DOWN A COUNTRY LANE TO WAR

      In these my precious middle years, the truth is hard to grasp,

      I hide from pain and future tears, by dwelling in the past,

      And misty dreams of yesterday, call out to me once more,

      To walk again that mottled way, down a country lane to war.

      Poor in all but hope and courage, in a world that seemed so wide,

      Where we fought as one to salvage, broken dreams as mother cried.

      Warm days of love and laughter, when hearts and minds were raw,

      Gave me strength for what came after, down a country lane to war.

      Lost carefree days of childhood bliss, too sheltered to be sad,

      For things unknown we do not miss, no gauge of good or bad,

      Those simple days alas are gone, now manhood’s calls implore,

      And solemn voices call me on, down a country lane to war.

      A child and now too soon a man, life’s lesson’s harsh and stark;

      It’s time to face some master plan, go forth and make my mark.

      But future’s path lies veiled in dread, that chills me to the core,

      I heed the call with timid tread, down a country lane to war.

      The steaming jungle blocks the sky, endless twilight in the gloom,

      Men who’ve not lived and yet they die, in silence to their doom.

      Sun drenched day and moonlit night, will comfort me no more:

      I fight to live and live to fight, down a country lane to war.

      Sweat soaked day and sleepless night, the scent of blood and fear,

      No question now of wrong or right, as death and pain draw near.

      Our blood with theirs a river free, through stagnant jungle floor,

      I curse the dreams that called me, down a country lane to war.

      Those hungry days of bitter youth have passed almost from view;

      And soldier’s hearts that yearned for truth, with years fall silent too.

      And time is unforgiving; it won’t heal the festering sore;

      That has grown from years of living, down a country lane to war.

      Bitter past provides no reasons, and bleak future pays no due,

      As I face the waiting seasons, life’s remains are calling through.

      Must I harbour sad obsessions, from the days that went before?

      While I search for painful lessons, down a country lane to war.

      In these my precious middle years, the truth dawns clear at last,

      I’ll turn away from pointless tears, draw lessons from the past,

      And the misty dreams of yesterday, will guide me as before,

      To hold the truths that came my way, down a country lane to war.

      ⎡ Gary Blinco – June 2000

      ABOUT THE AUTHOR

      Gary Blinco grew up in the bush on the Darling Downs in Queensland during the fifties and early sixties. His large family existed in poverty stricken and primitive circumstances in those days, and the author credits his harsh beginnings with his insight into landscapes and the human condition. He is also a Vietnam Veteran, having completed two tours of duty as an infantry soldier after being conscripted during the National Service era of the late sixties and early seventies.

      His first two books, ‘Down a Country Lane’ and ‘The Wounds of War’ are largely about soldiering during the Vietnam War. But his writing also deals in sensitive terms with personal relationships, including conflict on and off the battlefield, and romance, which provides a refreshing contrast against the harshness of military combat. In this sense the books offer more than just a blood and guts war story.

      Blinco has four more books now in an advanced stage of development and these are planned for release during the next two years. ‘Under the Harvest Moon’, is a romantic murder- mystery novel set against the backdrop of the first bulk wheat harvest on the Darling Downs in 1957. The book provides an entertaining journey across a spectrum of history, mystery and romance during a time of rapid change.

      ‘Brennan’, is the first of two books on ‘The Mystical Swagman’. The books follow the experiences of an orphan boy of mysterious origins who develops mystical powers while tramping the wallaby track with two old swagmen. The books give an insight into the bush and early colonial Australia.

      ‘A Place in Time’ is a novel about Australia being invaded by another country, somewhere in the near future. The lead character is Ian Lane, a middle-aged business executive who decides to retire early and concentrate on his writing career while taking his wife and child on a caravanning trip around Australia. They are camped by an isolated waterhole in the remote central northern outback when the invasion begins. An alliance of countries to Australia’s north strikes swiftly from within and without, bringing the nation to its knees in a matter of hours. The defence forces are crippled, highways are closed, communication systems are taken down or closely monitored, curfews are imposed and all aircraft are grounded. Australia’s allies sit back and take a wait-and-see position.

      Ian is a Vietnam Veteran and he longs to take some action to help save his country as he watches helplessly while great convoys of invading troops swarm down the central highway. Then by chance or destiny he finds a fissure through a wall of desert rock that takes him 252 years into the future. There he finds an ally and access to technology that will help him in his quest to serve his country; and he gains a glimpse at the future that gives him hope for the present. He also finds a new but impossible relationship that inspires and confuses at the same time.

      While these later works are a departure from the author’s usual genre, they are still set in the Australian bush environment that the author knows so well. Again, the books capture the wonders of the Australian bush.

      Gary works in sales and marketing in the financial services industry and lives on the Central Coast of New South Wales.

      INTRODUCTION

      These chapters emerge from memories of my early life and my personal experiences until my return from the Vietnam