The Man From The Wooded Hill

The man from the wooded hill of the gray kangaroo
And the big dark brown parrot yellow tail black cockatoo
Due to nostalgia for his home-place at times feeling down
As he adjusts to life in the far bigger town
No work for him in the small town far away
So it looks like he is in the big suburb for the long stay
He miss his family and friends suburban life to him nothing new
He now lives and works where his friends are few
To the suburban way of life he will settle in
As is said of life nothing venture nothing win
Twenty years of age just over a quarter of the human life span
A four hours journey by bus or by car from where he grew into a man
Working as a steel fixer on a building site for very good pay
From the town by the hill he has come a long way.

Little To Say

He speaks very little since this is his way
The one known to his neighbors as Little To Say
To any social grouping he does not belong
He is just a shy person and in him nothing wrong

As one of a group he will never be known
In the local pub he always drinks on his own
He does not play golf, tennis, cricket or football
Since such things do not interest him at all

In his mid twenties in the prime of his life
He does not have children, a girlfriend or he does not have a wife
The whisper of the gossips is that he is Gay
Yet he does not have a male friend shy Little To Say

The widowed semi invalid pensioner Mrs Peters of him says the best on the street
And that a better person than he is she never did meet
Her prayers were answered when for help she did pray
On Saturdays he works for a few hours in her garden without asking for pay

The wise one is never one of the noisy crowd
He or she always listening when others are talking loud
Still waters do run deep it does seem this way
And this is how it is with Little To Say.

Don Dunstan

The Fijian born and a deceased former Premier of South Australia brought change for the better to that State
In his worthy well lived life so much for to celebrate
The programs and policies implemented by Don Dunstan and his Government opportunities for may did create
In name deservedly so his lives on as a great

Of his political achievements many to recall
One of his many great projects Adelaide's Rundle Mall
From the programs his Government implemented South Australians benefit today
As a great political leader to change he led the way

His introduction of optional dress beaches to South Australia not welcomed by all
But then many conservatives in some of their thinking on life seem quite small
Don Dunstan in his time had to face many a political storm
But he and his Government successful on introducing political and social reform

That he was a successful political idealist only true to say
No politician quite like him in Australia of today
A political leader worth following and such kind are very few
Don Dunstan believed on a fair go for all and this of him not saying anything that is new.

Duhallow In July

The dark barn swallows do chirp as they fly
In pursuit of flying insects in the sunlit sky
Above the old fields of Duhallow in July
Where it has not rained for a week the weather warm and dry
Though born in a ground nest he must fly to sing
The song of the lark is such a beautiful thing
The warm air full of the buzzings of flies and of bees
And the sweet scent of freshly cut grass wafting in the breeze
Though it sometimes does rain and the sky not always clear
Summer in Duhallow is a nice time of year
Where i grew to love Nature when i was a boy
And learning of her ways remains to me as a source of joy
The little brown lark a musical speck in the sky
Sings above a rushy field in Duhallow in July.

Believe This If You May

That Jesus Christ walked on the waves of Galilee
Millions of Christians believe what they never see
Though i have seen coots running on water with my own eyes
A mere act of Nature i have come to realize
Any miracles as such i have yet for to see
But could this be the fault of old cynical me
Some people of faith and hope see beauty every day
But i am one who has not been blessed in this way
Though of Nature and her ways little i can claim to know
At her magical and marvelous powers my wonder only does grow
From a tiny dark seed she can grow a tall tree
This in itself is a miracle would you not agree
That Christ walked on water believe this if you may
As millions of Christians do in the Human World of today.

What Have They Died For

What have they died for your guess good as as mine
The poor innocent civilians of Palestine
More than eight hundred Palestinian dead compared to over forty Israelis quite an unequal amount
Of the war dead of Palestine they are losing count

They are dying for what in twenty years from now due to Climate Change may be unlivable land
Why so many deaths and destruction of property and homes i will never understand
Whoever said that war can lead to peace has surely got it wrong
To an antiquated way of rationalization such thinking belong

That Hamas are far nearer to terrorists than freedom fighters well may be so
But in their President Netanyahu the people of Israel have their own greatest foe
By the destruction of bombings of Palestinian Cities and deaths of civilians he is helping to create
In future millions of enemies for Israel and it's people and State

Netanyahu says that Palestine he wants to demilitarize
But this is an ambition in his lifetime he will never realize
You never demilitarize a people when civilian martyrs to them you do give
Due to his arrogance and lack of wisdom future generations of his people in war zones must live

Due to the stupidity of Netanyahu and Hamas amongst others Israel and Palestine to each other will never be a friend
This is how it is why otherwise pretend
The last hope of peace in the Middle East sadly seems to have gone
For where the seeds of mistrust have been sown only hatred lives on.

The Past Will Be Today

The past just a memory of times that are gone
And we form new friendships and in life we move on
At the stroke of midnight the past will be today
And for our every lesson in life we have some price to pay
In everyone's future destiny has a say
This is how life is and will always be this way
And nothing can change the course of destiny
At least anyhow this is how it seems to me
We cannot alter the course of the what is to be
Though many with this i know would not agree
The kindest of people do give for to receive
On their philosophy for a successful life i do believe
Our biological clocks ever ticking away
And at the stroke of midnight the past will be today.

Death Makes Us All Equal

It is only of those seen to be successful we hear of and read
Their life journey for many to failure does lead
For millions their life journey does not lead to anywhere
The unknown to all of the big World out there.

And yet for all there is a last night and day
That death is the great equalizer was, is and will always be this way
In time the longest lived human life is not long true to say
And there is no inequality where dead people lay

In the slum streets where homelessness and poverty is rife
Young people live without any hope of success in life
Some of them are homeless their parents in jail
And many of them in life are destined for to fail

Whilst many due to bad life circumstance of opportunity locked out
It is only of those perceived to be winners that we read of and hear about
And since everyone is born to eventually die
Death makes us all equal and this is not a lie.

Gennady Golovkin

Gennady Golovkin alias G G G  the World middleweight boxer supreme
World champion and hardest puncher pound for pound in the World it does seem
In the middleweight division he has ko'd the best
And he has not yet found to be wanting when put to the test
The story of his rise to fame has inspired song and rhyme
His amazing ko record will stand the test of time
As a sportsman and down to earth person in World boxing he commands the highest place
Always humble and gracious in victory with a smile on his face
Of any arrogance or conceit in him not a sign or a trace
The Pride of Karaganda and a credit to his Kazakhstan race
For such a great champion such a down to earth bloke
Out of the ring always happy and smiling he can laugh at and tell a good joke
That he is the World's greatest middleweight boxer does seem obviously clear
In the boxing ring he instils in his opponents fear.

