Margaret Bradstock
My townhouse neighbour snubs me
bald head averted, sniffs with disdain
as I pass by.
Because I won’t contribute
to the cost of his solar panels.
His dog loves me. A feisty Labradoodle,
she always stops at my front door
to sniff the plants, waits
for her pat and a cuddle.
He’s left on the stairs
nose out of joint, shouting for her
in his twangy accent, dangling
the empty leash.
And I am glad!
Margaret Bradstock has eight published collections of poetry, including The Pomelo Tree (winner of the Wesley Michel Wright Prize) and Barnacle Rock (winner of the Woollahra Festival Award, 2014). Editor of Antipodes (2011) and Caring for Country (2017), Margaret won the Banjo Paterson Poetry Award in 2014, 2015 and 2017. Her latest collection, from Puncher & Wattmann, is Brief Garden (2019).
Old Water Rat Publishing 