John Muir and Robert Burns Poetry Competition '09 - The winners |
| Posted by Susan (susan) on Jan 15 2010 at 1:37 PM |
Wherever a Scotsman Goes...
John Muir and Robert Burns Poetry Competition April '09
Winner Over 16's category:
'Muir Paidlin' in Burns'
by William E Horne, Airts Burns Club, Prestonpans
Muir Paidlin' in Burns
As young John Muir glow'red tae the North,
Oot owre the wide expanse o' Forth,
He little kend whit airt the course
His life would steer,
As wayward as the yellow gorse
In less a year.
To travel far would be his fate,
To Wisconsin, the Badger State.
And for the passage, his first mate,
The Ayrshire Bard.
To see him owre what life dictate,
An' be his guard.
Just as Burns did, so then he now,
Wi' bendit back ahint the plough,
An' honest sweat upon his brow
Loved nature's flowers,
Like spring-time buds upon the bough
Loves evening showers.
Muir walked the 'states wi' n'er a fear
The songs o' Burns he sang oot clear,
An' all God's creatures did revere,
Baith great an' sma'.
An' by his side, a frien', a seer
Aboon them a'.
An' so, where'er a Scotsman goes,
O'er crystal streams, through mountain snows,
An' a' the airts that cauld win' blows,
Tak' Robert Burns.
He'll be your frien' with verse an' prose,
Till life adjourns.
Highly Commended:
'Alaska Shared (John Muir in mind)'
by Lesleymay Miller
Alaska Shared (John Muir in mind)
Snow
dustings
september
jagged ridges
swathes of pink
greygreen heights
deep green forests
yellows of birch,aspen.
Eagle eyes on look out
Spruce and pine march up foothills
spaced out like chessmen in the valley.
Lime green, sharp yellow of poolside grasses,
rain drops create calm circles among water lilies.
Mount mcKinley on the skyline as we pass a sign, 'Dunbar'.
Bunchberries, blaeberries, cranberries colour this wild land.
Mountains heavy with trees drop straight into the sea,
raw islands formed by power of ice, shimmering
shades of blue in a wall of sharp spires;
glacier calves new icebergs thunderously
like waves colliding on the rocks of home.
John Muir ploughed a straight furrow,
Robert Burns in his heart.
As I sail along the coast,
I sing their
song.
'Nature's Messengers'
by Will Collin
Burns and Muir both grew up on their father’s farms, “gaining a real knowledge of animals as fellow-mortals, learning to respect them and love them, and even to win some of their love” (John Muir, ‘The Story of My Boyhood and Youth’). The key to Muir’s approach to Nature is to be found in the sentiments expressed by Burns in ‘To a Mouse’ and particularly the phrase “our earth-born companion and fellow mortal” which Muir used frequently in his writing.
Nature's Messengers
'A Toast to the memory of Robert Burns'
by Will Collin
John Muir’s wife Louie died from lung cancer in August 1905. For many months, the grieving Muir retreated from public life. On 25 January 1906, he wrote an essay ‘Thoughts written on the birthday of Robert Burns’. In it he said that “wherever a Scotsman goes, there goes Burns”. “On my long lonely walks,” Muir wrote, “I have often thought how fine it would be to have the company of Burns. And indeed he was always with me, for I had him by heart.” Throughout his books, magazine articles and letters, Muir quoted often from Burns, the most frequent being from ‘To a Mouse’ and from there the most used being “earth-born companion and fellow mortal”.
A Toast to the memory of Robert Burns
When folk compute what I hae deen, done
The wild places I hae been, have
The wondrous sights that I hae seen,
I’m shair they’ll say sure
That ye hae seen them through my een; eyes
Ye’ve been there tae! too
For tho’ some times we seemed tae pairt to part
And I went off some ither airt, other direction
Lackin’ wildness, seekin mair’t, more of it
A’ by mysel’,
Still you were aye there in my hairt, always, heart
Thro’ heav’n and hell
If I was lost, twas then I sought ye;
If I fell ower, twas then ye caught me; over
If I was low, twas then ye taught me
Tae sing a sang. song
If Nature needed, then ye got me
Tae right a wrang. wrong
When my wife dear frae me was ta’en, taken
And naethin would relieve the pain, nothing
And I was left here a’ alane all alone
By a’ the lave, the rest
At length I turned tae you again –
And love you gave.
I’ve ha’en monie days o joys ’n’ pain had, many
High peaks, cauld ice, snaw, hail and rain. cold
When I wad tell the world, I’d fain would, willingly
Ha’en your word pooers; powers
Yet when I was lost, again and again
I turned tae yours.
And sae, my freend, I bid ye weel; friend
We’re baith fruits o parents – aye, and skeel – both, school
But maist, I feel that what ye feel most
I dae the same. do
Burns, my fere, here’s a toast right leal, companion, loyal
Tae your great name.
