Be Creative

www.artsawards.com.au

Through the Cancer Council Victoria Arts Awards held every year, there is wonderful opportunity for people affected by DES exposure to express their feelings and experiences in the context of cancer in a creative way. Entries made to this Arts Awards competition can be in the form of visual art, short story, poetry or film. The cost of entry is only $10 and all entries are displayed in an exhibition tour of Melbourne and regional Victoria.

What a fantastic way to spread the message about DES exposure (and support a worthy charity)!!

Don't worry that entries for 2010 have now closed, because this gives everybody time to get creative juices flowing. You can register your interest now for next year's Awards in 2011 by emailing arts.awards@cancervic.org.au or phoning 1300 65 65 85.

Here is an entry submitted in the poetry section for 2010:

Compounded maths of DES

evaluate:
twists of wonder drug hype
that sap the tiny fetal system
in cancerous dumps of D-E-S
inert toxic
in utero in mother-love

add:
calm doctor-words to soothe
the fray of maternal nerves -
candy-clatter spills of D-E-S pills
to hide kerching of dividends

subtract post-birth:
wombs of babies and their bits down there
(lost in cancer's lust)
records
(lost in rush or floods or flame)
voices
(lost in D-E-S hush)

then multiply:
the repeating clouds of cancer thoughts
the shuns intercepting rights for care
the power of wonder drug cravings

equals:
an imbalanced equation -
the women who weep
while people in obtusity
sweep dust of D-E-S under carpets


Footnote: Diethylstilboestrol (DES) was an anti-miscarriage hormone prescribed to pregnant women from 1938-1971 (and sometimes beyond) and is known to cause cancer and reproductive problems to both those women and their children exposed to DES.

Copyright Carol Devine, April 2010