Enter the Dragon: Natalie Vujovich Breathes Poetic Fire & Positivity - 11am, Saturday, 21 September 2019

Reflection by Paul Karp

Visit Paul Karp's Poetry Website at:

https://kapow2016.wordpress.com/

Natalie spoke about her book of poems called 

'Where Did I Leave My Dragon?' 
She's loved dragons since her childhood 
and has a large collection of them at home, 
including a small, 
knitted soft toy dragon she brought along. 

Her poems don't feature dragons, but they speak to an attitude, a fire for living.

Growing up in a family of high-achieving siblings, Natalie's point of distinction was her interest in writing poetry. 



Natalie read seven of her poems, written over a span of 40 

years, to a most appreciative audience.

Her first poem 'The Puddle' was written at the age of 11. She shared it with her mother, who passed it on to Natalie's ex-teacher Nana, who only commented about punctuation. This discouraged any further efforts for several years. 

Natalie read 'The Puddle', establishing 
her clear-eyed style with perceptive reflections.

Her next poem, 'Thoughts of You' was a poignant teenage break-up love letter to the first boyfriend she left because she loved him too much. 

She variously described her poems as 'her life journal', 'a hope', that 'dealt with anxiety', 'looking at life through rose-coloured glasses' and 'believing that fairies live at the bottom of the garden'.

'My Life's Philosophies' used her unpretentious, direct conversational style to convey her unique insights.

Natalie's fourth offering, about publishing her book, expressed her trepidation. She described herself as 'being able to talk underwater with a mouthful of marbles' but found it difficult to promote her work. 

She thought that her poems were too personal until she saw that others could relate to them.

Publishing her poetry collection has inspired her to write more poems this past year than in the previous five years. 

Natalie commented that quite often and inconveniently her poetic muse will visit her where no sheet of writing paper dare venture - the shower!

Her fifth poem expressed hope for the world in an era of horrible news. It ended with the comforting sentiment 

'...you will see love is everywhere.'

While selling her book at Clarinda Art and Craft Market she was approached by a man who asked her to show him her darkest poem. She showed him 'Black Dog', inspired by the suicide of the famous actor and comedian, Robin Williams. The man showed her some his own much darker poetry.

Natalie sometimes writes poems as gifts. 
A fellow parkrunner framed and displayed 
a poem Natalie gifted her. 

She read a poem in tribute to her parents for raising her and her siblings, thereby shelving their dream to travel the world together before raising a family.

She finished up with a 'thank you' poem to Mentone Public Library for the opportunity to present her work.

Natalie's next project is a unicorn and dragon story 
she has drafted, aimed at the 'Tweens' market. 

 

Her message is 
'Dragons aren't bad guys, 
they're just misunderstood'.

To learn more about the positive spirit of dragons,
 and the poetically talented, homegrown, fire-breathing 
local author who advocates for them, please visit:

Sid Harta Publishers

&

Natalie's Official 

"Where Did I Leave My Dragon? / "Nat's Poems" 

Facebook Page:

NatVdragonlady

 

May the fire-power always be with you, Natalie.

Many thanks for breathing 
so much warmth, inspiration, 
hope and a fresh life perspective 
into our library.

Your dragon is always welcome and revered here :)


Best wishes from the 
Mentone Public Library team.