Novak Poem by Francis Duggan

In a grove nearby a blackbird is singing his pleasant music melodious and clear
In his backyard in the Spring sunshine Novak a familiar voice is happy to hear
As a young person near the City of Subotica on evenings in the Northern Spring
The yellow billed male blackbirds in the sunshine in groves and on hedgerows did sing
Last September he turned eighty his best day one can say long gone
Time does not wait for anybody his biological clock ticking on
As a young person in Yugoslavia In a Country known as Serbia today
On evenings in Spring and in Summer with his young mates football he did play
Some fifty eight years living in Australia last year to a heart attack he lost his Aussie wife
For fifty three years they were married she was the great love of his life
He is seven times a great grandfather though in his twilight years he lives on his own
With plenty of time for reflection on the happier times he has known
In the grove nearby a blackbird is singing a voice that he loved as a boy
And the song of one to him familiar is a thing he always does enjoy.