Sunday 24 February 2008

poetry, plans, pacification, pals and preparations.

(and just a little bit of alliteration)

I was asked yesterday by the delightful annie if I missed the open blue skies of home. I have to say it really chimed with the conversations I have been having with Pr. C-Dub and Babyman this half term holiday (oh lack of routine, I shall miss you tomorow). Chimed b/c we have begun our countdown and, being good mother, I have started preparing my babies for the Great Trip Home (GTH for short).


As the date draws nearer this will include keeping them awake and hyped for 24 hours at a time, feeding them completely tasteless, nutritionally crubbish food in difficult to open packaging, complete with useless cutlery, and jamming their legs against a board. But for now I am content with opening discussions about how things are different 'at home'.


Driving down to meet my very lovely, real imaginary friend Missus Moogsmum we passed through lots of rolling farmland and hills. Being Engerland that comes with windy, twisty roads, something there are few of in Australia. Except here.



We also talked about how the colours are different in Australia. Yes we do have the normal ones just like everywhere else; it is the natural ones just lying around which have that ' I live in a hot country' kind of look. Almost like it gets so hot they just can't be bothered to attain deep tones. (and before the letters to the editor kick in I know we have lovely jewel tones, etc, etc but y'all know what I mean).




Like so many Australians I love the Dorethea McKellar poem and have come to greater appreciate the early stanzas more the longer I live in the UK .



'Strong love of field and coppice,
of green and shaded lanes,
of ordered, wooded gardens
is flowing in your veins.


(please excuse if it is not 100% correct but I am doing this from memory)


Strong love of grey blue distance,
brown streams and soft dim skies,
I know but cannot share it.
My love is otherwise.


I love a sunburnt country,
a land of sweeping plains,
of ragged mountain ranges.
Of drought and flooding rains.



Do you know, before I moved to this hilltop town I did not even know what a coppice was? So I definitely wasn't able to share in the love of it, strong or otherwise. But now I do and again I kind of do however to answer your question Annie - yes I do sometimes miss the open, blue skies of home.


37 comments:

  1. Of course you miss it - it's part of who you are, isn't it? It's very exciting that you're going to take your sproglets 'back home' - I bet they can't wait. x

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  2. That's a lovely post Trash - you must be really looking forward to going home even though one of your homes is now here. The more I hear about Australia the more I would like to visit it one day!

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  3. oh Trash, and where exactly will the GTH take you? Wanna pop in for a cake?

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  4. Matilda, when are you off for a waltz? I have a little something to send to you and don't want to do it whil you are away...

    xx

    ps: smiling to think of the crazy accent your kids must have!

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  5. Have a great trip. We used to live "over there" for a bit. I loved the Great Ocean Road, Bright has good colours in the autumn too, and the skies and sea are so blue ...

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  6. Love your dictionary....especially blurry! Glad you will be going home while its still summer over there. Good luck on your journey.COlleen just back to the US from almost 4 yrs in South Africa so I understand missing home.

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  7. How exciting!!! 24 hours trapped on a plane with small children sounds like sooooo much fun!!!!!

    I'm sure those little Trashes will have the best time with your Mum. It sounds like you have the preparations well and truly in hand - liking the sound of the board to restrict leg movement - quite quite ingenious :)

    The in-laws 'did' the great ocean road trip - being unexciting folk they didn't quite paint the picture that your fab photo does!!!

    Can you blog whilst you are there or do we have to miss you lots?
    xxx

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  8. What a great post. I'm glad I asked the question and helped inspire such an interesting post. Or is that because I just love hearing about our lovely country so much. The plane trip doesn't sound all that great, but hey, it will be worth it.

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  9. One of my dearest friends from childhood has just spent the past year living in Perth. I had so hoped to be able to go and visit while she was in Oz, but alas, she returns to her native England tomorrow morning, so I've missed that chance. Some day, I will make it to the other side of the world though... I hope this GTH went smoothly and delightfully for you! (First time here and haven't yet rooted about in your archives to catch up - plan to do that later today once I've deposited the kiddo at summer camp for the day!)

    Cheers!

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  10. I love this line: "Almost like it gets so hot they just can't be bothered to attain deep tones."

    It must be quite different going from Australia to a hilltop town in England.

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  11. Happy SITS Day. I've enjoyed your blog.

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  12. I love that poem.

    I have wanted to visit Australia since I first read a series of books on the colonization of Australia by William Stuart Long.

    I now have all 13 books in the series. Just fascinating.

    One day I will travel to the land down under.

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  13. I have an aunt from Australia and ever since I was a little girl and could understand what different countries were I have wanted to visit.

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  14. Loved the poem! Congrats on being featured today!

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  15. Keep up the wonderful blogging! You sound like a poetic and insightful person.

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  16. I love, love, love how you memorized this lovely poem of home. I REALLY need to go to Australia in a big way some day. Soon.

    And I would loooove and imaginary real friend with the name Missus Moogsmum. I think I'll start today.

    Thanks so much for sharing. I loved your thoughts.

    Happy SITS day!

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  17. You can never go wrong with alliteration. Okay, so MAYBE you can, but it's fun regardless!

    Happy SITSing!

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  18. Lovely poem! I get the sense that you are a very creative, free spirit.

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  19. ahh...someday. My husband and I would love to visit Australia and pick out our own little slice. How lucky you are to have lived in both places.

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  20. Very lovely blog! Happy SITS day! :)

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  21. Australia seems like such a magical place - I really hope to visit there some day.

    Thanks for sharing the poem!

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  22. You have me dreaming of Englad and Australia with this post. I have always wanted to visit both! I am from the South in the U.S., and I noticed that you used the word "y'all." That word is a staple here, spoken in our southern drawl!

    Congratulations on your SITS day!

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  23. Happy SITS Day! The poem and your insights are beautiful.

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  24. You are very lyrical and creative, I'm glad I "met" you through SITS.

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  25. your posts are so delightful to read. congratulations on your SITS day! :)

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  26. When I moved from SLC to Seattle, I had no idea how much I would miss my blue sky!!

    I am back and cherrish each day of it!!

    great post, thanks for sharing the poetry!

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  27. this one had me laughing! i love your posts - your abbreviations and nicknames. Thanks for the laughs! Congrats on being the featured blogger for today!

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  28. Someday, someday...I will visit...

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  29. Sounds wonderful.

    Congrats on your SITS Day enjoy it.

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  30. Happy SITS day! You have some great posts - I've enjoyed reading!

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  31. You have a wonderful talent of expressing your thoughts with words.

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  32. It's so hard to be away from home. But I do have to ask... what IS a coppice?

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  33. I would love to visit Austrailia one day. But I am with Michelle...what IS a coppice??! (I'm a silly American! LOL!)

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  34. Lovely. It really is true that there is no place like home. I'm only 700 miles away from where I started - but I still miss it.

    And I would love to visit Australia someday too! My girlfriend just spent three months there on sabbatical with her husband - visiting his home and family there.

    Happy SITS day!

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  35. Yes, as much as I love the US and my time here. I really miss home, in my case NZ. It's part of my psyche. Part of me....

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  36. I would someday like to visit those open blue skies...

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  37. Beautiful! I could get lost in the imagery of that poem!

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