Living in the top end

Today it rained 75ml in an hour and there's another big one on it's way. I seriously thought the rain was going to come through the roof and as much as you think you're prepared for a storm you never are.....  Not much anyone could do about it since the town is practically deserted at this time of year.  Much to our parents despair, we've decided to stay in again this year and take advantage of the 7 weeks school holiday to access the many vacant beaches and waterfalls in exchange for the bustly city life.

So why would anyone want to live up here? I mean, there's no shops, no cinema, no 'coffee and cake'.  Hell, we hardly even get internet access and our mobiles are dead within 2min of town and thats only if you have a 3G phone.... but that's another story.  We have a small Woolies but she's only properly stocked when the barge comes in once a week. 

I'll tell you why....

Last week I took my two 'rats' up to a local beach camping for a few days while their dad drove 12hrs across the cape to restock supplies before the full wet comes and the roads all close.  I was hoping to see the turtles hatch again.  My daughter (4) drove up the 250cc quad with her brother (3) on the back, exploring the beaches for 'treasure'.  She wasn't gone long before she came back announcing to our group of mates that she'd found a turtle.  We all thought "yeah right" considering she was so calm about it.  She insisted so I got on with her and she took me back to where she saw it about 100m up the beach and there, low and behold, was a baby turtle.  It had been pecked by a bird and suffering from exposure in the hot sun (about 40C). The sole tracks from a small hole about a metre away. We put it in the ocean but it was clear it wasn't going to last much longer (let alone if it continued swimming in circles like live bait....)  "Bubbles" went to heaven shortly afterwards but continued to play with her in a "Weekend at Bernies" fashion for the proceeding 6 hours.  Bubbles went swimming in his own bucket-pool, swinging on the hammock, they sat together on a log and watched the sunset over the water, was force-fed some pieces of mullet and then was wrapped up in her blanket on her swag ready for bed.  Her eyes were closed albeit 5mins before Bubbles miraculously "walked back to his mother in the night"..... The next day hundreds more turtles burst their way out of that same clutch and made it into the water to begin their long journey where only a small number will ever return.

It's these types of experiences that we want our children to have before they grow into adults and lose their imaginations. A place where kids can be wild and free, where everyone knows them and has their back, where they are safe to adventure and explore, where they can take risks and grow into confident young people. 

There will always be time for the bustling life of city dwellers, shops and video games.  Its the experiences we have now that shape us into who we will become.  It's extra-ordinary living!