We were talking about
things
we need
versus things we think we do
and
she told me
she would
be selling
all her material goods
to do good in the world.
I thought about the book boxes
and extra kitchen gear
flooding our floor
and wondered why everytime
we move I realise
we have things we don’t need
and could do without.
She offered me some
potential solutions
to shelving
and I could see her rummaging
through things to find them homes
including maybe at mine.
I thought of suitcases.
Suitcases of books are much easier to
move than shelves
perhaps I could do away with bookcases.
In a sincere way
She made me laugh at myself.
Perhaps instead of shelves
I can do away with the things
that need to go on them.
She doesn’t expect
everyone to do without
but it is her choice
her generous heart.
My son tells me ‘moving so much
has taught me
the need to travel
lighter.’
He never wants to own too much
so if he should ever need to move
he won’t have much to burden him.
Travelling lighter
means freedom to move
quickly.
He says he’d like it down
to one back pack or suitcase
as long as he had a tablet
to watch and read and communicate with the world.
I read how Barbara Streisand downsized
and that makes me giggle
she went from several houses
to just one
when all I would want is one simple forever home.
What is home?
Not the things in it
but the need to be in a neigbourhood
to not have to move at the whim of a developer
or because someone who owns the house you rent
wants to sell it and
move onto their next investment
When we first moved to Brisbane I saw
an exhibition of an immigrant’s suitcase.
One suitcase to another land
that was all their family could take.
I remember my children grabbing their guitars and a bag
of clothes on the night
of cyclone yasi.
If all my world could be contained in
one suitcase what would I take
to give me a sense of home.
(c) June Perkins
These are just some preliminary ideas for poems on suitcases of home and learning detachment.
I will be back to rework it into some different forms, but this is the first entry.
It is a bit prosaic at the moment, but thinking of how I will poeticize it.
An important part of any writing is working with an idea and developing it.
My next few poetry posts will be on that process.
Ripple Poetry 
Well said June. Having moved recently and taking advantage of dad being in hospital to breathe down my neck, I bit the bullet and went for it. Of course Tahirih already had him go through the garage which was a huge mountain to climb. Our new home now has space around the things and everything seems to ‘breathe’. It feels lighter and we have left some of the books … Some were meant for other places as well … In their boxes for taking to our new centre in Melbourne. I have been reading Peter Walsh’ stuff and posting it on Facebook about getting organised and I have to say I feel reAlly good. Good on your wonderful children, they are wise beyond their years. Of course we do need some stuff! Peter Walsh says when you buy one thing, get rid of another, eg clothes or books…ie donate it. Love!
😉 Thanks for sharing Helen. Yes, thinking of the Lifeline book fest as a good place to donate books.