The Bed That Is a Tree

A lovely thoughtful reading of my Penelope-inspired poem, chosen by Carol Rumens as her Poem of the Week in the Guardian.

I’ve long been inspired by the women in the Odyssey. Seems to me that Penelope, Circe, Nausikaa and Calypso are beautifully drawn – intelligent, wily women, often pivotal in all the key action of the story and often shown as agents for change. The poem was inspired by a real-life Greek threnody (a ‘wailing ode’, linguistically linked to words like melody and rhapsody), a mourning song. My love, I loved you well, I kept you well. I kept you as musk in the box and wire in the reed. This folk lament (from Kynouria, an ancient district of eastern Greece) felt just right for Penelope, constantly weaving and unpicking a shroud to delay choosing a suitor in Odysseus’ absence— a reed is part of a weaving loom, resembling a comb, used to separate and space the warp threads, to guide the shuttle’s motion. Using the lament for its rhythm and metaphor, the poem re-imagines Penelope’s weaving and unpicking.

Now, I’m thrilled to hear this poem is about to be set to music by Julia Fitzgerald, a student at Sydney Conservatorium of Music, as part of her Bachelor of Music Composition.