Fred In His Forties

Fred in his forties like an aging rutting stag
To his pub mates of his sexual conquests in the local does brag
Too naive to see through them since in prudence he does lack
They feign interest on his stories and laugh behind his back

Their laughter in his presence they manage to disguise
Since they know most of his stories are imaginary lies
Even as a sex symbol he has no claim to local renown
Though he fancies himself as a top stud of the town

Fred and his wife of twenty years Kate have one daughter Eileen
Who on her last birthday turned nineteen
But Kate has a lover his name is Ted
She confided in her friends Fred cannot satisfy her in bed

Fred in his forties tells his mates in the local bar
How to find his equal as a lover a woman would need to travel far
But Fred in wisdom and prudence does seem to lack
Since he does not realize they laugh behind his back.

In A Human World

In a Human World where the hungry and homeless are not rare
Where there are so many paupers for every millionaire
For millions of homeless people sleeping rough tonight
Life for them birth to death is an uphill fight
Millions living in poverty due to birth circumstance
For to succeed in life they have not had a chance
I am lucky i have a roof over my head
And that i do sleep in a comfortable bed
And hunger as always a stranger to me
In life i have been lucky as lucky as can be
The paupers are many and the millionaires few
On saying this i am not saying anything that is new
In a Human World where every day people of malnutrition do die
To every millionaire many poor and homeless and this is not a lie.

Where Mine Years Ago

Where mine years ago to all was a known face
Today i would be a stranger to many in my first homeplace
Claraghatlea a mile west of the Town of Millstreet
Though some of my past friends there today i would meet
Since i last left there in December twenty seven years ago
Time that does rust steel it has become my foe
I left when old Clara wore a hat of snow
And Finnow in the rushy fields bank high did flow
I live in the home to koala and wallaby and roo
And long bill corella and yellow tail black cockatoo
In Koroit near the old City of Warrnabool
Far south of Millstreet where i went to primary school
And Claraghatlea where i was born and my first homeplace
Where to many today mine would be a strange face.

As A Friend To A Friend

As a friend to a friend he said to me yesterday
Perhaps you should give penning of doggerel away
And though you are one with words who likes to play
In rhyme you have said all that that you have to say

I have pondered on his well meaning advice
But everything in life does come at a price
And since rhyming does give so much pleasure to me
For to give it away how silly would i be

As a younger man i used to daydream of becoming a poet
A person well worthy of literary note
But from years of rhyming i have come to realize
That only the cream to the top ever rise

My friend said to me you are well past your prime
And on your rhyming hobby you ought to call time
But to his well meaning advice i will not be paying heed
Since for happiness in my life rhyming i do need.

Of Nature We Are

I have loved Mother Nature even as a young boy
And learning of her ways today i enjoy
And my wonder of her only does seem to grow
Yet so little about her i can claim to know
In Nature there is so much beauty for to see
Everyday in my walks it is all around me
Yet so much about Nature to us remain unknown
One might say of her she has ways of her own
The sweet sounds of Nature i hear every day
In the beautiful flute like notes that the magpies do play
And the pee wee of the magpie larks so pleasant to hear
I hear and see them every day of the year
I share one thing in common with the bird of song
Of Nature we are and to her we belong.

War In Reality

If this is the price to pay for peace then peace comes at a huge cost
Every day many innocent lives in wars are lost
Whilst families and friends and loved ones left to weep for their dead
And many years of grieving of them lay ahead

In Palestine, Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq
Every day innocent civilians are under attack
From terrorists and Government war planes dropping bombs from the sky
That it is becoming harder to distinguish the good from the bad does seem hard to deny

Of war and the atrocities that go with it we hear of every day
And that the plague of war is spreading it does seem this way
In wars through the ages in Countries Worldwide
Millions of people in war zones have died

Of the praises of heroes of war the flag waving patriots sing
But war in reality is a terrible thing
And innocent civilians dying in wars every day
If peace comes from this the price will have been huge for to pay.

The Flower Girls Of Millstreet

In the Summer Corpus Christi procession long ago in Millstreet Town
Young girls of the Convent school amongst others up to the Town Square from the West End slowly walked down
With the warm winds from the mountains in the balmy air
Willie Murphy on his public address system led the congregation in prayer
The young girls sang hymns as flower petals from their baskets they scattered around
On such a nice memory great beauty to be found
Dressed in their communion lace dresses almost white as snow
So youthful and innocent with the inner glow
They looked so angelic with white sandals on their feet
As their flower petals they kissed and then tossed them on the street
A beautiful memory that is with me today
Such a memory i retain though time has left me gray
Such beautiful sounds and mental images live on in the brain
And the flower girls of Millstreet i see them again.

On Gray Butcherbirds

Once heard and once seen one cannot get them wrong
Gray butcherbirds known by their bubbling song
The male with dark brown head than the female more brown than gray
They live in the woods from where i live far away
On their breeding Season humans walking or jogging in their territory they are known to attack
In courage the gray butcherbirds do not lack
With hook on tip of their upper beak they hang their small prey
On thorn or tree spike their name came to them in this way
I know of the danger posed by breeding butcherbirds going back twenty years or so
One can say that this is a long time ago
I was attacked by a breeding male butcherbird who brought blood to my head
Though the wound was not serious them i have cause for to dread
Small dove sized gray to brown birds that in their range are well known
Gray butcherbirds they do have ways of their own.

Mrs Mancini

Life does not go by without some challenge to face
And where sorrow is for laughter there is no space
Poor Mrs Mancini her hair silver gray
Weeps for her dead husband on her saddest day

As a young newly wed couple in nineteen fifty three
She and her husband Giovanni migrated to Melbourne from Milan in Italy
Where they raised their daughters Anna and Marie
Who now are grandmothers in their family.

Giovanni to Claudia was a good husband and to him she was a devoted wife
And together they did enjoy a happy life
But today in the cemetery with her family around her she was in tears
For the loss of her husband and her happier years

The sobbing of sorrow is such a sad sound
And where it is laughter is not to be found
Life does have it's sad times it does seem this way
Poor Mrs Mancini is grieving today.

Hypocritical Me

I am anti animal cruelty yet them i do eat
Since i am one of many with a liking for meat
Yet those who do not eat animals due to their beliefs unlike me to their beliefs are true
And great credit for this it is surely their due

I am anti racism and pro refugee
Yet in public to speak my mind on these matters due to fear i am not free
Yet many who believe on human rights for all in public do have their say
That these people are what i can only aspire to it does seem this way

I do not believe on a God in the sky
Yet since i never try to convince others to my way of thinking i do wonder why
That i am this way am i not morally strong
Since with the vocal majority i just tag along?

