Flags on the Bridge

I close my eyes

And hear

The flutter of the flags.

On Pyrmont Bridge

New, crisp flags

Celebrate the harbour –

Painted with turquoise waters

And silver sunlight squiggles

 

I look below the bridge

And see the sparkle

Of the summer’s sun

On turquoise waters -

That same glimmer,

As above, so below

At least something’s unchanged

In these ancient Gadigal lands

 

What beautiful views –

Antiquity on the blues

Modernity on the shores;

First bark canoe boats,

Then mills and wharves

Now museums and glassy towers

This harbour –

A manuscript of time

 

I close my eyes

And listen to my prayer flags

That resonate

With the waves

Of harbour and the heart;

I look at the new crisp flags again –

Someday they will wear out

Someday they will be replaced

 

 With the zeitgeist of the times,

If you still seek the sun’s glimmer

Look at the sacred waters

Below the bridge,

They still shimmer and shine

As above, so below

Some things will remain unchanged

In these ancient Gadigal lands…

 

8^th September, 2026

 

Inspired by a short walk on the Pyrmont Bridge, bedecked with beautiful new flags promoting the turquoise blue of the Sydney Harbour