Reality in Rhyme: A Collection of My Thoughts and Poems

By Gary Attrill

I consider that I am a spontaneous writer. I do no planning or preparation of any sort. I have no training or guidance in what or how I write. I am motivated subconsciously by an event, comment, action or just about anything that I find interesting, disturbing or beautiful. I know not what it will be that will next fill my head with words as I cannot write for the sake of writing. I have now compiled approximately 170 poems.

Most of my writing occurs in the middle of the night awoken from sleep with words flying around in my head like bats in a cave. Many times I rise and write immediately. Other times it stays with me repeating itself until the sun rises and its then that I put pen to paper. What annoys me the most is my inability to remember any of my writings. I may remember a line or two but no more.

I have been writing since 1999 although I did jot down a few lines in 1971 to my then fiance Penelope, after I was conscripted into the Australian army. We married in 1972 and still love, enjoy and cherish the company of each other.

I have compiled these writings so that in years to come my children, grandchildren and any thereafter have an insight into my-self and the times that I lived. It will give them the opportunity to maybe compare their thoughts with mine.

It is with pleasure that I thank my family for their support and belief. But there are also other people without whose encouragement I could not have progressed this far. My wifes late mother Bernadine was my greatest fan. My work colleagues Sandra, Casey, Adam, Sue-Ellen and Denise were always there with feedback.

I hope also that anyone and everyone who takes the time to read the words that I write get as much pleasure reading them as I do writing them.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris AU
• Release date: Dec 19, 2012
• ISBN: 9781479757640

Gary Attrill

I was born in 1951 in a small dairy settlement named Monteith on the River Murray in South Australia, Australia. My parents had an egg producing poultry farm that had 5000 hens. Electricity, hot water, showers, telephones and flushing toilets were all non-existent for the early years. I attended the Monteith Primary school through years 1-7 after which I attended the Murray Bridge High School (12km away). I worked in a variety of jobs after leaving school in 1968 from the state cold stores to car detailing to the family poultry farm until I was conscripted into the Australian army in 1971. After being discharged in 1973 I commenced a 9 month contract with the State Government. I left the public service in 2009. My wife Penelope and I have three children two girls, Codi a teacher, Tara a social worker and son Nathan, a carpenter builder. We all live near each other and see each other almost daily. We still live at Monteith as does my son and eldest daughter. The second daughter lives 12km away at Tailem Bend. We have five grand children, Oliver 11, Ruby 9, Noah 8, Nash 6 and Max 4. As I dont now work I spend quite a lot of time having them while all others work. My greatest passion other than my family, was Australian Rules Football, having coached about 400 games of senior country football commencing in 1975 and ending in 1999. My loves are my family, fishing, camping, hunting, writing, travelling Australia, Australian Rules football, the beach and fresh air.

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Copyright © 2012 by Gary Attrill.

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Contents

Snippets Of My Mind

Treasured

This Day

Easter

Your Children

Catch Me

Final Flight

Seed Of Knowledge

Like A Candle

Memories

Try

Our Home—Planet Earth

Wonderful Day

The River

The Beach

The Sky

The Edge

Rain Drops

No Control

One Drop

Ancient Matriarch

Observations

Cryptic Conversations

Woman

You

Smell The Roses

The Smile

Sounds O Silence

No Leaves On The Trees

The Pain

The Conflict Of Man

Eyes Of Man

Young Men Of Our Land (and women too)

Soldiers Bride

It’s Fathers Day Mum

In Silence They March

Field Of Headstones

Love

And Other Things

Strangers That I Know

Field Of Grass

Every Day

The You That I See

Angel Without Wings (Ruby)

A Nice Moment

I Miss You

On Your Own

Sunday In The Morn’

If

I Watched You Dance

Loss

No More Conversations

Death Of A Star

Once

New Star

Upon The Land

Old Tom And His Truck

My Dog

Three Hundred Yards

Time To Toil

The Black And White Stray

I Looked

Contrasts

So Close

Upon My Garden Bench

The Great Outdoors

Ocean Waves

Reality In Rhyme

A collection of my thoughts and poems

I consider that I am a spontaneous writer. I do no planning or preparation of any sort. I have no training or guidance in what or how I write. I am motivated subconsciously by an event, comment, action or just about anything that I find interesting, disturbing or beautiful. I know not what it will be that will next fill my head with words as I cannot write for the sake of writing. I have now compiled approximately 170 poems.

Most of my writing occurs in the middle of the night awoken from sleep with words flying around in my head like bats in a cave. Many times I rise and