Sunset at Bombo
by Oormila Vijayakrishnan Prahlad
The cliffs of Bombo Headland
burn in a fuchsia sunset
crags and ridges awash
in a medley
of violet and tangerine.
In the depths of the Kiama sea
columns of igneous rock
stamp their ancient weight
night thickens and settles
mottled with astral glitter —
a sprinkling of meteor showers.
On the windswept eastern face
ghost crabs scuttle
abseiling down the basalt
unperturbed by the violence
of the thundering Pacific
lashing at the parapets
of prehistoric caverns.
First published in Plum Tree Tavern (July 22, 2020).
PHOTO: Sunset, Bombo Quarry, Kiama, New South Wales, Australia, by Vlad Zetter, used by permission.
NOTE: Bombo Headland Quarry Geological Site is a heritage-listed former quarry and now geological site at Princes Highway, Bombo, Municipality of Kiama, New South Wales, Australia. It is also known as Bombo Quarry.
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: I used to spend a lot of time painting en plein air, in the days before the lockdown. I loved taking the train to the South Coast, and the Central Coast of New South Wales, where I enjoyed being in nature and painting breathtaking landscapes by the sea. This poem was inspired by one of my painting trips. Above is the painting.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Oormila Vijayakrishnan Prahlad is an artist, poet, and pianist of Indian heritage. She was raised in the Middle East. She started writing poetry at the age of seven. In 1990, during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, she was a war refugee in Operation Desert Storm. She holds a Masters in English, and is a member of The North Shore Poetry Project. Her recent works have been published in Neologism Poetry, The Ekphrastic Review, Nigerian Voices Anthology, Poetica Review, and several other print and online international literary journals and anthologies. Her poem “Mizpah,” about a mother who hopes for the return of her son who was taken as a prisoner of war, was awarded an Honorable Mention in the Glass House Poetry Awards 2020. She is the co-editor of the Australian literary journal Authora Australis. She regularly performs her poetry and exhibits her art at shows in Sydney.
POETRY and PLACES 