The Welcomed Stranger

The Welcome Stranger

He lurked there in the shadows,

He was a quiet sort of bloke...

He never had much to say,

He hardly ever spoke...

But all the same,

He was quick to lend a hand...

Never was he shy,

When work was in demand...

He was always there to help,

When most would walk away...

This welcome old stranger,

Who lobbed into town today...

It was then that he approached me,

And looked me in the eye...

I am in need of some refreshments,

As my throats a little dry...

I’m in search of a golden brew,

And a cold one too at that...

Also a place to stop the night,

Somewhere to hang my hat...

So I pointed to a pub,

It was down there to the right...

Then he smiled and tipped his hat,

And vanished out of sight...

When he reached the bar,

He gave a little cheer...

This fella was so thirsty,

He drank a keg of beer...

It was then he started talking,

And the crowd went silent as he spoke...

He had them all memorized,

All were listening to this bloke...

I’ll tell you a little story,

About the days when I searched for gold...

In the years not so long ago,

My future would unfold...

I joined the rush like others,

There were riches beyond belief...

And left my home and loved ones,

In search of Lasseter’s Reef...

I set out from Alice springs,

And travelled west to Haasts Bluff...

I explored the caves and valleys,

The terrain was really rough...

As the days turned into months,

I was gone almost a year...

I found nothing there but hardship,

Loneliness and fear...

I saw many men takes their lives,

The isolation drove them mad...

The lust for gold killed many blokes,

It was really sad...

As for me, I'm a loner,

My mining days no more...

My wife left me, long ago,

Just settling up a score...

So now I pick up work here and there,

Usually a day or two...

As I don’t stay long in any place,

I‘m always travelling through...

These days I’m on another quest,

I’ve been searching for my wife...

I’m hoping when I find her,

She’ll forgive me for the strife...

I know I was wrong to leave her,

In the hope of finding gold...

And now the fever has broken,

I am lonely and getting old...

There are far more precious things,

That are right before your eyes...

They are the ones you love,

They are the richest prize...

All those years spent searching,

It was only fool’s gold everywhere...

By then it was far too late,

I was really in despair...

So for now I’ll just keep looking,

And that is the reason why...

That this quest will never end,

Until the day I die...

Len Newey 2013