The suburbs can be bleak
They render isolation
The dreams of shores afar
Inspire to emigration
The fantasy of light
In sunny cities tease
So fully I immerse
In Melbourne’s fantasies
And forty years go by
My children are now grown
And grandchildren emerge
I make this town my own
So here my future lies
With strong familial ties
My heart still yearns for home
And this must be my tome
To emigrate is cruel
I never knew how much
The heart is never full
But yearning for the touch
Of Irish soil and mirth
The music and the joy
The solace of my birth
Can yet become my buoy
And so I live between
Two worlds that ne’er will touch
But I must make my peace
With what I love so much
The red and sandy soil
The beauty of expanse
The easy way we live
The open welcome stance
The Australian joi de Vivre
The tolerance and the friendship
The pure irreverent laugh
The warmth and the mate-ship
The lesson must be this
Expanse is for the soul
The separation pain
Must render us more whole
That is not how it feels
But trust we must it so
The journey is the lesson
And that is how it goes.
by Breed Barrett
Breed Barrett is an author, transitions counsellor and tarot reader, having been immersed in giving guidance using tarot and other media for 35 years. Her book “Choose a Better You” was published 5 years ago. Breed has always loved poetry, and her favorite poet W. B. Yeats. Recently, she has decided to write her own poetry.
