You Once Were Many
You once were many, but now you are few, Now, you are refugees in your own land, Your families were lost as you fled, Your forests burnt to the ground, As the winds howled, Carrying the screams of death, Throughout your once green paradise
You are our furry friends, Our feathered friends, Our scaly and winged creatures, You dwell in the native bushland of Australia, Keeping the balance of the ecosystem, Tending to your families, Fleeing from predators,
But now blackened bush, like sticks of charcoal Are the remnants of your homeland, And whole generations of species Are no longer, Stolen by the tsunami of the fires that spread relentlessly And those that remain have become refugees In their own land that once supported life
Once there was a symphony of cicadas and birdsong, And a gentle rustling through the bush, As the furry friends made their way through, Now there are no animal homes,
No nests for the birds, No branches for the koalas, No greenery for the kangaroos, No food, and no peaceful place to rest upon
The elders know this land, A sacred connection, unbroken But this ancient knowledge, is not consulted by the laws of the West And 46 million acres were burnt, And one billion animals were lost, And fires burned not for days, or weeks, but months And we as a nation, mourned your loss
You are our winged, scaly, furry and feathered friends You once were many, but now you are few
©️ Amata Goldie 2020
Honoured to be invited to read my poem at the Official Book Launch ~Paws Healing The Earth Poetry Anthology,
Copyright – Published by River Paw Press ~
River Paw Press’ Youtube Channel @ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCI6AbydO3hsJHBxmXZIKffQ
Join us for the launch of the “Paws Healing The Earth, the first poetry anthology of River Paw Press on Tuesday, April 20th. The event will take place at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fud0XZLqRQU
“Paws Healing The Earth” is now available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other online stores worldwide. River Paw Press is offering FREE SHIPPING worldwide until April 30th. If you want to get a copy of the book for yourself, follow the link – http://riverpawpress.com/index.php/paws-healing-the-earth/
We hope you can join us for the launch and reading of “Paws Healing The Earth” to celebrate our environment, animals, and wildlife. Individual reading series will follow after the official launch of the book. Thank you, all!
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