Sometimes the Water Runs Hard

Sometimes the water runs hard
Knocking rock loose
To tumble and gouge
Cutting the gully ever deeper

Drought leaves the gully quiet
What water there is
Seeps down a shaded wall
Trickles in the valley

So shrubs
Cling up high
And grasses hug the floor
A gum tree has taken root

Life settles in
With warm furry creatures
And insects
Which bring the birds

The cycle will turn again
Rock and water
Will scour the life away
The gully someday becomes a gorge

And life
As it always does
Will return
Until the water runs hard again