Sgraffito

Listening to a famous writer speak about 
the problem of having a poet for a parent, 
I realise I have no such legacy. No-one 
in my family ever penned a poem or a novel.   

All I have is my mum’s recipes, written 
in a loopy calligraphy, the swirling capital t’s 
and elongated g’s promising a life 
more avant-garde than she ever lived. 

On the pull-out drawers of my dad’s desk 
are a set of slip-in labels with accounts 
and duty stamps typed in capital letters, 
which was kind of how he spoke to us.   

From my grandpa, I’ve kept a letter  
reminding me to practice the piano 
and look after my ‘nuisance’ brother. 
From my nan, who never learned 

to read or write, I have nothing except 
a birthday card with a printed rubric
above a stick-figure, arms out wide, 
to show the latitude of her love.

KIM WATERS

Kim Waters lives in Melbourne, Australia. She has a Master of Arts degree in creative writing from Deakin University and has just completed an Advanced Diploma of Visual Arts. Her poems have appeared in The Australian, The Shanghai Literary Review, Cordite, and The Raintown Review.