The Distant Call of Home

When the sun is rising east Won't you think of me dear Mary For the same sun will be setting Where I lie on distant shore Every letter you have sent I keep folded to my chest And I read them in the evening When the shells are laid to rest And it heartens me to learn That you wait for our return From hearth to trench so far away Watching waiting day by day The distant call of home When the sun is rising east At the end of Albert Street How I think of you each morning And the night that you will greet And if there is any good You'll return to where you stood Not a home is without sorrow Not a house is without hope Neighbours gather at the gate As we watch and as we wait Shadows fall from door to door Things that once were are no more The distant call of home Yet the sun still rises east Light dapples through the leaves Of eucalypt and wattle As though war had never been In the eyes of those returned Untold visions deeply burned A grief that can't be measured For peace we ever yearn Oaks and elms form avenues In memory grow to honour you A magpie sings out to the dawn A song for those we mourn A distant call from home