The Guardian by Rebecca Fraser

Nov 27, 20180 comments

I am a Guardian. Like my mother and her mother, and her mother before;
Nurturing, protecting, weaving
the tapestry of family and community with small, tight stitches.

I am the keeper of time and secrets and memories; the protector of my home, my heart, your heart.
I am the guardian of all that is taken for granted – the space and place of my gender.

I am the crier and wiper of tears of love and joy, and laughter and loss.
Salt water streams
Where the Boonwurrung women fished and swam and wove their own rich tapestry;
Custodians of land and kinship and ancestral culture.

I am as stalwart as the Peninsula, forever reaching for new horizons, yet permanently attached to my mainland;
I navigate the moods of the waters in which I have learned to swim, balancing the calm serenity of the bay
with the turbulent chaos of the ocean of life.

And as enduring as the relentless tides that batter and shape me,
remake me;
I will protect all that is important, fierce and fearless.
As will my daughter, and her daughter after that.

This is my voice …

Legacy Lady by Andrea Rowe

I am the dust on the mantle, the sepia steely-eyed matron. I am the memory of Committee Presidents, the name on Honour Boards, saluting legends, leaving legacies. The plaque in the park. The bequest to a town. The clipboard ticking Mistress who would not let them...

The Ladder by Muriel Cooper

She remembered the steep ladder leading down from the cliff to the beach, and the cave where countless fires had been lit, blackening the roof. You could sit in there and watch the sea when it wasn’t occupied by drunken teenagers or drug-affected hippies. She hadn’t...

The Swim by Muriel Cooper

The old beagle looks up from his basket. His muzzle grey and his eyes bleary.“Come on, Barney, my old darling. Time for your walk.” He perks up when he sees the lead, his tail wags, he struggles out of the basket and licks her hand as she clips it on his collar. They...

Secret Keeper by Danielle Burns

And Yes, I am the housekeeper. Chief cook and bottle washer - that’s me too. We all know I live to do laundry! And while we’re at it - any gardening, tidying, cleaning or shopping that needs to be done hey, I’m your girl! But why stop there? It’s a well-known fact...