Hitting Rock Bottom and Beyond
I watch
As the water from the mighty Wollomombi
plunges over the cliff
to hit rock bottom
Her youthful energy dissipates
before her transformation into a beautiful stream
A few tears are shed in mist
which rises up to greet me
A brief pause in energy, to celebrate the past journey
before she continues on her way
Some of her life force now spent
but she is a little wiser
Down the path, she will merge
with the flow of Chandler River
Two wild rivers in perfect understanding
that by their joining they are stronger
More powerful together than when they were flowing solo
Giving each other courage
to carve new paths through rocky banks
Leaving behind a legacy of beautiful memories
in an oxygen rich river
Enabling others to be energised by refreshing ideas
Downstream they will combine with other streams
forming the thunderous Macleay River
In full flow, one of the fastest river systems in the world
There are new gorges to carve before they reach the ocean
There they gaze in amazement
at a body of water so vast, it appears
to have no beginning; no end
Realising then, that beginning and endings
are human constructs after all
Wollomombi, once one of the mightiest falls
together with Chandler
had danced naked in Oxley Wild Rivers
They now stand humbly before this spectacle
in realisation that their identity will be lost forever
Having reached their date with destiny
to empty themselves into the oneness of the Ocean
They take their time at the mouth
Dispersing in many directions
Reluctant and hesitant at first, they finally relent
Allowing the saline waters to embrace them
Becoming one with all the falls that have travelled here before them
They had always sensed this Truth
But the reality was still confronting
They yield in humble acquiescence
Acknowledging they are all connected.
Were always connected through the cycle of water and rebirth
To all the other mighty falls
that once hit rock bottom.