Rooboy

ROOBOY

Between the spinifex and gibber, across the dry, hot sand,
Lenny sits as proud as punch with the leather straps in hand,
His roo it has a saddle and a bit between its teeth,
When he wants to change direction, he gives the reins a reef.

You see Lenny rides a kanga, a great big bounding roo,
The locals think he's crazy as he comes bouncing through,
From Coolah to Walgett, Burke, Gunnedah and Broken Hill,
You’ll hear the call as Rooboy passes, “You’re a flaming dill.”

But Lenny sits as pleased as punch, crunching spinifex,
Under the paws of the  red roo  that he christened Rex,
The mulga bush and salt pan is where the unlikely pair roam,
The never-never, the back of beyond, the outback is their home.

From White Cliffs to Wilcannia you’ll hear the walloping sound,
The great big thump beyond Black Stump racing cross the ground,
The dingoes and galahs, the corellas join in too,
Laughing at their loudest as the pair come bounding through.

But one day opinions changed in the town of Coober Pedy,
Arriving were some robbers, dangerous and so greedy,
Roo-boy bounced the villains into the crusty ground,
The locals called him hero, an outback legend found.

Now when Roo-boy's seen, that is where the story’s spread,
Jackaroos and Jillaroos dip the akubra hats upon their head,
They pay homage to the boy that saved the outback town,
The place where inhabitants spend most time underground.

Now a song's just been written, Rooboy is its name,
It's spread across Australia, giving the pair such fame,
But you won't see them in a fancy place, being kept and well fed,
They still sleep under the stars, using dried tussocks for a bed.

REPEAT FIRST VERSE               John Williams
Copyright © | Year Posted 2017


Post Comments

Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.

Please Login to post a comment

Date: 4/24/2017 4:54:00 AM
I love this a lot and it brought a wide smile to my face :) Great storytelling you do here. Going to read more of your poems now.
Login to Reply
Williams Avatar
John Williams
Date: 4/24/2017 7:24:00 AM
Thanks very much Darren---I am looking for someone to set to music with didgeridoo & so on. ,,,,kind regards----john
Date: 1/2/2017 4:41:00 PM
you weave a wonderful tale in your lyric John - fabulous imagery and I love humour too:-) hugs Jan xx
Login to Reply
Williams Avatar
John Williams
Date: 1/2/2017 6:19:00 PM
Thanks for your lovely comment Jan---much appreciate it-----John
Date: 1/2/2017 4:28:00 PM
Bravo, John. : ) And cheers to Lenny and Rex.
Login to Reply
Williams Avatar
John Williams
Date: 1/2/2017 4:30:00 PM
Thanks a lot Doug---- will let them know----thanks john
Get a Premium Membership
Get more exposure for your poetry and more features with a Premium Membership.
Book: Radiant Verses: A Journey Through Inspiring Poetry

Member Area

My Admin
Profile and Settings
Edit My Poems
Edit My Quotes
Edit My Short Stories
Edit My Articles
My Comments Inboxes
My Comments Outboxes
Soup Mail
Poetry Contests
Contest Results/Status
Followers
Poems of Poets I Follow
Friend Builder

Soup Social

Poetry Forum
New/Upcoming Features
The Wall
Soup Facebook Page
Who is Online
Link to Us

Member Poems

Poems - Top 100 New
Poems - Top 100 All-Time
Poems - Best
Poems - by Topic
Poems - New (All)
Poems - New (PM)
Poems - New by Poet
Poems - Read
Poems - Unread

Member Poets

Poets - Best New
Poets - New
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems Recent
Poets - Top 100 Community
Poets - Top 100 Contest

Famous Poems

Famous Poems - African American
Famous Poems - Best
Famous Poems - Classical
Famous Poems - English
Famous Poems - Haiku
Famous Poems - Love
Famous Poems - Short
Famous Poems - Top 100

Famous Poets

Famous Poets - Living
Famous Poets - Most Popular
Famous Poets - Top 100
Famous Poets - Best
Famous Poets - Women
Famous Poets - African American
Famous Poets - Beat
Famous Poets - Cinquain
Famous Poets - Classical
Famous Poets - English
Famous Poets - Haiku
Famous Poets - Hindi
Famous Poets - Jewish
Famous Poets - Love
Famous Poets - Metaphysical
Famous Poets - Modern
Famous Poets - Punjabi
Famous Poets - Romantic
Famous Poets - Spanish
Famous Poets - Suicidal
Famous Poets - Urdu
Famous Poets - War

Poetry Resources

Anagrams
Bible
Book Store
Character Counter
Cliché Finder
Poetry Clichés
Common Words
Copyright Information
Grammar
Grammar Checker
Homonym
Homophones
How to Write a Poem
Lyrics
Love Poem Generator
New Poetic Forms
Plagiarism Checker
Poetry Art
Publishing
Random Word Generator
Spell Checker
What is Good Poetry?
Word Counter