2019 Noreen Mavis Daley Poetry Prize Winner Announced

The Noreen Mavis Daley Poetry Prize was endowed by the late Royston Porthouse in memory of his mother. The prize is open to all students currently enrolled in a Campion program of study. Entrants must submit an original, unpublished poem not exceeding 50 lines. There are no generic or thematic constraints.

The 2019 Prize was awarded to 1st year student, Gareth Cassidy. Read his winning poem below.

Argos

Ἀγνώστῳ Θεῷ

Lord,

i will wait for you, like a dog;

lying scattered, in the tear dust,

drinking sweet darkness, ageing on pus,

tired eyes conceded to the cloud,

shattered by the shadow shroud,

that veils all things holy.

nothing left, but only

to listen…

every pore of the soul, aching

for my Master’s call, some whisper

of His steps come close, or tremor

in the chambers of His Precious Heart.

i’ll wait…

…in the tension,

that hovers over the swell

where eternity and line time,

crash into one; there …

dead in the blissful vision and dying

for the anticipation of the vision,

suffering the sweetness of completion

before the agony of becoming …

i’ll wait.

Lord,

let me die here,

cocooned by cloud,

asleep in the water, suspended

slave to strange currents

whispers through the between land,

long living longing,

throbbing with the sunflower

leaning to the shadow.

oh, may it swell up slow

and take me.

life’s a guilty pleasure,

sliding, sting of honey on tongue

fleeting, faster than death

seeping, as dreams on breath

all so light, hold it!

it might just blow away.

and do i even now wake?

trampling dusky earth

pressed by dusty skies,

dancing jubilation in secret

in lands unstuck from time.

so heavy the days

deep nights of longing.

i am giddy with life

and the precious knowledge:

that now is my day to die.

 

To find out more about awards and prizes on offer at Campion, click here.

If you would like to learn more about how to set up a prize for Campion students please contact Yvette Nehme, Director of Development, on 02 9896 9318 or via y.nehme@campion.edu.au.