Whenever Mum and I used to wash up, we’d sing. They were always songs that told a story, like the Skye Boat Song, or Loch Lomond. I won’t tell you those stories: they – and the songs – are wonderful. Have the thrill of finding them yourself.
Australia’s national song is a story song too – Waltzing Matilda is based on real events (borrow a copy of A Waltz for Matilda from the library if you’d like to know more).
Dad used to tell me poems before bed and those poems were all stories too: The Highwayman, The Lady of Shallot, Mulga Bill Bicycle, The Man from Snowy River, Andy’s Gone with Cattle …
Hunt them out, read them, recite them out loud, even tap dance to the ones that have good rhythm. My Country by Dorothy McKellar makes a fantastic tap dance - and that is not disrespect for the sound of your feet is almost the drumming of the rain she talks about.
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