In her poem 'Infinite Ibis,' Australian poet Keri Glastonbury uses the ibis—a native bird that has migrated to urban areas—as a metaphor for her own life journey from a regional city to the east coast. The poem, part of Australian Poetry Month, reflects on themes of ageing, family, and mortality, inspired by a camping trip to the Warrumbungles National Park.
From Regional Roots to Urban Realities
Glastonbury, who grew up in Wagga Wagga by the Murrumbidgee River, now lives in an east coast city. She explains, 'Ibises are a native bird species that migrated to cities and I use them as a symbol in this poem to trace my own migration.' The poem juxtaposes nostalgic memories of the 1980s with present-day experiences, such as seeing the moon through a telescope in Coonabarabran and encountering a sacred kingfisher trapped in a campsite amenities block.
The poem includes vivid, sometimes jarring imagery: 'I've pulled up dead kittens in a hessian sack with a canoe paddle, put crayfish in a boiling pot seen a platypus but I have aphantasia so can't picture it.' Glastonbury also references 'Big Murray the 52kg cod in his concrete tank' and 'Artemis II on TikTok,' blending the personal with the cosmic.
A Glitch Poem with Australian Iconography
Glastonbury describes 'Infinite Ibis' as a 'glitch' poem, meant to be read 'like a Lana Del Rey video.' Where Del Rey romanticizes Americana, Glastonbury engages with Australian symbols, including the ibis, which she calls 'farmer's friends.' The poem overlays past and present, from memories of 'Space Rocks' candy to the moon, and reflects on her late mother, an amateur astronomer. The Warrumbungles area is an International Dark Sky Park, home to the Siding Spring Observatory.
The poem emerged from an Easter camping trip with her father and their partners. They drove through Coonabarabran, a town that felt 'arrested in time,' with its art deco Commonwealth Bank still operating. The road to the national park featured animal-themed letterboxes, evoking her childhood. Despite the rustic setting, they had a 'groovy Japanese tent and fire pit,' and she posted photos to Instagram.
Time, Family, and Finding Solace
Glastonbury notes, 'This is a poem about time and distance, generation and family, mortality and star-gazing and ultimately finding solace in place (among human and non-human animals).' As a woman in her 50s, she draws on a 'rich tapestry of sense memories' to weave the poem together.
Australian Poetry Month runs throughout August, featuring festivals, events, and workshops, with a commissioned poem of the day from Red Room Poetry. Glastonbury's work is a testament to the power of poetry to explore personal and collective histories, and to find meaning in the natural world and our place within it.