In public on what i believe in i never speak out
And my true worth as a person i often do doubt
Of my inhibitions i will never be free
Though there are many others like hypocritical me.

Ignore Them

For as long as they speak truthfully of me their words suit me fine
Since this is their business and their business is no business of mine
If others in their words cause you to lose some of your self worth and lower your sense of self esteem
They have achieved what they set out to do or so it does seem
A trash talker never becomes the most popular person in the town
Ignore them when in their words they try to drag you down
These people cruel and negative in their ways sadly lack in empathy
But suppose people like they are deserve some sympathy
Some in their words on others do not know how to be kind
The inner glow is never in the dark mind
Those who put me down in their words i always choose to ignore
Seems a better way to treat them than with them trying to settle the score
The worst critic i do have is the one known as me
And one critic is enough for anyone would you not agree?

That May Well Be True

Our biological clocks ever ticking on fast
And tomorrow today it will be in the past
The now is what does matter the future is ahead
And our life's journey does end at the place of the dead
That life is too short for worry does seem true indeed
Of a few laughs every day everyone is in need
A sad one indeed the sad sack of the town
Few do wish to know of the one feeling down
For success of some sort most of us with others compete
And only one can be the best on the street
And only one can be the best in the Country and only one can be the best Worldwide
And that there are far less winners than losers cannot be denied
And that we receive from life what is only our due
Is an often times quoted quote that may well be true.

The Magpies Are Singing

The weather is calm with a chill in the slight breeze
In the depths of Winter close to zero degrees
A clear sky full of stars such a beautiful sight
And the magpies are singing in the town park tonight
The birds who do sing every day of the year
At night in their breeding Season them one does often hear
Warbling on the high trees in the park of the town
Their beautiful songs their claim to bird renown
The weather with the past few days has been cold and dry
Six weeks from the calendar Spring in the southern July
But the first of September is not far away
The Spring it is nearing with every new day
The clear sky full of stars is a beautiful sight
And the magpies are singing in the town park tonight.

The Silver Tongue Rill

From the heights of Claramore in a voice that is never still
In fancy i can hear the silver tongue rill
It's babble is with me from fields far away
Good memories of what was till death in one stay

When the mild winds of April from the mountains do blow
The dark brown water bird dipper of breast white as snow
Does sing in the rill just after sunset
Some things from the past one does never forget

Where i grew to love Nature when i was a boy
And learning of her ways today i enjoy
Yet years later and far south of where into a man i did grow
So little about her i can claim to know

The now is what matters as most would agree
But we re-visit the good memories of the what used to be
In a Claraghatlea field i can hear a cow low
Where the silver tongue rill to the river does flow

Where i grew to love Nature many decades ago
Long before the tick of time became my foe
Today the silver tongue rill from high Claramore
Is babbling to the rivers to the Atlantic shore.

Michael Lehane

Michael Lehane in Minor Row in Millstreet first saw light of day
But his life journey ended in Cardiff in Wales from his first home far away
Far from the streets where with his boyhood friends he played and he often walked up and down
His life's journey did take him far from Millstreet his Hometown

The youngest of the Lehane family of Minor Row where he lived as a boy
As a carefree youth of Millstreet Town his young years he did enjoy
Our youthful years go quickly by and we lose youthful elan
One who dies just beyond mid life does seem far from an old man

All who knew the young Michael Lehane him never could forget
I recall in the Square in Millstreet Town the last time him i met
A happy smile on his handsome young face it is sad to think the life from him has gone
But good memories of the good deceased in the living does live on

As a young man he left his first home in Minor Row he had dreams to pursue
I recall a carefree youth one kind of heart for to give him his due
Far from Millstreet the Town of his youth he lived his last night and day
He did not live to die as an old man and this does seem sad to say.

Seamus O' Sullivan

Far from Rathduane where from a boy to a man he had grown
Seamus O' Sullivan was one who was well liked and well known
And the sad news of his passing traveled far and wide
Beyond the borders of  Duhallow and Sliabh Luachra's countryside

That he lived as a good person does go without doubt
One who enjoyed his few drinks and the social night out
One who was kind and compassionate he never harmed anyone
His mum and dad in him did raise a good son

The biological clock seems to tick on fast beyond our life's prime
Perhaps in his late sixties or early seventies when life's Reaper on his life called time
The spectre of death for us all for to face
But Rathduane for his passing is a far worse off place

For all of us there is a last night and day
We are born to die since life is this way
By Cashman's Hill in St Mary's in Millstreet his last remains lay
That he lived as a good person of Seamus one can say.

In Life

For our every mistake in life there is some price to pay
But we learn as we live something new every day
And in life we have many a challenge to face
Things do not always go our way and this is often the case
And in life for some to win others have to lose
Though losing is a thing anyone does not choose
And it is a fact and fact does not lie
That we are born into life to eventually die
Yes our journey in life will eventually end
No matter what our achievements on this we can depend
In life for success with others we do compete
And as we live there is many a new challenge for to meet
And for winners and losers a last night and day
This is how life is and it will always be this way.

The Once Dunce Of The School

In his boyhood years dismissed by many as an ordinary fool
But a billionaire in his forties the once dunce of the school
From the humblest of beginnings he scaled the heights of success and fame
His face on any newspaper recognizable without to it his name

Of the praises of the once poor boy of the poor suburb the masses did sing
He knew of the fame and adulation that money to one does bring
With two lovely teenage daughters and a beautiful and devoted wife
He had all of the things most people desire of life

The former dunce of the classroom and son of poor parents from the poor side of the town
Through his genius at making money reached the pinnacle of success and renown
But money does not guarantee one happiness as the wise one does say
From a self inflicted fatal injury his funeral took place today.

You Cannot Be A successful Person

To help one quite poor in need of helping without expecting money for pay
And sow the seeds of good karma by doing one good deed every day
And never in your words or deeds bring any person down
You can go with your head held high when you walk in the town
It is true in everybody some good you will find
But you cannot be a successful person if you are not compassionate and kind
Many may see you as successful but if you do not feel moved to sympathy
For the misfortune of others then you lack in empathy
The one who is compassionate is one i wish to know
For he or she is a person who has the inner glow
One who may not be wealthy and famous but whose praises i will sing
For to be blessed with compassion is such a marvelous thing
Amongst the best people i do know there is not one millionaire
But they are successful people since with others they do share.

