Australian Bushfires - February 2009

I hardly know what to say. The courage of these people who have lost loved ones, who have lost everything, who have to begin again with nothing but their indominable spirit, is incredible. As Australians we all grieve with you. It is, indeed, our darkest time, other than the years of war. The thoughts and prayers of all that I've spoken to, here and overseas, are with you. We will rally to support you.

What I can't say, is said beautifully in the following poems.

What is left (Kinglake Feb 08,2009)
By Jellz Fisher

Grey ash lingers,
blanketing,
shrouding life.
Smoldering heat.
Eerie silence emanates.
As morning breaks,
invasive scent of
burnt eucalyptus.
Negroid trees stay erect,
random spent joss sticks,
punctuating flat, lifeless land.
Smoke hangs lower than
heads of defeated fighters,
while chimneys still stand
defiant and ironic.

Sorrow, profound,
infects everything.
Change has swept all before it.
Lives ignited in gratitude,
joined in community
of salvation, desolate
for loss.
Bleary focus, tear-filled insecurity.
Flashbacks of survival,
overcoming
and the start of new memories,
will burn in theirs…..
forever.

Bushfire (The Australian Spirit)
Paul Buttigieg December 2006

My last saucepan
Amid the ashes
A last possession
Bent
But never enough to stop me
Boiling the water
WhilstI lost everything
We’re not losing our cup of tea
We’re not giving up
Still
There is hope
Even if my house has gone
Others
Are hanging on
And I must help
I’ll build again
There is no time for feeling sorry
Only for pouring the tea
For heroes