Used and discarded thought shadows lurk
at every sunrise as if each were renewed.
A touch from the fading past, in a moment
as i look at the wet pebbles, ever decreasing.
Welcoming the receding tide, a caressing breeze
on which floats, the busy two tone oyster catcher.
On that breeze voice’s travel, voice's calling out
over the relentless, out going, in coming waves.
Are we all but driftwood ? Leaving to return
when the gorse flower is yellow in rare sunlight.
Maybe rudderless, in a firm belief and trust,
of our hearts compass, and its choice is free.
Be elusive ! Leave no trace, be faceless in
milling throngs and crowds, not out of place.
Perhaps a living phantom, amongst many,
yet never careless in your constant carefree.
Blend into the background, be seamless.
Used and discarded thought shadows lurk
at every sunrise as if each were renewed.
A touch from the fading past, in a moment
as i look at the wet pebbles, ever decreasing.
Welcoming the receding tide, a caressing breeze
on which floats, the busy two tone oyster catcher.
On that breeze voice’s travel, voice's calling out
over the relentless, out going, in coming waves.
Are we all but driftwood ? Leaving to return
when the gorse flower is yellow in rare sunlight.
Maybe rudderless, in a firm belief and trust,
of our hearts compass, and its choice is free.
Be elusive ! Leave no trace, be faceless in
milling throngs and crowds, not out of place.
Perhaps a living phantom, amongst many,
yet never carless in your constant carefree.
Blend into the background, be seamless.
Lake Wollumboola is intermittent.
A coastal dune lagoon, enclosed by berm of sand.
Its basin a drowned creek-scoured depression.
This tiny lake is perched above high tide, vulnerable.
Its survival lies at the whim
of wind-blown and sea-thrown sand.
It's long term fate short-lived as its filling up
with sediment, weed, detritus and muck.
This little lagoon among the dunes
is mecca for migratory birds.
The curlew and buff-breasted sandpiper,
The long-toed stint, pied oyster catcher and little tern.
These vulnerable birds depend on the vulnerable lake.
They arrive on-cue from long-hall flights.
Alight and feeds in the shallows.
Mate, breed and lay eggs in vulnerable places
on the open beach and shore.
They squat on eggs and fledge their young,
and when the time comes, migrate back
with young yearling in tow,
to whence they came.
They book return migratory flights to
Lake Wollumboola each year,
hoping it survives vulnerable
for another year,
and hoping its time is not yet up.
Silver foil sea glittering
crinkled cauldron surface slowly swirling
Lazy waves folding flashing
Sheet molten run up close then drain away
Steel sky and the arc-hung sun
Smoke clouds piled on Black Combe
Sandpipers, a butterfly shoal swinging swerving
and a solitary bird hurtles joyously
Languid gulls drink sun
Windmills wave to no one
Stones ground round by the silver sea
will become sand, rippled strand
A lone oyster-catcher musing by the water
moves on to muse again
Heat haze waves ripple the sea edge
on the shingle scree
Ocean of air and light, slow currents
Sound of many waters blown across my ears
Piping birds
Smell of the shore
A lark hung like a kite descending on its wire
unwinding its breathless trill across the dune hills
Lapwings hummed and clicked and whistled overhead
Little birds bouncing chirping on the wind
The lark reels on
Violets on the great dunes and small beetles with wheel-spin in the sand
Two brown rabbits crouched, watched
then hopped off
Pink horsetail tips like asparagus
stretched upwards by a bench
It seemed a long walk back
through the golden gorse
and the burnt gorse
which the council saw fit to clear
4.01
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