Koroit In The Moyne Shire

Koroit an old Town in Victoria's south west
Every visitor to there is always impressed
With the friendliness of it's people there many a smiling face
As well as a welcoming quite a livable place

Close to Tower Hill of the Budj Bim of the coastal countryside
Koroit through it's people for it's strong links to Ireland is known Worldwide
With so many with Irish family names living there one of it's claim to renown
Is that it surely has to be Australia's most Irish Town

Every visitor to the Moyne Shire do feel quite impressed
With the hospitality of the people there they are amongst Australia's best
And Koroit for it's hospitable  people in a class of it's own
One reason that their Town is loved and widely known

Koroit in Victoria the inspiration of story and rhyme
It's original inhabitants were the people of the Dreamtime
The majority of it's people have an Irish family name
Though the old Town in the Moyne Shire has many claims to fame.

Memories Of The Dippers

The dark brown river bird with breast white as snow
The thrush sized dipper a bird i used to know
Of long before the tick of time became my foe
Though this is going back in years a few decades ago
Back then dippers were quite familiar to me
In the stream by my first home them i often  did hear and see
Known for their head bobbing habits and their loud scratchy song
Once seen and once heard one could not get them wrong
When i was a younger man from here far away
I heard and see them often though not every day
Where i grew to love Nature from here far away
Long before my dark brown hair turned to gray
And though the past may be gone the memories of it with me does stay
Good old memories die hard as the wise one does say.

Most Of Us Have Our Phobias

Of any sort of phobia few can claim for to be free
Most live with some fear or phobia that's how it would seem to me
The soldier who had fought in war decorated for his bravery
Feels a bit scared every time a spider he does see
Most of us have our phobias it does seem this way
The woman who swims in deep water every day
When the squeak of a mouse in her home she does hear
Panic in her sets in and she cringes in fear
So very few people are phobia free
At least anyway this is how it seems to be
The known to be brave fellow broad shouldered and tall
At the sight of a tiny earwig is not so brave at all
People with phobias i do meet every day
But none of us perfect it does seem this way.

Annagloor In May

We were quite contented though money wise poor
When Spring came to visit green old Annagloor
The hawthorns were cloaked in blooms of white to gray
And the old fields resplendent in their wildflowers of May

From wet and cold months of living on silage and hay
The cattle out of wintering sheds gaining weight by the day
And the songs of the nesting birds a joy for to hear
May in Annagloor is such a nice time of year

I am happy and content in my life today
Though i sometimes do think of places far away
Where i grew to love Nature when i was a boy
And learning of her ways today i enjoy

The past may be gone but the mental images remain
Of the old fields in May lush and green after rain
When the male songbirds sing on the leafy trees
Their pleasant notes carrying in the freshening breeze

We live in the now seems true for to say
And tomorrow the past it will be today
Yet in my flights of fancy my thoughts sometimes stray
To the lush and green fields of Annagloor in May.

That We All Need Love

That we all need love in our lives only true for to say
And the one without love is a sad one today
We all do need love of some sort or kind
To shine through the gloom of the clouds of the mind
The praises of love many do love to sing
And the great gift of love is a wonderful thing
The one without love has a sad looking face
Where even a smile would seem out of place
To the flower of happiness love is the seed
And those who do have it are lucky indeed
And the loss of love can lead to grief and tears
And a sadness that lingers for years and for years
The joy of happiness to the mind it does bring
The great gift of love is a wonderful thing.

The Person You Are

Money speaks every language as the wise one does say
And lots of it in life can take you quite a long way
It can buy you a swimming pool,a new home and an expensive new car
But it does not tell me of the person you are
Are you one with the gifts of compassion and empathy
And for the poor of the World do you feel sympathy
And are you one who believes in give to receive?
We happen to be on what we do believe
Their dreams of wealth and fame many in life pursue
And that money wins you friends and admirers happens to be true
But if you do not believe on a fair go for all
Then as a person in your ways you are small
How much money you have may win you friends and in life take you far
But it does not tell me of the person you are.

The Silver Back Crow

To the sheep farmers of Duhallow where i lived years ago
It's species of corvid was looked on as a foe
In fancy i hear the loud harsh caws of a bird i used to know
One of the feathered kind known to many as the silver back crow
In Spring before the hill farmers check their sheep just before sunrise
Of new born weakly young lambs they pluck out the eyes
And though poisoned and hunted and shot at on sight
The survivors had learned to mistrust humans and quickly took to flight
Whenever they saw a person to them approach near
The very sight of a human they had learned to fear
Nature's creatures get to know who their enemies are it does seem this way
There are silver back crows in Duhallow today
That they are of Nature's survivors none of them can deny
Sheep farmers cannot get rid of them though hard they do try.

A Criminal Act Of Cowardice

To shoot a passenger plane out of the sky
Is a criminal act of cowardice none ought to deny
On the Malaysian Airline in the Ukraine far too many good people did die
That there are many bad people in the World is not a lie
The Russian and Ukraine Governments each other do blame
For what has been for humanity a dark day of shame
Hit by a ground to air missile two hundred and ninety eight people died
To die of natural causes in the World of today you need luck on your side
Two hundred and ninety eight people many from different Countries their families and friends in shock and grief today
Anyone would not expect to die in such a terrible way
Yet will anyone be sent to prison to serve out their time
As a mild form of punishment for their terrible crime
For the Human World another very bad day
And this surely does seem a sad thing to say.

Old Dan The Shearer

He shore sheep in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia the sheep shearing man
For close to fifty years of time quite a span
In Renmark in South Australia by the great Murray River his journey in life began
And all he has left now are the memories of his youthful elan

I met him in a pub in Adelaide a few years ago
Old Dan the Shearer time had become his foe
With silvery tousled hair and a brown craggy face
In the Flagstaff Hotel he did seem out of place

For one in his mid seventies he looked healthy and strong
To an endangered breed of people his kind does belong
As we sat by the pub counter stories from his life to me he did relate
One who had shorn with the best of them and farewelled many a mate

He never did father children or never did have a wife
But he had made love to many women in his life
Time passes and men grow old as the wise one did say
And he lives in a one bedroom rented flat in Adelaide today

Quite casually dressed in open neck brown shirt, blue jeans and brown shoes
A man who had traveled and worked hard and drunk heaps of booze
One who knew that for some to win others have to lose
But he surely did enjoy the hard life he did choose

In shearing sheds from southern Queensland down to Victoria near Ballarat
He had shorn with the best had been there and done that
As we shook hands in parting i knew we would never meet again
But good memories of old Dan the Shearer with me does remain.

