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1989

By Jess Boyes

By Jess BoyesPublished 5 months ago 1 min read
Brighton Beach, South Australia

Separated six years before, the annual coming together of all four meant more to us than any of us would care to admit,

having never mentioned the split or the shit, we’d take each other in, our heads in a spin, full of laughter and joy,

walking off the Christmas lunch; ahem, the older ones may’ve even been drunk, while the younger ones spoke of their new toys; ahem, and possibly even about boys,

and all the while during this Australian summer, this moment having been captured by our mother; of watching her children coming together, enjoying each other - the rarity of all four, of one another being in the same place, in the same space,

I could only imagine how she must’ve felt,

and so we just took it all in our stride, and cherished the amount of time we had - to be glad for the joy, the laughter, this moment in time,

that was captured in 1989.

Familyperformance poetry

About the Creator

Jess Boyes

From Melbourne, Australia, I love creative writing and food, particularly a good quality cheese or some sort of dairy.

Reader insights

Outstanding

Excellent work. Looking forward to reading more!

Top insights

  1. Compelling and original writing

    Creative use of language & vocab

  2. Easy to read and follow

    Well-structured & engaging content

  3. Excellent storytelling

    Original narrative & well developed characters

  1. Heartfelt and relatable

    The story invoked strong personal emotions

  2. Masterful proofreading

    Zero grammar & spelling mistakes

  3. On-point and relevant

    Writing reflected the title & theme

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Comments (4)

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  • Caitlin Charlton20 days ago

    I am enamored with this, Jess. I wish you would write more often (don’t worry if life gets in the way, it’s just a warm wish of mine). I observed that you enshrined the year 1989 and crafted a cadence from it. The end rhyme persists until the conclusion, ensuring the year remains the focal point. The quality of the photograph is exquisite; I wouldn't have it any other way. Everybody is smiling, and it feels like we could get a glimpse of the personalities among the four. I would say you're one of the best at performance poetry here. It is always such a lovely aura to ponder along with you. The onomatopoeia of the "ahem" made me feel alert where I land on that sound. It was rather audible. ♥️🤗🖤

  • Awww, this was so heartwarming and wonderful! Loved it so much!

  • Tiffany Gordon5 months ago

    Very nicely written! Go Jess! 💪🏾

  • Paul Stewart5 months ago

    Woah. I put forward your other piece last week in the RYV, if I could go back in time and pre-empt this one, I'd put this forward. This is so beautifully rendered. Everything, even in such a short piece, comes alive off the page. There is a joy that matches the surface-level smiles and warmth of the picture (which is great by the way - are you second from left?) All framed within that opening heartbreaker of a line. Heartbreaking and heartening all at once. Wholesome and so very poignant. Then you perfectly capture the thoughts that must have/may have been going through your mother's mind. This is one of your best, and might actually be your best. I wouldn't like to make that call, because, you always impress and surprise me. Anyway, this rather amateur poet will shut the fuck up and clap for you. Strong winning challenge entry, for sure.

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