Winner Under 16 category:
'Ma Hame Toon'
by Hugh Panton age 13
My Hame Toon
Dunbar's ma hame toon
Whaur thon wither cheenges in a knick
Frae scorchin tae fresting
In the simmer when its roastit
Me and ma Billies gae tae the beach
Jimpin, Dooking, Spruntin in tae the tide
Daen' henners aff the dyke
scooring alang thon gowden saun
Seing wha can jimp the fordest
Scomprin ower the craigs
The claiks snelling at oor baiters
Then when the sin soes doon
We all slaff awa tae oor hames
with oor claes happit in glour
But we'll be oot the morn
Playing the same games!
Winner Under 11 category:
'Pippa's Robert Burns Song'
by Pippa Carter age 5
Pippa's Robert Burns Song
It was long, long ago when Robert Burns died
in an old coffin but nothing could be seen long ago.
And when he was in the coffin, every body knew where he died,
he was in a coffin in heaven.
and every single angel sang in the sky so long ago.
And the angels took him to heaven
and the whole world was missing Robert Burns songs,
which were so nice and we wished he didn't die.
But Scottish fairies magicked him alive and he came
down from heaven but he didn't come alive.
So every body could open up the coffin and see him dead inside
but everybody wished Robert Burns to come alive.
Winner 'Visitor's Choice':
'A Kindred Longing'
by Jo Gibson
A Kindred Longing
The woods
the oceans edge
the birds, the berries
on every hedge, hold the sky in place
give the sun its space
to shine.
The soil
the grass
the hopeful fields
that yield to the rain
that drink up the heat
here I meet myself.
Not hemmed in, by walls, doors, dark
tenement stairs, floors that creak each
step of the prison night
while the stars call and the moons sweet Light
leads down to the sea
where freedom beckons.
Nature’s Messengers
We twae hae fermer laddies been; two, farmer boys
We baith hae toiled frae morn till e’en both, have, from, evening
And monie a beast that we hae seen many, animal
Won oor regard, our
When ither folk, cruel and mean, other
Were harsh and hard.
The hameless mouse, a wounded hare, homeless
A louse, daft sheep, and yon auld mare, silly, that old
A daisy crushed or lassie fair, girl
Ye lo’ed them weel, you loved, well
An wrote aboot them a’, wi care – about, all, with
Aye, e’en the deil. yes, even, devil
For me it was the trees and flooers. flowers
Tho I could speak wi them for oors, hours
Tae scrieve in rhyme was past my pooers, write, powers
Try as I might.
My verse was ne’er sae guid as yours, as good
Tho I sat a’ night.
Still, Nature dear, tae her I’d pay to
Respect, regard, the lea lang day, whole
As I walked oot the wildest way – out
Lang, lanely miles. long, lonely
If I couldnae find the words tae say, could not
I’d yaise yours whiles. use, at times
Doon glacier gorge, up mountain high, down
Neath storm clouds dark or clear blue sky,
I’ve sauntered on, and you close by,
Thru heav’ns portals.
Wi earth-born freens, baith bold and shy, friends
Oor fellow mortals
I sang your words tae a’ wha’d hear; to all who would
Squirrels and birds frae far and near,
The mighty bears and timid deer
Heard me give praise.
And sae it’s been, year efter year so, after
Thru a my days.
We twae hae fermer laddies been; two, farmer boys
We baith hae toiled frae morn till e’en both, have, from, evening
And monie a beast that we hae seen many, animal
Won oor regard, our
When ither folk, cruel and mean, other
Were harsh and hard.
The hameless mouse, a wounded hare, homeless
A louse, daft sheep, and yon auld mare, silly, that old
A daisy crushed or lassie fair, girl
Ye lo’ed them weel, you loved, well
An wrote aboot them a’, wi care – about, all, with
Aye, e’en the deil. yes, even, devil
For me it was the trees and flooers. flowers
Tho I could speak wi them for oors, hours
Tae scrieve in rhyme was past my pooers, write, powers
Try as I might.
My verse was ne’er sae guid as yours, as good
Tho I sat a’ night.
Still, Nature dear, tae her I’d pay to
Respect, regard, the lea lang day, whole
As I walked oot the wildest way – out
Lang, lanely miles. long, lonely
If I couldnae find the words tae say, could not
I’d yaise yours whiles. use, at times
Doon glacier gorge, up mountain high, down
Neath storm clouds dark or clear blue sky,
I’ve sauntered on, and you close by,
Thru heav’ns portals.
Wi earth-born freens, baith bold and shy, friends
Oor fellow mortals
I sang your words tae a’ wha’d hear; to all who would
Squirrels and birds frae far and near,
The mighty bears and timid deer
Heard me give praise.
And sae it’s been, year efter year so, after
Thru a my days.