Related To Primates

Us humans are related to primates as like us colors they recognize
Between us and them there are more similarities than most realize
In the human as well as the animal World the struggle for survival goes on every day
Survival of the fittest as the wise one does say
We are different to other life forms in we know we are going to die
And that goes for the billionaire as well as you and i
That primates are our nearest living relatives happens to be true
And have good survival skills this is to give them their due
It is to them that we have just evolved in a different way
Though we like them are primates only fair to say
But death to them makes us equal is how it seems to me
But with such a statement many would surely disagree
To the primates we are related to many similarities we do share
Though unlike us some species of primate are becoming more rare.

On Meeting Mick Kelleher And Mick Kissane

For men more than three score years they do look rather well
Mick Kelleher and Mick Kissane i met them at the Mickey Bourke Hotel
Many miles from Mt Evelyn and San Remo in Koroit's Irish Town
On our four hours drinking session memory lane we went down

Four hours spent with the Millstreet man and Kenmare man did not seem long at all
We talked of Ireland's National games of Hurling and Gaelic Football
Between us we drank a lot of beer a substantial amount
How many drinks i cannot say since i did not keep count

We talked about our nights in the Bayswater pub a few decades ago
Since then so many days gone by and time has become our foe
But for every big session on the beer there is some price to pay
In the headaches and the vomiting of the hangover next day

Mick Kelleher and Mick Kissane well beyond their life's prime
But the Reaper of lives for them will have to wait some time
In Mickey Bourke's pub we drank our beer and reminisced on the past
Our four hour session did not seem long the time did tick on fast.

Though My Years Of Existence

Though my years of existence has not been free of inner strife
If i die tomorrow i will have had a good life
I have never known what it is like to be homeless and living in dire poverty
So many do live life far tougher than me
Though i have never harmed anybody or been in jail
As success does go i am one who did fail
In the stakes of success i have been counted out
I do not have achievements for to talk about
As a young man i aspired for to be a poet
As one to be seen worthy of literary note
But as a writer as such i did not make the grade
It is true about poets they are born not made
And though i know what it is like to cope with inner strife
If i die tomorrow i will have had a good life.

A World Where Love Reigns

Though many of their Nationality brag
I have never waved a National flag
To patriotism i never lend my voice
On our beliefs we all have the choice

It is a fact that cannot be denied
That mistrust cause the religious cultural and racial divide
And add to them human greed that causes wars over borders and land
Why this should be can seem hard for to understand

In a Human World of love this would never be
Amongst people of different cultures and Nationalities there would be harmony
And there would not be a people divide
And peace it would reign everywhere worldwide

It will not happen in my lifetime it would seem
But when love in the World will reign supreme
A World where love reigns will be better for all to live in
And peace at last it will have a win.

Though Losing

Though losing most people never does choose
For some to win some have to lose
And though success the majority of people pursue
In life that there are more winners than losers seems true
But since we are born to die why even pretend
Success and failure comes to nothing in the end
The masses your praises may sing
But the farewell bell too for you will ring
The Reaper on all lives has the final say
And for all there is a last night and day
And for our every mistake there is some price to pay
I do look at life in this way
Life's winners compared to losers are few
To which you may say tell us what is new.

July In Lisnaboy

The sun it is hidden behind clouds of gray
And the pleasant aroma of grass mown for silage or hay
Comes wafting to me in the afternoon breeze
That rustles in the leaves of the deciduous trees

Dark clouds above the Boggeraghs tell rain is not far away
In Duhallow it will not be a good hay making day
The swallows chasing flying insects low to the grass fly
On an overcast mid Summer's day in July

Where some of my first lessons of Nature i used to enjoy
In the Summer meadows of old Lisnaboy
The past becomes the present when one does visualize
Through Seasons of  living  i have come to realize

But in reality this more than fifty years ago
And time since then it has become my foe
But memories of what was in me does remain
Of the old fields i loved i may not see again.

Old Jim

Old Jim one i see often though not every day
About him he has such a likeable way
An octogenarian he is eighty three
Though he looks ten years younger than that to me
He does not have children and since the death of Kathy his wife
On his own he faces every challenge of life
Five years ago she died of cancer her end painful and slow
A kind and beautiful person she had the inner glow
But with life's every challenge old Jim seems to cope
Of better times ahead one who does live in hope
So down to earth and honest and free of guile
He greets everybody with a happy smile
And though clearly he has known a far better day
He does not look his age though his hair is silver gray.

Why Tell Me About It

Why tell me about it i know all too well
That there are many sinners where saints and angels do dwell
Many of the thieves of the town go to church on Sunday
To the god of their choice for to kneel to and pray

Of how religious you say you are to me of you nothing does say
Since action does speak louder than words it does seem this way
By your own very words you lack in empathy
For any have not of the town you feel no sympathy

To get rich by what ever means you can with you seems okay
You believe your god will forgive you if to him for forgiveness you do pray
Yet to the higher self you cannot be true
And that you will reap what you sow may well become your due

Why tell me about it since i already know
That where weeds are abundant few of others things do grow
If prayers gets a crook to heaven then to steal from others is okay
As long as you believe in a god in to for to pray.

A Real Man

This discussion of what personifies a real man has been going on for years
A real man in public is not embarrassed to shed tears
A real man does not give to his family a terrible life
On coming home from the pub beat his children and wife
A real man women and children never abuse in any sort of a way
And respect to the feelings of others at all times does pay
And a real man enjoys his few beers in the pub at night
Without ever feeling aggressive and looking for fight
A real man need not be big and burly with muscles bulging out
Like a rooster displaying to his hens as he struts about
A real man does not act cocky or seem arrogant in any way
There are not that many real men in the Human World of today
A real man the tender human feelings not scared for to show
Though not many of this sort of man i can claim for to know.

Winter In July

The rain drizzling down from a sunless gray sky
On a typical Winter's day of the southern July
And yet the flute like notes are quite pleasant to hear
Of the magpie who sings every day of the year
And the wattle trees resplendent in the cold Winter showers
Quite lovely to behold cloaked in their yellow flowers
They will have lost their blooms come September in the early Spring
The marvels of Nature such an amazing thing
On all Seasons of the year and every day
Her Seasonal beauty is always on display
To say that's Nature's beauty is dormant in Winter is surely a lie
Her beauty is not Seasonal it never does die
July's Wintery weather wet and windy on the side of cold
Yet the wattles cloaked in their yellow flowers lovely to behold.

