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White Clover Roots
by Erin Coull (Australia)
May 2023
Audio: “White Clover Roots,” read by Clare McFadden
How can I call myself Australian
when I live on stolen land?
These white-clover roots of mine
are weeds in the sun-scorched soil,
strangling the buttongrass,
Crowding out the honey reed.
So give me your blessing, iron-red dirt—
Open your arms and tell me I'm home
Or spit me out of this land forever.
And how can I call myself Australian
when I don't even know what that means?
This blood of mine is pasteurised,
boiled down from Ireland, England, Scotland and France—
I don't belong here;
but my homelands were never mine either.
So give me your blessing, o vast night sky
Or guide me away through the gaps between stars,
To some place I can really call mine.
Note: “Gaps between stars” is a reference to Australian Indigenous astronomy, the art of charting not the stars themselves, but the dark spaces in between.
Erin Coull, age 17, is a performance poet and podcaster living in lutruwita, Australia. Her work explores culture, place, relationships and moths.
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Clare
5/26/23, 6:23 AM
Congratulations Claire - this is a powerful piece - this feeling of a yearning for a home that may not even exist anymore will be something that everyone who lives outside of their original homeland will resonate with. Well done.
Quin Tesa
5/25/23, 9:27 PM
Quin Tesa
5/25/23, 9:27 PM
Quin Tesa
5/25/23, 9:27 PM
Quin Tesa
5/25/23, 9:27 PM
Love the words I mean the way you coin the letters bravo! And also a fellow Nigerian as well good luck
Quin Tesa
5/25/23, 9:27 PM
Love the words I mean the way you coin the letters bravo! And also a fellow Nigerian as well good luck
Akinlose Emmanuel
5/24/23, 11:04 AM
An amazing piece, quite figurative and exciting to read.
Adin Underwood
5/6/23, 12:18 AM
It's staggering just how many topics this poem can apply to. Very eye opening. 10/10
Adin Underwood
5/6/23, 12:14 AM
Although it may seem simple on the surface it is quite charming to see just how much thought and effort was put into understanding how a cat acts and thinks.
Adin Underwood
5/6/23, 12:10 AM
I liked how even though each line was different it always came back to the central theme.
Sarah Parker
4/28/23, 3:01 PM
This was a wonderful piece to read. I can't imagine haven't been told about periods and sex. I was in fifth grade when I took a class. And even then, there were things they left out. This was a really important topic to write about. Great job!!
Sarah Parker
4/28/23, 3:01 PM
This was a wonderful piece to read. I can't imagine haven't been told about periods and sex. I was in fifth grade when I took a class. And even then, there were things they left out. This was a really important topic to write about. Great job!!