Time no longer Rules by David J Delaney reflects on life with his wife in their caravan, the freedom of travelling without a timetable and the hardships that come with illness and a limited income.
Stars, moonlit gums and a crackling campfire frame an honest account of changed plans, lost confidence and the steady support of a partner. There is peace in the bush, even when life on the road is far from easy.
Time no longer Rules
By David J Delaney
I’m relaxing as the darkness grows,
while a cavalcade of stars appear
and through the gums, gold moonlight glows,
as noisy crickets chirp quite near.
The campfire crackles with a gentle flame
for now the billy’s piping hot,
and camping where our Brothers came,
perhaps here on this very spot.
No longer do I wear a watch,
no longer does time rule my life,
for at day’s end I sip my scotch,
enjoying life now with my wife.
We’ll sit and watch the sunsets,
their orange and bright purple hues,
and while we both have no regrets,
there’s nothing left to lose.
We love this life, don’t get me wrong,
and have each other and our van,
trying to avoid the cities throng,
often travelling without a plan.
I’d work wherever we would stop,
this was our goal, our golden plan,
but Ménière’s was hard to cop
and made me feel less than a man.
No longer could I be employed,
to support our goal, our dream.
Because a wage was now devoid,
I started losing self-esteem.
My Darling watched my slow demise,
and even when I hit the grog.
She was there sunset and sunrise,
Also the time I saw, “black dog”.
The pension’s not a full on wage,
but we’re managing I suppose.
And sometimes it is hard to gauge,
where all the money, “up and goes”
Our caravan is now our home,
a permanent abode on wheels
it’s hard to save so we can roam
and camp where there’s the cheapest deals.
It’s not a glam life, that’s for sure,
but still some people think we’re rich.
So where we move, we will endure,
and settle where we might unhitch.
I’m relaxing as the darkness grows,
while a cavalcade of stars appear
and through the gums, gold moonlight glows,
who knows how long we might stay here.
David J Delaney ©
Keeping The Verse Alive
Time no longer Rules is shared with permission from David J Delaney through Keeping The Verse Alive, Country Campfire’s bush poetry preservation project.
By preserving poems like this, we’re helping ensure the stories, humour and characters of country Australia continue to be enjoyed for generations to come.
David J Delaney
Bush Poet • Writer • Storyteller
David J Delaney is an Australian bush poet and writer whose poems draw on a lifetime of work, travel, family, road memories, outback places and the people he has known along the way. His poems are preserved through Country Campfire as part of the Keeping The Verse Alive project.
Poems, recitals, photographs, stories and original works remain the property of their original creator and are shared by Country Campfire with permission.