What Is Life About

What is life about ask one far more knowledgeable than me
For i only see darkness where hope used to be
I used to believe in the Kingdom in the sky
Where post bodily death the good souls with wings to do fly
Now i can only claim to be sure that people are born to die
Since this is a fact and fact never lie
On a life after bodily death i used to believe
Of eternal happiness of the soul as a reward for a well lived life one does receive
And though now i see it in a different way
Of a life for the soul post bodily death who am i to say
The longest lived life in time not a long span
On average a few years more for a woman than it is for a man
And since to an unseen God i no longer do pray
What is life about i ask myself every day.

The Stay At Home Man

He never does yearn for places far away
In his old hometown with his aging local wife he is growing old and gray
Their children and grandchildren to them live near
The love of home to them remains ever dear

Even as a young man he never wished to migrate
To another Country or another State
He found love and happiness in the homeplace
Where to many his is a known and loved face

In the local pub by all liked and known
Where they do refer to him as one of our own
And though time on him it is beginning to tell
For one in his mid seventies he looks healthy and well

The wanderlust never in the stay at home man
Content in the town where his life's journey began
In the local cemetery the remains of his parents and grandparents lay
Where he and his wife will join them one day

The stay at home man happy in his homeplace
Where his is a known, loved and familiar face
The town where he raised his children with his devoted wife
His first and the only great love of his life.

Billy O' Leary

Glenamuckla in Newmarket was Billy O' Leary's first home-place
But in Millstreet where he lived with his wife and they raised their daughter his was a known and loved face
The passing from life would not have gone without tears
Of the man who had worked in Mallow Beet Factory for many years
In Maurice and Lal Dennehy's pub he enjoyed many a night
Where of worries if he had any he used to make light
Amongst the characters of Millstreet he is one that one can name
An easy going fellow he always seemed the same
The sad news of his passing has traveled far and wide
And that he lived as a good person of him cannot be denied
One can only hope his parting from life was a painless release
In St Mary's by Cashman's Hill may he rest in peace
And of him it is only true for to say
That he was a good person in every way.

Christy Philpott

Christy Philpott was a good man who lived in Ballyday Lower for practically all of his life
Devoted to his children and grandchildren and to Kathleen his wife
As a man who knew a lot about horses he became widely known
And in his passing Ballydaly has lost one of it's own
I remember as a boy with the cold chill of Winter in the breath of Spring air
Christy riding bareback on a bay horse to be sold at the Millstreet Town March fair
Going back near sixty years that does seem a long time
And Christy back then he was in his life's prime
A likeable person of him one can say
And Ballydaly much the poorer for his passing today
The journey in life for us all has to end
But what counts most to many he was a good friend
And though the great gift of life from him has gone
In all who knew him good memories of him will live on

In The Grayness Of The Twilight

In the grayness of the twilight just after sundown
On the tall gum trees in the park in the town
The unmistakeable calls of the yellow tail black cockatoos
The big dark brown parrots known to many as the weerloos
Though them every day i do not hear and see
They are birds that are familiar to many and familiar to me
Once heard and once seen one should not get them wrong
It sounds much like wee yu their often repeated song
Their large curved bills are quite powerful indeed
Strong enough to shred the hard monterey pine cones for to eat the dark tiny seed
In search of the seed they find on the pine and hakea trees they travel far and wide
For miles every day above the quiet countryside
On their slow and ponderous flight they call as they fly
Wee yu wee yu on their journey by sky.

Death Makes Us All Equal

In life we may not be equal to the monarch and the president you as well as i
Though that is going to happen on the day we all die
That death makes us all equal happens to be true
Since we are born to die equality is eventually our due
Death does make us equal to the creatures born for us to eat
Though we only do look on them as edible meat
With my opinions on this many i know would not agree
But at least anyway this is how it seems to me
The snail in the grass will be my equal one day
That death makes all life forms as equals i see life in this way
The monarch, the president, the celebrity and the billionaire
With you and i one thing in common does share
That we will become equal to them one day
When the Reaper of lives on all of our lives has the say.

Mother Nature Her Name

The one that the writers and artists inspire
And the lovers of the outdoors do greatly admire
In her woods parks and gardens her birds chirp and sing
So much joy to so many every day she does bring
For our very existence and survival on her we depend
But we do not respect her as we should as our greatest friend
We dig up her ground and steal her jewels for our personal material gain
Why we abuse our greatest patron in such a way seems hard to explain
To build new houses and factories we cover her beauty with concrete and remove her trees
And the smell of the pollution we create is blowing in the breeze
Her earth grows the food for to live on we do eat
Without her we would not have grain, rice, fruit or vegetables or any sort of meat
Yet we see fit to abuse her which is to all of our shame
The one we depend on for our survival Mother Nature her name.

Like The Singer

Like the singer for the love of song happy to sing
To pen rhymes for me always a joyful thing
And though the worth of my rhymes are not for me to say
I add to my growing numbers of them every day

We all have our hobbies and passions in life
That for many serves as an antidote to inner strife
Suppose if we all were the same how boring we would be
With variety is the spice of life i for one do agree

Though my worth as a rhymer i often does doubt
No shortage of things for me to pen rhymes about
On this day in mid Winter in the southern July
The sun it is shining in the blue sky

And a male magpie sings on a black wattle tree
His kind every day i do hear and do see
And the dainty magpie lark is calling pee wee
His kind familiar to many and familiar to me

Like the singer loves to sing i love to write rhymes
Perhaps as writing does go i am not up with the times
My physical best days in life in the forever gone
But true to my calling i keep on rhyming on.

A Duhallow Fellow

Though time has left me looking balder and gray
The accent i was born into is with me today
It came with me from Duhallow from here far away
Some things from our past our life time with us stay

That the now is all that does matter one has to agree
And the past is just a memory of the what used to be
The baby born yesterday is now one day old
And who knows what the future for anyone does hold

Eventually we all become victims of time
Four decades ago i was in my life's prime
But in retrospect forty years seemed to go fast
And memories are all i have left of the past

Their dreams of wealth and fame many do pursue
But dreams as we know only seldom come true
In life so many grow poorer for the wealthy few
You may say to this do tell us what is new

The lust of the wander has brought me far south
Of the home of the badger and the brown river trout
But the accent i was born into does remain with me
And a Duhallow fellow is all i can be.

Worry

Worrying about something does not make the worry go away
And one small worry can grow to a bigger worry as the wise one does say
The town's wealthiest man at fifty amongst the deceased now lay
Worrying gave to him cancer he was buried today
With two teenage daughters to grieve him and a pregnant wife
But thanks to him they are financially independent for life
But worrying not good for one's health why otherwise pretend
To his life worry brought a premature end
The people with the gift of laughter are lucky indeed
It comes to their rescue in their time of need
So lucky are they who can laugh their cares away
Health-wise a good sense of humor huge dividends does pay
The town's wealthiest person does now rest in peace
Stress related cancer from life for him a slow painful release.

