Paula Xiberras
Eugene Clark, professor and poet is a wizard of OZ
His story might have some parallels to the story of Dorothy and her visit to OZ but instead of like Dorothy, returning to his home of Kansas, due to a series of serendipitous events, Eugene decided to stay in OZ.
It’s a rainy afternoon in Sydney when I chat to Eugene .Our meeting is over the phone but it is a surreal experience as he suggests we chat in an alternative room unaffected by the sound of the falling rain. The rain particularly resonates with me on this day as Eugene recently informed me of the passing of a teaching colleague from his time at St Marys. I am reminded of Auden’s ‘distant thunder at a picnic’, being so reminded of poetry is apt as we are here to talk about Eugene’s passion for poetry.
A native of Wichita, Kansas, a place renowned for its trade is ironic as Eugene’s introduction to Australia and later Tasmania began with his trading his skills as a teacher. In 1975 the Australian government teacher recruitment program made a world-wide call out to mend the teacher shortage in Australia. Eugene was one of those who answered this call and began teaching at Keon Technical School in Victoria. Eugene was innovative in not only teaching conventional subjects but introducing public speaking and chess to the extra-curricular activities, Eugene’s students successfully competed on a quiz show ‘It’s Academic’ the only technical school to do so.
Taking some time off for relaxation, Eugene and his wife took a holiday in Tasmania, a place they immediately fell in love with however in 1977 the couple were required to return to the US for Eugene to complete his law degree (one of the five degrees he now holds) and then work for a time in legal aid.
It was another serendipitous moment that would see him return to Australia, this time it was the Catholic Education Office in Tasmania, in the person of Sister Gertrude Morgan the Principal of St Mary’s College that was reaching out for teaching staff. Sister Gertrude accepted Eugene’s application as he says ’sight unseen’. Later sister Gertrude said that it had been a higher power behind her decision.
At St Mary’s College Eugene taught Legal Studies, Australian History and English courses. Just as he did at Keon Technical School he introduced a program of public speaking and chess, and again, his tutelage was very successful with the school achieving championship status in public speaking.
Always eclectic, Eugene also co-authored a book on softball in this time as St Mary’s College. After leaving St Mary’s College Eugene continued his academic career eventually re-locating to Sydney.
Eugene tells me he has also created over 100 technical journal articles and has made time to indulge in his love of poetry which led him to the realisation that poetry has a spirit of imagination that prose writing lacks.
In an article ‘poetry still has its place in the 21st century’ Eugene argues that poetry is alchemic process and ‘that it contains an ancient wisdom that helps resolve today problems and challenges’.
His article notes that Linguists suggest the first words we spoke were in poetry coming as they did from the formative section of our brain. It was this language of poetry that provided the vehicle for passing on cultural knowledge to successive generations. It is recognised that rhyme aids memory, hence it’s use in passing on knowledge. It’s aiding of memory means it is can also be employed in maintaining brain development and retention of memory for older people. Another kudo for poetry is that Celtic belief believed the important role of teacher was equivalent status to that poet.
Most importantly says Eugene, puts us in touch with our emotions in a way no other method of communication can.
In Eugene’s poem ‘21st Century Children of Narcissus’ Eugene muses on the digital generation, narcissism rather than altruism and the lack of genuine communication between people
A global cold spreading among millions of ‘Facebook’
Fans while true friends, genuine soulmates, are
Joining the list of endangered species.
