Plum tree blossoms bright against the blue,

Scarlet creeper drowning in a sea of green

As seasons change, and nature preens

In the eternal mirror.

 

Save for a sudden stirring, all the air is numb

When, from the branches of a stringy gum

A magpie hymns his morning praises.

 

Here in my suburban prison, many years

Have set this scene.

Sometimes my bonds are loosed,

But duty calls me back, and,

With a smile, love binds my hands.