At Their Every Success

At their every success in public they rejoice
The people who love the sound of their own voice
Some of their kind i do know and sometimes do meet
Their swollen egos have their sources in self conceit
Every time i do meet them in the local public bar
They make a point of reminding me of how wonderful they are
Their three favorite topics are me, myself and i
People like they are never grow humble only grow old and die
As they age more narcissistic they only do grow
Any interest in the lives of others they never does show
The people i would rather not meet in truth i can say
The World  worse off for them in it at least it does seem this way
The narcissistic gene will be with them till they die
Their three favorite topics are me, myself and i.

Duhallow In May

The cool winds of Spring from the Boggeraghs do blow
And in a flat and rushy field near where Finnow does flow
The mating call of the bird all country people do know
Hidden amongst a cluster of rushes the shy male pheasant crow
The hawthorns are cloaked in their white blooms of the May
And a musical speck amongst the clouds of gray
The little brown feathered minstrel of the northern sky
The skylark is singing as upwards he does fly
Born in a ground nest in Spring he takes to wing
And to proclaim his borders in the sky he does sing
The cattle out of wintering sheds of months of eating silage and hay
On nutritious young grass gaining weight by the day
The old fields have never been looking so green
And Duhallow at her very finest is seen.

Than Words Can Ever Say

We are ruled by the egotistical the arrogant kind
More compassionate people than they are would not be hard to find
The fair go they talk of does not apply to all,
People of great power but in their thinking quite small
That the majority of voters lack in compassion happens to be true
And sadly this is for to give them their due
Many lacking in compassion and it seems sad to say
That many self centered people in the Human World of today
The it does not matter about others i am doing okay
In the twenty first century is how it is with many it does seem this way
The people who govern us tell more about us than we even realize
They are becoming more rare the compassionate and wise
The people we voted to govern us on election day
Of us does say more than words can ever say.

The Glasheen Rill

From it's source in Inchaleigh in view of Clara Hill
It ripples on downland the old Glasheen Rill
Through fields on the Claraghatlea-Inchaleigh border where rushes in clusters do grow
Into Finnow the white river it's waters do flow
Old memories live on they refuse for to die
Years ago with jam jars we fished for elvers in the Glasheen my young friends and i
Since then more than fifty years in time has gone
But the Glasheen to the Finnow as ever flows on
And only the memories with me now remain
Of faces and places i may not see again
And the Glasheen to the Finnow is flowing today
In the old rushy fields from here far away
Where i grew to love Nature as a young boy
And learning of her ways today i enjoy.

Old Murray

Old Murray Australia's biggest river crawls silently, deep and brown
To the Pacific Ocean by Tailem Bend Town
It has been flowing southward to the ocean long before the birth of the first woman and man
The river now known as the Murray millions of centuries of time does span
On it's brown banks Australia's first people danced their corroborees
Going way back in time thousands of centuries
The dark tribes from the big brown country have long gone
But old Murray to the Pacific Ocean as ever flows on
Australia's biggest waterway this much of it we do know
Long before the birth of the first dinosaur southward it did flow
The river that has inspired story and song
To the dawn of pre history old Murray belong
On by Tailem Bend near the end of it's journey to the Pacific shore
The Murray has flowed forever and will forever more.

July In South West Victoria

The sun behind gray clouds is hidden away
And the rain drizzling down on a wet wintery day
July in south west Victoria a cool and wet time of year
Yet the song of the magpie is pleasant to hear
Early July in south west Victoria and the wattle trees lovely to behold
Laden in their blossoms of yellow they bloom in Winter in the wet and the cold
But the dawn of each day brings us one day nearer to Spring
In September when the male blackbird to defend his borders does sing
July in south west Victoria and the rain drizzling down
On the near deserted streets of old Koroit Town
But the magpies are piping on the gum and wattle trees
Their pleasant notes carrying in the freshening breeze
But Spring is drawing nearer with each passing day
The first dawn of September in time not far away.

Old Jacky From Geelong

Old Jacky he has worked in many a town
And many a street he has walked up and down
Since he left Geelong when he was nineteen
He has done lots of traveling and many places has seen
But even in the most traveled person the love of the home-place is strong
He has come back to grow old in his home City of Geelong
In Geelong he was born and in Geelong he will die
That the love of first home remains as strong as ever not a lie
He has never had children or never had a wife
Though Jean his long time partner the great love of his life
For many years traveled with him till seven years ago she passed away
And he still feels sad when he talks of her today
Old Jacky from Geelong he is seventy four
He is back home to stay to travel never more.

Billy Coleman Of Minor Row

In motor rallying he drove his way into Worldwide renown
Billy Coleman of Minor Row in Millstreet Town
One of the World's great rally drivers in his life's prime
Though this is going back many Seasons in time

For this quietly spoken fellow humble in his ways
In Millstreet Town the bonfires of victory often did blaze
And the pipe band for him up through Main Street did play
The champion rally driver back then an aging legend today

Though praise heaped upon him and nice things of him said
The adulation of his fans never went to his head
Billy the one who competed with success against the World's best
And was never found to be wanting when put to the test

Billy Coleman in his late sixties remains as one greatly admired
Generations of young Duhallow rally drivers he has inspired
His life journey in Millstreet Town began in Minor Row
Where from a boy into manhood he did grow.

The Young Rose Of Koroit

Her wavy shoulder length hair a light chestnut brown
The charming dark eyed beauty of old Koroit Town
With a beautiful smile and free of conceit
As nice a person as one could wish for to meet
Wherever she is joy is to be found
She carries it with her and spreads it around
Her type of girl does inspire song, story and rhyme
At twenty one years not yet in her life's prime
In Koroit perhaps she will not marry and raise children and grow old and gray
The wanderlust in her for Lands far away
From Koroit Town where she was raised and attended primary school
Eighteen kilometers of roadway from the City of Warrnambool
With sloe dark blue eyes and hair of light brown
The young Rose of the Moyne Shire and old Koroit Town.

In A Human World

In a Human World where people do compete for wealth and for fame
For everyone sometime it comes to the same
For the famous and non famous there is a last night and day
Death is the great equalizer it has always been this way
'Death The Leveler' in the words of John Shirley the poet
A seventeenth century wordsmith of note
The relativity to the reality in these words remain
No matter in your lifetime what is your gain
That death makes everyone equal in truth can be said
The deceased billionaire only equal to the deceased pauper dead
This is how it is and how it always will be
Doubtless death is the monarch of reality
In a Human World where many compete for wealth and fame
For everyone sometime it comes to the same.

