“Until you spread your wings, you will have no idea how far you can fly.”
After many long weeks, filled with goodbyes, tears of joy and uncertainty of the future, we drove off and bid farewell to the city. On a crisp wintery Saturday afternoon, our convoy arrived together into the spectacular hinterland of green grass and endless rolling hills. As we embarked on the last stretch of our journey down the open country road, a flock of beautiful white birds flew beside the car, an incredible feeling of courage overwhelmed me – we made it, at last we were home.
The unpack was relentless, thank god, my family was there to help. The trucks filled to the brim, where was everything to go. We had two cottages already furnished, furniture was one thing, but the clothes, the shoes, the linen, the crockery, the kitchen appliances, two of everything – we needed to get creative. So, the cull began, and it was brutal, what to keep, what to sell, what to throw out, a pile for everything – it was endless.
My family came and went, and then it was just us, the days went on to weeks and we wondered when the day would come that the last box would be unpacked. Thankfully it did come, the sea of boxes departed and we were once again settled.
As we took our first steps, down the path to recovery, from what was the toughest 6 months of our lives, we felt the place draw us in to its incredible beauty and healing nature. Life was now filled with rolling hills, trees, ever-changing sky’s, golden sunsets and breezes heavy with ‘knowing’.
Everyday were reminders of the beauty we had been missing, the duck’s in their couple-like ways, the silence of the owl flying at dusk, mama cow and her babies roaming the hills. This simplicity taking away the complication and busyness that filled our everyday lives for so long. Mindfulness just something we talked about, nature something we viewed as we headed home from work, animal life just our little Burmese greeting us at the door.
The country brings a rawness; the storms circling, the wildness of the winds wrapping around your little home on the hill, the rains gushing down the tin roof and the pipes, Mother Nature can be brutal as you watch her at work she commands your attention.
This lesson we learnt early, within 3 weeks of our arrival we were hit by one of the biggest storms in the Northern Rivers for many years. That day was to be a reminder, ‘we walk here in the universe, we do not control it’. We lost one of twin kittens, she never came home, the force of the storm savaged our majestic Fig tree, the stalwart of our property. Once again, our foundations were rocked, was this to be a never-ending reminder of how fragile we are.
Many a day was spent chatting to my beautiful friends from Sydney, the girls only reminding me they were never far away, and were here for me always.
What came next… click to read more
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