SummaryPoem by James Rowe, Thames, NZ. I am a 76 year old who has spent much of his spare time in the great New Zealand outdoors. I appreciate and admire the clean New Zealand bush, scenery and our pristine beaches and boating areas.We should be proud to share these assets with our visitors – as long as they appreciate and help preserve this fine country. 15 October 2011 Main Body
Built by nature, loved by man
Where children play in pristine sand
Gentle waves caress the shore
Surging back and forth once more
Sustaining life in this fair land,
Sea birds calling, swooping, feeding
Dolphins, penguins playing, breeding
Fish abound within these waters
Bring your families, sons and daughters
Relax, enjoy that peace you're needing.
A ship called Rena came one night
Travelling fast and giving fright
Through tranquil seas and amongst the isles
No thought for safety – just dollar smiles
Thinking they were in the right.
No thought for others or the life beneath
They crashed onto a rocky reef
Then wondered, “Now what shall we do?”
“We will leave this problem – it's up to you.”
They left their vessel with relief.
The angry sea attacked its foe
The ship had nowhere else to go
It bent, it buckled, it bled its oil
The cargo smashed and now will spoil
Is there no end to this tale of woe?
The sea was sick, the wildlife died
Beaches blackened by an oily tide
Dead birds, dead fishes washed up on shore
Our pristine beaches are no more
Can we clean it up? It's time we tried.
Thousands of people arrived on the scene
Determined to make our beaches clean
They gathered up the obscene oil
Determined that it should not spoil
Those lovely beaches where we all have been.
Hundreds of tonnes are taken away
Collected by people who care for their Bay
Large and small dollops are gathered up
In their love for the birds and a small seal pup
They do what they can so their children may play
We inherit this land, we inherit this sea
It's where we always wanted to be
Let's nurse it to health and make it pure
So that it's ready and so we can be sure
Our children's own families may enjoy this great scene.