End Game - in Flames!

As this troubled year draws to a close
So much has changed; I think of those
Who can no longer share our lives …
Such sadness when the devil drives …

Phaeton’s chariot ignites
Drought-ridden Gippsland – smoke-filled sights
Highways closed, more homes at risk
Year ending has a fatal twist…

Booze-fuelled swimmers risk their days
Off crowded beaches; burning rays
Wreak havoc with skin unprotected
More melanomas are detected …

Dehydrated, many laze and roast
So helicopters roam the coast
Heat warnings should not be ignored;
Alas, more deaths are now deplored.

This year the heat waves top the chart
In “cool” Tasmania flare-ups start
As yachtsmen enter Hobart’s bay
They observe a natural fire display!

Storms in Kimberley, Top End;
Are these extremes a brand new trend?
Australia smoulders in the sun …
Is this the shape of things to come?

(c) Poet in the woods 2019

Worth - a Mention!

Bemused - the mercury still climbs
Dissolving any hope of rhymes
With curtains drawn and fans full blast
Exhausting - every little task…

Smoke haze cloaks our southern skies
To venture outside is not wise
Though the ‘garbos’ have gone past today
So Christmas Past is cleared away…

Deep orange skies glow through the night
While bush fires rage, there’s no respite
Australia – land of vast dimensions
Is most concerned by climate tensions …

I think of those no longer young
Who have to cope – it is not fun
With no rainfall forecast yet
Heat exhaustion stays a threat …

Good news! The Red Cross checks on Mum
A vital lifeline, one-to-one
A cheery voice rings up each day
And learns that she is still O.K!

(c) Poet in the woods 2019

Australia - A Quick Cameo

Most streets are empty – it is hot
Harsh sunlight causes fruit to rot
Bush fires rage round Cudlee Creek
With Woodside threatened as we speak …

A python by a Queensland pool
Twice bites a little boy, pre-school
Four deadly metres in the grass …
Each step you take may be your last!

Nation of suburbs, city sprawl,
Huge landmass with not much at all
Few rivers, barren plains, big sky
Sunsets that memories untie …

Pasturelands where lives are tough
As for water – there is not enough
The ’Ten-Pound POM’ days are long gone
First Nation voices now grow strong.

Australia Fair stands on its own
Not only whites can call it home
It wears a multi-cultured coat
Though the Queen still beams from dollar note!

(c) Poet in the woods 2019

For Isabella - at Two!

Did I hear the flap of angel wings?
A December baby magic brings
A flurry of feathers in the nest
And behold the noble stork’s new guest!

Thomas, who ruled the roost, wide-eyed
Had in a flash to step aside
As Isabella, cute, serene
Took the stage and stole the scene!

Small perhaps, but called to play
A host of different roles each day:
Parents and Grandmas were so proud:
Not to mention Thomas – he was wowed!

As for Auntie, who lives far away,
What joy to mention on this day
When two candles flicker on her cake
That she’s on hand to celebrate!

Isabella’s feisty, knows her mind!
Thomas feels her coming up behind
Ambition burns deep in her heart
Could it be at two, I see the spark?

(c) Poet in the woods 2019

Killer Winds!

All ears attuned to radio
A battery-operated flow
Bushfire hot spots – lightning strike
The Lofty Ranges are alight!

Areas closed off, north of State
In the Riverlands it is too late
Vast swathes of vines lie in firepath
CFS teams rush in – short-staffed.

Dry branches flare up and implode
Lives are lost on midnight road
South Australia heroes – volunteers
Unpaid and brave, forget their fears

And lay their lives upon the line
As communities are hit – big time
Meanwhile, the P.M. takes a break
A decision seen as a mistake…

Snapshot of catastrophic scene:
It’s hotter than it’s ever been
Evacuation plans are dire:
Stay put or flee as flames leap higher!

(c) Poet in the woods 2019



CFS = Country Fire Service

Inferno - Australian-style

The weather map ‘Down Under’ glows
With shades of orange, red and mauves
As heat increases as we speak
Threatening record highs this week.

Bush fires rage out of control
Flames and high winds take their toll
Hot spots take on a new meaning
Wrath of Fire God in ‘The Dreaming’.

Mass destruction at a stroke
Unlucky buildings wreathed in smoke
Lifelines cut – heat unforgiving
Though summer now is just beginning…

‘Red Centre’ is no idle word
Scorching North winds their loins gird
Branding landscapes as they pass
Torching trees and blackening grass.

The blazing sun makes fun of Man
Cancer threatens summer tan
This heat, though vital, can be harsh
Dante’s inferno comes to pass…

(c) Poet in the woods 2019

Whakaari Island Eruption

White island, stark, with rocky scree
Where cruise ships stop in sapphire sea
To observe its crags and rough terrain
Wrought by forces under strain…

An outcrop ragged, wild and bleak
Where questing tourists come each week
To clamber over and admire;
No more – these trails now breathe fire!

New Zealand, rarely in the news
Save when this ring of fireworks spews
From deepest crater gas and smoke
Extinguishing life at a stroke.

There was no warning – no alarm
No impending fear of harm
But Mother Nature’s mood swings mean
She is indeed a drama queen.

Death is swift and burns are deep
Locals vigils quietly keep;
Some bodies found, flown back with care
While mourners wait – in media glare…

Death in paradise – no TV show
Think Pompeii’s pyroclastic flow;
Man thinks he knows what he’s about
But in fine, Nature has more clout!

(c) Poet in the woods 2019

Views from the Eurostar

On frosted fields, long shadows lie
The sun hangs low down in the sky
A golden glow through barren trees
As Dawn, now well advanced, proceeds.

Commuter traffic wends its way
In constant stream down motorway
A tractor reaps new cabbage crop
Then “Lille Europe” in France – short stop.

Flat land, pylon-crossed, white barns
Scattered every which way, farms
Poly tunnels, pallet stacks
Expanses scarred by mystery tracks…

In morning mist the background blurs
Though through the haze the sun appears
The Eurostar begins to slow
‘’Calais-Frethun’’ halts our flow.

Another train, sleek, bold and long
Hurtles past us; then we’re on
Our way beneath the small divide
BREXIT looms – it’s dark outside…

High-rise barricades in Kent
But the Island Link was so well meant;
St. Pancreas – in late morning light
Source of John Betjeman’s delight!

(c) Poet in the woods 2019

A Grimm Fairytale?

No snow yet but an icy chill
The planet spins, is never still
Tsunamis, terrorists, bushfire,
All warnings of a future dire...

Scaremongering is not my thing
But the warning bell now starts to ring
It may seem faint and far away
But it's getting louder every day.

What of Nostradamus* long ago
Whose predictions seem so à propos?
Plants and wildlife on the wane
Man surely bears part of the blame?

As we hurtle to the brink
Of chaos, let us stop and think;
If we don't take action now
Who'll be left to wield the plough?

I.T. has its limitations
What we need is «Action Stations!»
The music slows – end of joyride
We must join forces to survive.

Easier said than done, of course
Legislation must be put in force
Our cushy lives come at a price
Now all must make a sacrifice ...

(c) Poet in the woods

*Born Michel de Nostredame 1503-1566

By Wilhelm and Jacob Grimm - printed 1812