I Hear the Ants Breathing
Doann’s understanding of the environment is evident in this poem from Voice of a Voyage inspired by an Aboriginal elder.
I pause in the openness of the earth
to hear the ants breathing.
I watch my brother, koala,
dozing in the eucalyptus,
what that fella does best.
I move slowly, drawn by threads
of power, unbreakable
by wire fences, railroad tracks, power lines,
coal diggers. Unbreakable, I sing
these Songlines, this path I walk
is sacred, I have known it for centuries,
through ancestors I never saw.
I pause to hear the ants breathing.
This is my strength.
