'The Song Of The Frogs' - upgrade I hope

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Terry
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Joined: Mon Nov 01, 2010 6:53 pm

'The Song Of The Frogs' - upgrade I hope

Post by Terry » Sat Mar 17, 2018 5:41 pm

Following in Maureen's footsteps.

This is an upgraded version (I hope) of a poem I posted on Maureen’s Homework.
A few small changes and a little more added - True Story.

The Song Of The frogs

The old camp was a welcome sight with summer heat now at its height,
this scrawny bunch of mulga trees at least would offer filtered shade,
No greenhouse signs out this way yet; more droughts are likely what we’ll get;
they’re mostly sceptics in the bush, from all the comments I hear made.

This arid place I know it well, there’s little shade and hot as hell,
the only life you see out here, are flies and ants, and lizards too.
The grounds as hard as concrete now yet scattered trees survive somehow,
you’d wonder why my wife and I still come as often as we do.

Despite the harshness of this place - its solitude that we embrace,
the nearest town is far from here and few will venture out this way.
There’s always gold here to be found – it’s scattered over all this ground,
we love this place and always will – out here where tiny nuggets lay.

The weather man had promised rain; a promise often made in vain
and looked unlikely this time too, with noonday skies still clear and blue.
There’s not a single cloud in view, which shows just what the experts knew,
yet still I glanced towards northwest in hope, as knowing bushies do.

At dusk while dragging in a log, I could have sworn I heard a frog;
impossible I told myself, a frog can’t live in sun baked ground.
It hadn’t rained since months before, and even then, a drop, no more;
but then I heard that frog again, soon joined by others all around.

Then like a choir they had sung, sang in their croaking frog like tongue,
they sung for rain of that I’m sure, although there’s not a cloud in sight.
Their songs were pleasing on our ears; the first time sung I’m sure for years
and echoed through the stillness of a dark and balmy outback night.

Then serenaded by their song we slept through croaks still loud and strong,
till woken by the patter of the first few drops of precious rain.
No doubt the frogs had sensed this change with mating rights to soon arrange,
for many years would likely pass, before the frogs would sing again.

© T.E. Piggott

r.magnay
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Location: Port Lincoln SA

Re: 'The Song Of The Frogs' - upgrade I hope

Post by r.magnay » Tue Mar 20, 2018 4:30 pm

A great yarn as usual Terry, as much as I love my sea change, I still miss those things a bit...a lot.
Ross

Terry
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Joined: Mon Nov 01, 2010 6:53 pm

Re: 'The Song Of The Frogs' - upgrade I hope

Post by Terry » Thu Mar 22, 2018 11:21 am

G/day Ross

Yes, I'm living on memories a bit myself these days mate,
hopefully I might get out there again this year if nothing else goes wrong.
The funny thing about it all is that there are times when you are out bush, you wonder why the hell you bother to go out there.
Then when for one reason or another once you give it away, you fret about getting back out there.
There's no escaping the fact that those remote areas capture hearts if you stay too long.

Hope you're enjoying the fishing.

Cheers Mate
Terry

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Shelley Hansen
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Re: 'The Song Of The Frogs' - upgrade I hope

Post by Shelley Hansen » Thu Mar 22, 2018 4:06 pm

It is such a fascinating story, Terry. I remember many years ago watching an ABC documentary about the outback frogs who lay eggs in the wet, then the eggs lie dormant for years through the dry, hatching when the rains come again.

An incredible story of survival!

Cheers
Shelley
Shelley Hansen
Lady of Lines
http://www.shelleyhansen.com

"Look fer yer profits in the 'earts o' friends,
fer 'atin' never paid no dividends."
(CJ Dennis "The Mooch o' Life")

Terry
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Joined: Mon Nov 01, 2010 6:53 pm

Re: 'The Song Of The Frogs' - upgrade I hope

Post by Terry » Thu Mar 22, 2018 7:13 pm

Hi Shelley

Brine shrimp and other little creatures are like that too, their eggs roll about the great dry salt lakes for years at times.
The amazing thing about the frogs in the poem, is that it's such a desolate looking place.
There is a small dry rock hard creek that probably has water for a day or two in places after a big rain, and rain like that is rare out there.
Life seems to be able to exist anywhere given half a chance.

Terry

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