Tuesday 7 January 2020

What a Welcome to 2020 ....... !!!!!


I've been missing in action for the past several months.....but the disaster that is facing us all here in 
Australia has nudged me to get back to doing the things that I need/enjoy doing....The start of 2020 has been confronting for us all here with the devastation facing so many people and the catastrophic loss of bushland and wildlife is too overwhelming to even start to comprehend.....the constant barrage of terrible news and heart breaking images facing this country is all encompassing and has stopped me in my tracks since New Years Eve. ..... we were booked to go to Mallacoota on the 4th January for a week ...and had holidayed in Bermagui late October and visited the beautiful town of Cobargo....so difficult to wrap your head around the destruction.  .... After 7 days of disastrous news I realise I need to look for the positive and simple things in life to reassure myself that the world as we know it is not over and life will return to our  landscape in time.. ... surely climate change doubters will now realise that urgent action is needed and we all need to work together towards global solutions and also greatly assisting our communities affected by this horrifying crisis.

I need to share some of my favourite images since my last post .... before the world turned on it's head months ago and bushfires began devouring our beautiful country.  My husband retired at the end of August so life somehow got very busy !!

OCTOBER 2019
Beachfront at Bermagui...our caravan park on the hill at right.....we sat on the bluff and watched the whales migration as they travelled past towards Eden.
Daisy on the beach

The lovely town of Tilba ...... also came close to being burnt still on watch on act . 

As always a green tea.....shared with my man at Tilba
NOVEMBER
November saw us return back home and while we were only away for 12 nights the garden had grown out of sight.....Spring was with us and she had made her beautiful presence felt in our garden. 
The girls out in the garden after being locked in their enclosure while we were away.

Little spring bouquet from the plants that grew in the garden ......I love it.
 We shared a lovely weekend away with friends and took our caravan to Daylesford......the caravan park was so amazing...full of peacocks which I admit I had never seen up so close...they were incredibly tame and so beautiful...I even loved the raucous screech they make at all hours....

Peacocks are truly one of the most amazing things on the planet.
Awesome creatures....I was besotted with them.

Pretty cuppa .....at Trentham 
DECEMBER
December saw us take a road trip to Swan Hill to see my cousin (son of my auntie who passed away in January 2018).....we stopped at Kyneton on the way and I was charmed by the wall mural that had been installed in the town as testament to those who perished in the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires...ironic really, little did I realise that 10 years later here we are going through it all again .

The beautiful memorial in Kyneton....leaf tiles decorated with remnants of the carnage.

They have rebuilt and they did recover and YES we do remember....Hope for the future

Leaves all individually decorated with reminders ...beautiful !!
"the transformation of lost personal possessions into art".


Stopped at Sea Lake on the way home from Swan Hill.... haven't been back since my auntie passed away....the town has a beautiful mural in the main street and the local silo has been painted creating a tourist attraction that is revitalising the town....so good to see.

Huge wall mural in the main street of Sea Lake

The Sea Lake silos.....beautiful artwork attracting the tourists. 
 December also saw us attend the 21st birthday of lovely Abbey.....the daughter of our much loved friend who passed away five years ago....so nice to see her all grown up.  

Celebrating Abbey's 21st......Her mum would be very proud.
Can't go past December without a little Christmas Cheer.....our little g-girl looking very festive.  

Our Christmas angel all dressed up and ready for Christmas Day
Like most families ours has a few challenges to face as the year begins...some exciting new changes and challenges and some stressful and uncertain....but we have a very strong family unit that will see us through whatever 2020 presents us with.  

8 comments:

  1. Loved seeing your photos and glad you weren't in Malacoota at the time of the fires. It's heartbreaking for all. The AFTER artwork piece is an amazing tribute and reading about the words and story behind it was touching..thank you for sharing that, hard to believe that was 10 years ago. Glad you are all safe. Kathy

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks Kathy ...We are in difficult times, hope to eventually get back to Mallacoota to support the locals.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Lovely to see you blogging again. I am glad to hear that you are safe, I have been thinking about all the Australian bloggers I have connected with other the years. I cannot begin to imagine how devastating the fires are for all of you wherever you live.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's been a very difficult time and still ongoing...the human impact is terrible but the wildlife and vegetation impact is just unimaginable. Thankfully we have had some rain but the country needs lots more.

      Delete
  4. How amazing it must have been to watch the whales migration. Australia has stayed in my prayers. Hoping rains will come, and things will shift for the better very soon.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. thanks Laurie ...we've had rain yesterday and hopefully lots more up until the weekend.

      Delete
  5. OMG, I just found your blog through my friend Kate at "I live, I love, I craft, I am me" and saw where you live. I'm basically next door. I'll have a little look at your blog later, as lunch time is nearing. I noticed on this post that you had pics of Bermagui, a part of the coast we know well having lived in Nowra for many years. Smoke is finally clearing here for the time being, but no rain as yet. Have a lovely weekend & take care.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Susan , small world. My brother lives in Tomerong , a small town on the coast just outside Nowra. :-)

      Delete