by Loine Sweeney with Deb Stewart

In a fresh take on our ‘Inspire’ range of activities, we’ve recently begun to look at aspects of your Park Lands, or thinking inspired while in them, through the lens of poetry.

As the Chair of APA’s new “Inspire” sub-committee, I’ve recently initiated ‘Poetry in the Park Lands,’ starting with welcoming your contributions in verse.

In our latest in this series, we meet Deb Stewart, a South Australian poet, and singer songwriter, based in Milang. Her most recent collections of poetry are The White Line of Language (2019) and Adelaide: Mapping the Human City (ed. 2021).

We are very fortunate that Deb has agreed to come on board as a fellow APA volunteer to assist coordination and further development of our “Park Poetry” series. So let’s find out more about Deb Stewart and what inspires her writing.

Deb Stewart - In Her Own Words

My relationship with words and nature began as a young child, growing up in England. For a couple of years, we lived in a little town called Cholsey, surrounded by fields and farmland. I remember mist and rain and open fields, the smell of hay and distant sounds of horses and cows. I smelled the lawn and flowers, stared up at the blue sky and watched the butterflies, birds and bees. The sun warmed my skin and the birds’ songs were a joy to listen to. I still enjoy these simple pleasures and often write about the natural world in my poems. In retirement now, I am living in Milang on the shores of Lake Alexandrina, and like to walk along the foreshore where there are pelicans, gulls and gently lapping wavelets.

Nature restores my calm and revives me. Connecting with nature often provides inspiration for my creative work. Even if my current project is based on subjects other than the natural world, being in these wild and natural spaces stimulates creative thinking and encourages me to find satisfactory solutions to any writing issues I am experiencing. I think this is extremely important for everyone – to be able to access the quiet, green spaces that surround our beautiful city of Adelaide. To be able to tune out the busyness and business of everyday life for a little while and ground ourselves in nature.

I worked at a city law firm for several years and felt very grateful to be able to sit in the sunshine on a park bench in one of our city squares for a while to recharge my energy for the afternoon demands of work. We are so lucky to live in a city surrounded by lush park lands where we can work and rest, and picnic and play!

The poem I have included here, ‘Nelumbo Pond’ was written in 2021 and included in an anthology I compiled and edited, Adelaide: Mapping the Human City – a collection of poems written by over 60 poets, and photographs taken in the city of Adelaide.

The inspiration for this poem goes back many years to a hot January day in 2004 when I went for a walk through the Adelaide Botanic Garden to take photographs of the lotuses in bloom.

*Lotuses in bloom during summer in the Nelumbo Pond in the Adelaide Botanic Garden, part of Park 11 in your Adelaide Park Lands. Pic: Deb Stewart*

I have a framed photograph of the lotuses on my office wall and, as I write this, it transports me back to that place and time, standing beside the Nelumbo Pond, admiring the soft pink lotuses and the vibrant sunlit green of their sea of leaves. With the sunshine on my skin and a full heart, I mused on the ‘Boy on a swan’ statue at the centre of the pond.

Seventeen years later, still carrying the inspiration of that lunchtime walk, I was able to capture the joy of that moment in a new poem. Such is the power of nature and beautiful gardens that uplift our spirits.

Nelumbo Pond

Oh, glorious Nelumbo pond

I adore your pink blossoms

so intricately pleated

unfolding their yellow light.

Your bright green leaves

of sunlight and shadow

bringing me joy.

A sea of fresh hope

for the adventures

of a boy on a swan

clasping the bird’s long neck

with contented glee

a pair of cut lotus blooms

resting gently at the swan’s throat

a summer offering

to make my heart swell

with lotus love.

*The Nelumbo pond in the Adelaide Botanic Garden - loved by ducks and photographers! Pic: Shane Sody*

If you are seeking rest and refreshment, or creative inspiration, I encourage you to take a walk in your Adelaide Park Lands. Sit on a bench and feel nature all around you. Listen to the wind humming through leaves. Don’t be shy of the rain. Even in winter there are joys to be had. Take an umbrella and muse on the rain wet leaves and grasses, the joyous little birds bathing in reflective puddles. Enter the Forest of Dreams, your Adelaide Park Lands.

Other poems in the “Park Poetry” series

Make a poetry contribution

Whether you’re a seasoned poet, a first-timer, or a school student, you’re invited to share your Park Lands-inspired poetry with our thousands of readers, published here on this blog.

Please submit your poem, together with a photo of yourself and what part of your Adelaide Park lands you'd like pictured alongside your poem, to our Editor, Shane Sody: shane.sody@gmail.com