The Gray Gums At Kallista Poem by Francis Duggan

The gray gums at kallista stand silent in the night
And they look very beautiful in October moonlight
The moon beams steal through silent trees and creep along the ground
And in the silent forest peace everywhere around.

The gray gums at Kallista one hundred metres tall
These giants of the forest make other trees seem small
Their lowest branch some eigthy foot above the forest floor
And that would only be a guess and might be even more.

The gray gums at Kallista what secrets do they keep?
Up on their higher branches the mountain lories sleep
And when the shades of evening fall and the sun sets in
the west
The little ring tail possum she leave her leafy nest.

The gray gums at kallista seem fast asleep tonight
No freshening winds to wake them the sleeping forest quiet
Kallista forest silent save for the boobook's cry
Mopoke mopoke re-echo through the forest and the sky

The Gray Gums at Kallista two hours after night fall
Stand in a silent forest where only boobook call
The moonbeams steal through silent trees and creep along the ground
And in the silent forest peace everywhere around.