Silver City Highway [For Katherine Green]

by Sharon Ashton


Silver City Highway [For Katherine Green]

Silver City Highway [For Katherine Green] 

Three hundred and ninety one miles from Mildura to Tibooburra, 
hour after hour alert to emu and kangaroo,
and everywhere Salvation Jane, a weed poisonous to horses,
spilling from bushland to dirt track in swags of Seventies purple.

Early evening, through heat-warped air, we come to Broken Hill, 
city of red soil mapped by Argent, Galena, Cassiterite,
city of mineral-dusted gardens scented by musk of old English roses, 
city of ancient stones carved this night against skies of pewter.

Next day a night of flooding keeps us from Tero Creek, 
driving us instead to Menindee, to charcoal trees
breaking the skins of silvered milk lakes, to roo bones 
buried beneath bracelets of pale gold Paddy melons.

Late afternoon, driving back to the city, we pause three times─
for a stork slender-white-still at the rim of a grey pool,
for nine emu chicks, barely winged, flitting about an adult male,
and lastly to watch trucks of new ore caterpillar down to Port Pirie.