To This Very Ancient Country Poem by Francis Duggan

To this very ancient Country the Seasons come and go
And the more we learn of Nature of Nature the less we seem to know
The creek from the high paddock down through the woodland flow
On it's way to meet the big stream that to a river grow.

Long before it reaches saltwater it's final destiny
To add to the great waters of the immortal sea
Us humans are mere mortals but life on Earth will live on
Nature will live forever though I will be long gone

Into the eternal hereafter make of that what you may
To Mother Earth who sustains me I will return one day
The magpie who pipes in the sun high on a gum tree bough
His descendant the same tune will pipe in a hundred years from now.

The heroes and the heroines that we celebrate too have a use by date
And time of them too will take care for time on none does wait
Our bloom of prime goes quickly by we age and fade away
And the so called great and the not so great destined to die one day.

On a blackwood tree the blackbird from where I stand quite near
He pipes and whistles sweetly his song is good to hear
And the wattles on the woodland edge laden with golden flowers
The raindrops on them glittering in the sunshine after showers.