Compared To Many

Compared to many my biggest worry seems small
In life i have not known of much hardship at all
I have never been Homeless or Stateless as so many are
To meet worse off than me one would not have to walk far
A week to week renter the house i live in i do not own
Though hardship as such in life i have not known
I never go hungry a warm bed to sleep in
Compared to many i am one of the born to win
Yet many wealthy people with money and the power of it on their side
Do seem quite unhappy and with life seems unsatisfied
Quite well of financially but with poverty of mind
They are not rare the financially well of though unhappy kind
There are millions of homeless people in the Human World of today
Many of them slowly dying of malnutrition few of them will grow old and gray
Compared to many i am doing well of life's necessities i do not go in need
One might say i am lucky quite lucky indeed.

Tony Abbott And Scott Morrison

Tony Abbott and Scott Morrison Them i should not judge
Since they have not wronged me in any way to against them to hold a grudge
Though since a fair go to poor refugees they have chosen to deny
The judgements of others to them does apply

And as for the opposition leader Bill Shorten one of him can say much the same
His silence in all of this is to his Party's shame
By the actions of it's political leaders the good reputation of Australia has been tainted in quite a bad way
For this anti humanitarian policy of stopping the boats the price for Australia in loss of global respect does seem huge to pay

Good political leaders believe in human rights for all people of every gender and religion and race
The Australian Government and it's main opposition's attitude to asylum seekers is a human disgrace
Suppose there are no votes on being kind to asylum seekers and affording them a fair go
That the Australian Government has failed on it's duty to the Stateless sad to say does seem so

Tony Abbott and Scott Morrison have failed on their duty to asylum seekers they lack in empathy
To people seeking asylum from persecution they offer no sympathy
They hand back the asylum seekers to their persecutors how wrong this seems to be
Votes before the human rights of people seems all wrong to me.

Marco

The hair on his balding head is silver gray
Marco the Croatian was seventy six yesterday
Last night at the local pub with his mates he did celebrate
They drank and made merry and did party till late
He never had children or never had a wife
Though he has had quite a few loves in his life
The accent he brought with him with him does remain
Though he says he will never see Croatia again
He has lived in Australia for fifty five years
And for Croatia he says he has shed his last tears
One i do see often though not every day
He always seems happy in his carefree way
Last night with his mates in the pub on the beer
He enjoyed his birthday with laughter and cheer.

Perhaps I Will Never

Perhaps i will never come to understand
The wars about God and the wars about Land
From death in war zones heroes are made
And from history war memories are not allowed to fade
Another war hero was buried today
He died for the flag in a war far away
Not yet in his prime he was twenty one years
His parents and girlfriend and siblings by his grave in tears
For his friends and relations a sorrowful day
An army bugler to farewell him the last post did play
But what did he die for can anyone say
In a tribal war from his home far away?
And perhaps i will never come to understand
The wars about god and the wars about land.

My Journey In Life

My journey in life does not lead to renown
A long way south of Claragatlea and Millstreet Town
In south west Victoria in the Autumn of my life span
Far from the place where i grew into a man

And only the memories with me does remain
Of faces and places i will not see again
Only the mental images are with me today
Of the mentors of my young years at peace they now lay

I only have memories of Seasons long gone
And without me in Duhallow life does go on
From the old fields west of Millstreet i have been so long away
But life does go on as the wise one did say

We live in the now with this i must agree
And life i must say has been quite good to me
The songs of the magpies so pleasant to hear
The birds who do sing every day of the year

My journey in life does not lead to success
And i never will live at a fashionable address
But i feel content in the home of koala and roo
And the big dark brown parrot known as the weerloo.

Like Many I Have Known

Like many i have known of my good days and bad
And i know what it is like to be happy and sad
And though physically my better days in the long gone
I am one who does love life and i want to live on
I do not have a house that i can call my own
And of any success in life i have not known
But i care not if others my praises never sing
I just live in my own way and do my own thing
As a young man i used to daydream i would be a poet
In the Literary World a person of note
But daydreams are just that and for few come true
And from life we receive what is only our due
But for the famous and non famous a last night and day
We are born to die life is this way.

Rolf Harris

Rolf Harris the singer of great wealth and fame
May well die in prison in his cell of shame
His judges have spoken he must serve prison time
He has been found guilty of many a serious crime

His sexual crimes against children a very serious offense
That one held in such high regard should behave on such a way makes for little sense
In the past he has sown the seeds of bad Karma for his crimes he must pay
What goes around comes around as the wise one does say

That our sins of the past eventually catch up with us is not a lie
Rolf Harris in prison is quite likely to die
For his devoted family one has to feel sad
Like every criminal  he did some very bad things but he is not all bad

Rolf Harris is one who lacks in empathy
And for him it is hard for to find any sympathy
He may die in prison as he is eighty four
And the once famous Rolf has heard his last encore.

The Past With Us Goes Along

The past it may be in the forever gone
But the memories of what was in the mind does live on
Nostalgia can be re-awakened in the mind in the words of a song
And wherever we go to the past with us goes along
Yet some things from the past we have lived to regret
Some of the memories we have that we wish we could forget
From the past we do learn those words of truth we recall
Though some from the past never learn at all
Come tomorrow the past it will be today
And time on our lives ever ticking away
The now is all that does matter as the wise one does say
Since for our lessons in life some price we have to pay
So make the most of the now who knows what tomorrow will bring
And if you feel like singing a happy song sing.

She Advised Me To Stop Rhyming

She advised me to stop rhyming for to give it away
That it was about time i decided for to call it a day
That all of my rhymes are similar on the side of rough
According to her i have written enough
Of average rhyme on the side of crude
She did speak her truth though to me she was rude
But what she says of me does suit me fine
Since this is her business and her business not mine
I do enjoy rhyming and in truth i can say
If i did not enjoy doing it i would give it away
For many years i have been a rhyming buff
And i am one who has written reams of rhyming stuff
And despite what some say of me i hope to rhyme till the day i do die
If i told you otherwise this would be a lie.

Our Earth Mother

The beauty of Nature does not cost us to see
Everyday as i walk it is all around me
Even in the town park every day of the year
The Earthly Goddess to us is ever near
Her beauty from us is not hidden away
It is everywhere around us every day
Her wild born  creatures of land, waterway and sea
Of human kind do live quite independently
Her wonders are many and her secrets not few
And from her every day we do learn something new
Our Earth Mother  Nature who provides for all
Life forms of the World from the great to the small
As well as all of us humans but unlike you and i
She is immortal she will never die.