Her arching branches are ready to embrace you. At her feet, a network of roots holds steadfast and strong.
She is delicate yet dogged.
She gives food and offers shelter.
Her towering canopy speaks to the centuries of history she has shared. And her leaves whisper to the future of what may come.
The rich, iron red of her timber is hidden behind the muted greys of her bark.
Long, gnarled limbs reach toward the sky.
Her fingertips are shrouded in clouds of dusty green.
Birds nest in her branches. Frogs hunker beneath her bark. Microbes feed from the nectar that falls at her feet. And possums frolic through her foliage.
A silken ribbon of water laps at her roots, ebbing and flowing with the seasons. It seeps through the soil – feeding, flowing, and restoring.
Water spreads across floodplains, reviving dry creek beds, connecting river and wetland, bringing life, giving hope.
The river flows – an ancient songline.
Living, breathing, pulsing, healing.
We escape the heat, seeking relief beneath her shaded canopy. We play amongst her fallen leaves. We delight in the dappled sunlight filtering through her foliage. We marvel at the tiny seeds that grow into a river giant. We dip our toes in the water at her feet. And we stand in awe of the history she has witnessed and all that she is yet to see . . .
Anonymous
When was the last time you stood beneath a river red gum and took a moment to revel in its beauty?
To celebrate National Tree Day, local artists are invited to do just that!
The results will be on display in an evolving exhibition at the Albury Library-Museum Community Wall opening on Sunday July 30 and on show until 17 September.
If you would like to share your reflection on river red gums in a postcard sized work, email them to projects@murrayarts.org.au
