Robs Blog #3 - The Weekend

The Weekend.

Midnight and the weary head is finally rested after a lovely curry and conversation with Robyn and Annie.  I made one of my coconut, black mustard and fenugreek dishes and we entertained our  health workforce.  The conversation flowed about the old days, and how things were before amalgamation.  Robyn is an amazing nurse, she has lived and worked a life time in New Zealand, before living and working a lifetime in the Kimberley, before living and working a lifetime through Africa.  She has been in the Torres for the best part of 17 years, with her companion Coconut the clinic dog.  How one woman can fit 4 whole careers into one lifetime, I will have no idea, but she is some sort of superhuman, and somewhat an enigma up in the Central Islands.

My morning started when Amy stirred around 7.  Not early but it seemed like it after our late night.  Amy and I donned our reef shoes, a knife, and a bucket and hit the low tide reef.  We spent a good couple of hours on the coral pottering around the bommies, and rocks.  She found a beautiful starfish which reminded us of something that might be found atop a Christmas tree.  Back to the flat at 9ish (who knows, clocks tend to be non-existent or unimportant) for some kaikai (breakfast / food), when Phillip a 10 year old lad, and his friend came by the house, to collect Ben.  They were off hunting flat fish with rubber propelled spears.  Deadly!!!

The hunters returned with shovel nose Rays/ sharks.  Filleted, and dressed with olive oil, garlic and lemon, they made a great lunch, and fuelled us for our afternoon adventures.  The tide was coming in so we packed up the snorkel gear, and hit the Jetty /boat ramp. I can swim in that luke warm, crystal clear water for hours and hours…I am glad I had a shirt on, because the sun (eve through the cloud cover) can bite.  The afternoon melted into the evening in no time at all.  A walk on the beach was a nice late afternoon activity, and we feel so blessed to have this experience to share together.  Fishing tonight was fruitless, and our protein component of dinner was looking like it wasn’t going to happen until some nice bloke walked up and gave us two good size fish.  Just like that!!  We felt so honored, and the generous local disappeared as fast as he came, neither asking nor expecting anything in return.  These folk are on a different wavelength to the rest of Australia, and every day is a new lesson in culture differences among our population.

Judith Duram wrote “We are one, but we are many”, and today was just another example of just how true that was.  Tomorrow, we have opportunity to attend Ilan Church, and be blessed all over again with a message of hope, love, patience and grace.  The full gravity of the decision to bring family here is just starting to be realized, and to watch them, adjust to differences, and feel the presence of humanity is a wonderful gift for me.  To those Dads out there; Happy Fathers Day for tomorrow.  If for what ever reason you cant be with your Father, or if you are a Father and for what ever reason cant be with your kids, please know that you have an opportunity to talk to “Our Father” and know that you are loved.

From 9 :45’’ Degrees south, I say Yawo.