ABPA - Australian Bush Poets Association

A RING AROUND THE MOON
Maureen Clifford © The Scribbly Bark Poet


It is dark, the sun has gone and night’s come calling
and the air is cool and crisp with winter chill
on a hillside far away a calf is bawling
and I hear the mournful sound of whippoorwill
echoing across the flats and down the gully
where I sit entranced by flickering fire light
with our two dogs at my feet, thinking ‘God this life is sweet
and there’s a ring around the moon I see tonight.


Oh they say that ring means that there’s rain a coming
and high cirrus clouds gather before a storm,
those clouds contain a million tiny crystals
of ice – causing that pale halo to form.
And those halos round the moon are like a rainbow
they are tinged with red and also tinged with blue.
All I know is that when I see the ring forming
around the moon my thoughts fly straight to you.

I recall the last time we were here together
before the illness took you far away -
we stoked the fire and set the billy boiling
and talked about the farm and ‘bout our day.
How we marvelled at the beauty all around us
and thanked the Lord for blessings he had sent.
All was good then - I remember we were happy
but it seems he called you, and you up and went.

There’s a ring around the moon tonight my darling
and it’s peaceful here beneath the Ironbark tree.
There’s the scent of wattle drifting on the breeze now
and our old blue’s sitting here alongside me.
All is fine here. Yes we miss you - but we manage
and the kids are doing well. I’ve planted wheat.
I’ll just stay a little longer then I’ll head back
I just needed to touch base with you my sweet.

It is dark, the sun has gone, and the chill’s creeping
even closer as the campfire burns down low.
It is time for me to up and make a move love
but I’ll drop on by again and say Hello.
When the new moon holds the old moon in its arms love
it will be a year since we last said goodnight…..
he laid a sprig of wattle on her gravestone
and the moon bestowed a blessing clear and bright.

Yeah, I suppose Maureen, It's about that time of day that you start to think of things.

Seems that way Neville

A touching Poem Maureen

There was a ring around the sun here yesterday.
There was a thin wispy mist of high cloud and this very large diameter ring.

I always think of the poem 'The wreck of the Hesperas' (not sure how you spell that)
It has aline that does something like 'Last night there was a ring around the moon, tonight no moon is seen at all',
Or something like that

Terry

Moving and sad Maureen - you can really 'see' the person sitting there and the spectacle of the moon, plus hear the calf, whippoorwill and crackling of the fire. A lovely poem.

Thank you Terry - the wreck of the Hespurus is a grand stirring poem.

Then up and spake an old Sailòr,
Had sailed to the Spanish Main,
‘I pray thee, put into yonder port,
For I fear a hurricane.

‘Last night, the moon had a golden ring,
And to-night no moon we see!’
The skipper, he blew a whiff from his pipe,
And a scornful laugh laughed he.

Thank you Catherine - pleased you shared my picture - certainly is sad.

If my mother thought that I was untidy she used to say " You look like the wreck of the Hesperus " I didn't know what that meant but it sounded bad.

a phrase I use myself and quite often Neville - along with you look like you have been dragged through a bush backward which has the same connotation