FOOD FOR THOUGHT

[happy daze john in oz]

This poem was sent to me by Roger in Tamania, whilst it is all about Australia it could well apply to parts of UK and other countries.




Whenthe shearing sheds are silent and the stock camps fallen quiet.
When the gidgee coals no longer glow across the outback night.

And thebush is forced to hang a sign, 'gone broke and won't be back'.
And spirits fear to find a way beyond the beaten track.

When harvesters stand derelict upon the wind swept plains.
And brave hearts pin their hopes no more on chance of loving rains.

When a hundred outback settlements are ghost towns overnight.
When we've lost the drive and heart we had to once more see us right.

When 'Pioneer' means a stereo and 'Digger' some backhoe.
And the 'Outback' is behind the house, there's nowhere else to go.

And 'Anzac' is a biscuit brand and probably foreign owned.
And education really means brainwashed and neatly cloned.

When you have to bake a loaf of bread to make a decent crust.
And our heritage once enshrined in gold is crumbling to dust.

And oldfolk pay their camping fees on land for which they fought.
And fishing is a great escape; this is until you're caught.

When you see our kids with yankee caps and resentment in their eyes.
And soaring crime and hopeless hearts are no longer a surprise.

When the name of RM Williams is a yuppie clothing brand.
Not a product of our heritage that grew from off the land.

Whenoffering a hand makes people think you'll amputate.
And two dogs meeting in the street is what you call a 'Mate'.

When 'Political Correctness' has replaced all common sense.
When you're forced to see it their way, there's no sitting on the fence.

Yes one dayyou might find yourself an outcast in this land.
Perhaps your heart will tell you then, I should have made a stand'

Just go and ask the farmers that should remove all doubt.
Then join the swelling ranks who say, ' don't sell Australia out'.>

[Captain Kong]

Good? One John.
I guess it may be too late for the Australia we once grew up in.
Changing so fast now. I see the difference every two years I go there.
It is not the Australia of the 1950s, The spirit has gone, been too diluted with too many nationalities moving in. That Mate-ship has gone. Gone too much like the US.
Asians do not have `Mates`.
The Australia I once knew is just a memory.
There will be no more waltzing matilda ,that will be just a distant memory in some old drongo`s mind..
But I will be back. soon.
Cheers Mate,
Brian.

[happy daze john in oz]

Brian, there are many of us here who will do all we can to preserve the Oz of old, but as you rightly say the world is fast changing and not always for the better.