Les Murray (1938-2019)

Australia gave us kangaroos, cochlear implants Koalas, boomerangs, the Barrier Reef And Les Murray, whose mother miscarried And died when he was twelve Poet, anthologist, critic, novelist He was one of a hundred Australian Living Treasures. At 18, watching mayflies over the river, He choose to have the future career of poetry He went to uni, hitch-hiked round Australia Read Virgil's Eclogues, became a Roman Catholic Married a Budapest girl, started a family A Bush-bard he was last of the Jindyworobaks White Australians who nurtured indigenous ways Praise be for "The Broad Bean Sermon" Praise be for "Machine Portraits with Pendant Spaceman" Praise be for Subhuman Redneck Poems Praise be for The Daylight Moon Praise be for Killing the Black Dog In the poetry wars, he championed the man in the street Not for a fey elite in a poetry club He was one of the Boys Who Stole the Funeral Of poetry, keeping it safe for those who love true words