Australian Bush Poetry, Verse & Music

Barmah

This is a piece of verse about where I live(d). Located on the Murray River about 40 kilometres east of Echuca, it is the only Victorian town north of the Murray. There is such a diversity of land and riverscape here and just when you think you've seen it all, something new appears. The place has a long and interesting history which continues to fascinate me and will no doubt provide much more material for future pieces of verse. Come and see for yourself sometime.

River red gums standing tall
Majestic in their stance
The breezes whisper as they pass
And cause the leaves to dance
The Murray River races by
Entrancing you with its flow
Where on earth is this paradise you ask
Why it's Barmah - the place I call home

The plains in the forest are open and wide
Across them the brumbies speed
To the shelter of the bush where they'll quietly stand
And remain both wild and free
In the swamps the ducks call and the spoonbills feed
In the reed beds some wild pigs roam
Kangaroos go bounding through the bush
At Barmah - the place I call home

The bird life abounds from emus to wrens
Cockatoos, rosellas and galahs
The haunting call of the mopoke at night
Beneath a sky that is jewelled by stars
All of it's here in this magnificent place
And no matter where you may roam
There's no place on earth that can even compare
To Barmah - the place I call home

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