Poem: The Power Station

Books & Poetry

Wednesday May 07, 2014 Comments

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Today’s poem is from Don Ellis, who was born and raised in Port Augusta, where he did his initial trades apprenticeship at the power station.

The Power Station, Port Augusta, 1956

For a fifteen-year-old boy, apprentice,
a wonderland, an adventure park –
a throbbing machine, converting a line of
dirty brown coal into a line of clean live energy.

The men, scampering dwarfs on its territory,
servants, doing its bidding, careful not to
transgress its nature or its relentless mission
always at their risk or its destruction.

The massive machine tamed and tasked,
to glow tiny wires in small glass domes
converting home night into day light
extending day time into night time.

Coal power, once innocent and life giving,
now an agent of natural and human destruction,
to be replaced by a redirected sun,
and a limited human intervention.

Don Ellis now holds an Advanced Trades Certificate in Fitting & Turning, a Diploma of Art Teaching, and degrees in education through to PhD level. Jewellery-making and sculpting are also keen pursuits. Don’s first published poems appeared in Poet’s Corner in August and October last year.

Readers’ original and unpublished poems up to 30 lines can be emailed, with postal address, to poetscorner@solsticemedia.com.au. A poetry book will be awarded to each contributor.

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<h1>Poem: The Power Station</h1>

<address><a href="https://inreview.com.au/contributors/compiled-by-john-miles/" class="author">Compiled by John Miles</a></address>
											
							Today’s poem is from Don Ellis, who was born and raised in Port Augusta, where he did his initial trades apprenticeship at the power station.
<h4><a href="#the-power-station-port-augusta-1956" aria-hidden="true" class="aal_anchor" id="the-power-station-port-augusta-1956"><svg aria-hidden="true" class="aal_svg" height="16" version="1.1" viewBox="0 0 16 16" width="16"><path fill-rule="evenodd" d="M4 9h1v1H4c-1.5 0-3-1.69-3-3.5S2.55 3 4 3h4c1.45 0 3 1.69 3 3.5 0 1.41-.91 2.72-2 3.25V8.59c.58-.45 1-1.27 1-2.09C10 5.22 8.98 4 8 4H4c-.98 0-2 1.22-2 2.5S3 9 4 9zm9-3h-1v1h1c1 0 2 1.22 2 2.5S13.98 12 13 12H9c-.98 0-2-1.22-2-2.5 0-.83.42-1.64 1-2.09V6.25c-1.09.53-2 1.84-2 3.25C6 11.31 7.55 13 9 13h4c1.45 0 3-1.69 3-3.5S14.5 6 13 6z"></path></svg></a>The Power Station, Port Augusta, 1956</h4>
For a fifteen-year-old boy, apprentice, 
a wonderland, an adventure park – 
a throbbing machine, converting a line of 
dirty brown coal into a line of clean live energy.
The men, scampering dwarfs on its territory, 
servants, doing its bidding, careful not to 
transgress its nature or its relentless mission 
always at their risk or its destruction.
The massive machine tamed and tasked, 
to glow tiny wires in small glass domes 
converting home night into day light 
extending day time into night time.
Coal power, once innocent and life giving, 
now an agent of natural and human destruction, 
to be replaced by a redirected sun, 
and a limited human intervention.
Don Ellis now holds an Advanced Trades Certificate in Fitting & Turning, a Diploma of Art Teaching, and degrees in education through to PhD level. Jewellery-making and sculpting are also keen pursuits. Don’s first published poems appeared in Poet’s Corner in August and October last year.
Readers’ original and unpublished poems up to 30 lines can be emailed, with postal address, to <a href="mailto:poetscorner@solsticemedia.com.au">poetscorner@solsticemedia.com.au</a>. A poetry book will be awarded to each contributor.
 
 
 
 
 
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