Francis Duggan Poems

A war about God and a war about Land
The tragic loss of lives I do not understand
A just war in truth is a damnable lie
For in modern day conflicts many civilians do die
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For baby Matilda Mitchell life's trials have started early
And one might say by lady luck she has not been treated fairly
But since her operation for her cleft palate she seems healthier and brighter
And on her mum and dad Gwen and Richard the burden of care lighter.
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Amongst the thousands of faces not one I do know
The noise of the traffic that buzz to and fro
The urban surroundings don't suit me at all
I long for the place where the currawong call
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He lived by the Killarney road a few miles from Rathmore
And he was one that I had known since I was three or four
A character he was of sorts and though from life long gone
In the hearts of those who knew him well Charlie is living on.
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Why worry of death and of dying when you will be forever dead
The present is all that does matter who knows for us what lay ahead
We will die that we know for certain and we only can live in the now
The father of time is our master and to the father of time we must bow
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Can one see hope for the future of humanity when the foes of Nature in business and commerce succeed
When our Earth Mother is being raped for her resources by those known for their financial greed
In South America's Amazon Rainforest thousands of acres of trees are cut down every day
The uncalled for destruction of the natural environment for agriculture for to make way
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The peals of the funeral bell echo to the calm sky
For someone today 'tis a final goodbye
And on some future date whenever that be
A similar bell will be ringing for me.
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Ned Kelly perhaps the best known Australian though in old Melbourne jail he died dangling from a rope
A victim of years of police harassment he was one born on life's precarious slope
For years the Kelly family were victims of racism by the racist authorities they never really did get a fair go
But what happened to the Kellys is still happening racism has not died as we well know.
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The wanderlust is in him he is young and carefree
He's now in sunny Queensland deep diving out at sea
He's been to Asia, North America and Europe his next port of call Japan
For one in his young twenties he's a well travelled man.
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She loves green Mother Nature with all her heart and soul
And in the fight to save Birdsland from the developers she played a leading role
And to the cause of Nature she remains ever true
The noble Betty Marsden her equals only few.
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