boomerangs that hit you hard :)
Bush - is the Australian forest. Gum is a Eucalyptus tree. Hedgehog stew is a popular gypsy meal so I am borrowing from 2 cultures as there are no native hedgehogs in Australia :). A bit of poetic license.