I'll Write You a Letter with Everything I Know

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  Christchurch, New Zealand
Wednesday, October 24, 2007

A few blogs ago I mentioned that I felt a reflection coming on...well, here it goes!!  I dedicate this reflection of my two months in Australia to my sweet and incredibly good looking accompaniment team back at Symmes (past and present members and accompanists to accompanists).  Enjoy!
   I first must say that I can't believe two months have passed.  Who was it that told me so wisely last August that a year goes by quickly?  You were right.  As I said goodbye to my Australian friends and watched the continent slip away from view, so many things came to mind.  I have seen things that I couldn't have imagined, met people I did not expect, drank the best wines I've ever tasted and lived what I had hoped this trip would be.  Along the way, I've learned to dive in and taste life (hmmm, Avril, that reminds me of a poem by Carolyn Souaid, do you know the one?), I've developed my ability to just be in the moment, although I still have a ways to go, I've listened carefully,  I have missed you.  But as I scan the pages of my personal journal (the unedited version of the blog)  I will share some of the lessons/observations I have about Australia and traveling.
1.  Never...listen carefully, now...NEVER take a 36 hour flight!!!!!  What was my travel agent thinking.  There is a faster way to get to Oz, but I signed up for the long way.  I will never, NEVER do that again.  It was a physical and emotional test.  The last four hours of the flight from Singapore to Sydney brought me to the brink of insanity.  It is only through the grace of Singapore Airlines flight attendents that I made it to Australia.  It could easily have been and international incident.
2.  When it rains there is always something else to uncover in any size city or village.  Peel the layers and look inside.  Talk to the people and listen.  Byron Bay taught me to look beyond the surf culture and the beach and the nasty hostel.  I heard Sanskrit chanting and great blues guitar playing under those layers.
3.  Upon arriving in an unfamiliar place, drop your bag and go breathe.  Sitting still when I felt discombobulated (Lois!!) led me to interesting people that led me back to myself (Sara, Richard, Alison, Philomena, and the list goes on).
4. Take pictures with your memory.  My dad taught me that long ago when I went to Schefferville, but I had forgotten how important it is.  Look away from the lens of the camera and record the moment with your mind.  It is those pictures that will last a lifetime.  I will always carry the Blue Mountains with me and an 11 year old boy who taught me about art.  I will always see my feet balancing precariously on a surfboard for a fleeting moment before falling into the beautiful surf.  I will always see a moon and the stars shining brighter than ever over the surf of Magnetic Island and a certain pair of very blue eyes.  You get the picture...hahahaha, get it...the picture!
5.  Nothing compares to seeing a wild animal in its natural habitat.  I was not intended to feel joy or be entertained at the expense of the comfort or freedom of animals.  Whales and dolphins in the ocean, wallabies and their joeys in the mountains, kangaroos in the grasslands, lorikeets in the gum trees can fill you up for a lifetime.  Elderly chimpanzees in a cage, crocs being forced to open their mouths, dingo puppies being fed to boas have no place in providing entertainment for humans.
6.  Despite the issues that still exists, we should be proud of Canada and the provinces' willingness to negotiate with our indigenous people.  Other countries continue to struggle with blatant racism across the board from Joe on the street to the elected officials.  Our record can stand as an example.
7.  Ok, getting too heavy...it's the Pinot Noir I drank about an hour ago.
8.  Last one!  The thing I love most about my trip is that something is coming around every corner.  Two months was not nearly enough to see Australia, but not enough time to get tired of moving either.  Now, I'm in New Zealand and ready to push on for 5 weeks and Asia is just around the corner.
9.  OK, one more!  I really thought I'd be off on my own and leave it all behind, but the truth is that I miss you all so much, everyday, every moment.  I couldn't be more pleased.  Cheers, my peeps!
 

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