Dave Bradley

Beyond the garden

by Dave Bradley

Friday 14th January 2011 6:06 pm

Again, that noise from the jungle.

He straightened in his garden,

that neat, square little patch

behind his smart, small cottage

with its chintz curtains,

and well-behaved, curling plume of smoke,

stared intently,

past the pristine bird table

at the lush foliage, starting

just beyond

his beautifully clipped privet hedge,

and asked himself

What was that noise?

Ah, the jungle,

so puzzling and fascinating,

compelling, intriguing,

sometime dangerous,

always enticing.

He put his spade down

neatly.

Took off his shirt

carefully.

Stripped off the rest slowly,

leaving a tidy pile

and walked into the jungle

naked

again.

◄ When is the ground?

Beyond the Garden #2 ►

Comments

winston plowes

Sun 6th Feb 2011 10:41

loved the close contrast between the two worlds and the human transition from one to another. If the forest were the sea we might have a Reggie Perrin parallel. What will happen in pt 2? Win.

Chris Co

Thu 3rd Feb 2011 16:01

I like the concept and use of the jungle as a metaphor.

I also like the deliberate use of simple but well chosen language and the enigmatic ending.

Naked again 'apes' (forgive the pun) evolution from more primitive forms and itself parallels the wild that is the jungle, both literally and metaphotically.

Alternatively;

it suggests mans origin in a garden of eden and a biblical allusion.

The jungle for me is everything that is outside of our respective comfort zones; dangerous but also something that sometimes needs to be tackled.

Chris

Elaine Booth

Tue 18th Jan 2011 20:02

Very tempting idea! Thought provoking. It made me smile to read it.

Andy N

Mon 17th Jan 2011 14:00

another good un, dave.. enjoyed this - eye opening certainly! lol

John Coopey

Sat 15th Jan 2011 21:09

Thanks for your comments, again, Dave. This time on Doing It Twice. The after-dinner speaker I filched the story off (Steve Womack) also adds that the only time these days that he thinks about doing it twice is just before he's done it once. (I wish I'd said that!).

<Deleted User> (6315)

Sat 15th Jan 2011 19:12

I enjoyed this read very much Dave..the interpretations that can be put to it are great, but just the thought of him leaving his tidy life and deciding to venture into the jumgle is so very interesting..hmmm the again ending did make me wonder how many times he had done this tho!...neat write.

Dave Bradley

Sat 15th Jan 2011 00:04

Sincere thanks to everyone for your kind comments. For me, this was mainly about the relationship of the conscious to the unconscious mind, but like many poems - especially those which draw a picture - it can be received in more than one way, and there is no 'right answer'.

John Coopey

Fri 14th Jan 2011 23:16

Enjoyed this too, Dave.
Anyone who gardens knows that it's not a place for nature; it's a battle against nature. The stuff you want to grow there doesn't want to (it's Japanese, or South African) and what does want to grow there (nettles, dandelions, buttercups) you don't want.
I worked for a bloke once who said "In a 1000 years it'll all be the same"

<Deleted User> (7212)

Fri 14th Jan 2011 22:24

Love it Dave - the different interpretations as well - although I like the "face value" one of just walking off naked into the jungle. Lovely !

Philipos

Fri 14th Jan 2011 20:38

I enjoyed reading this Dave - very well put together

<Deleted User> (8943)

Fri 14th Jan 2011 19:44

"well-behaved, curling plume of smoke"Even the smoke is neat in this garden! What a fabulous image, I too would wander off into the jungle though, diving in head first :) x