Gypsies & Travellers

Gypsies and travellers I have known All were generous with time and tales Never at rest, like dropped leaves blown Bearing the elements, storms and gales A cornucopia, each, of songs Merry they were but quick to rile Bagpipe, fiddle or mandolin Played with a tear or winsome smile I've crossed their palms as the credulous do (Stranger things have been done on earth) And some of the things they told were true And those that weren't were hardly worth The settled folk in their rooted homes Resent such cuckoos too near the nest The travellers give not a hoot for that They'll stop for a passing while to rest Then off, for the fever to flit is strong Off on the road with the kids and wife Gypsies and travellers don't belong To the stagnant house and the mortgaged life