A World Away

Right now I'm sitting in the Columbia Valley on the western side of the Rockies, staring out at snow covered mountains and huge evergreen trees.  It seems like it's been much longer than 3 months since I left Oz and returned home, to real life  :)  Right now, Australia feels like a whole world away and it's surreal to think that 4 months ago I was spending time with the Parishes, the Manns, and Anne and Jeremy, winding down my year in Oz.  I sit here, humble, grateful, a little sad, but happy at the same time!

First... back to Dubbo...

Mom and Dad left Sydney on November 3 and honestly, from that point to when Heather and the kids arrived, the time was spent laughing with my students, enjoying time with my friends, and doing "last things". 

With the weather warming, I decided to play hostess a bit more and had Manns, Parishes and Anne and Jeremy over for dinners. With Mom and Dad gone, it was hard to be in the house by myself as it just seemed a little too lonely. So, having friends over and spending time at their homes, really helped the time to pass.  I also felt so incredibly grateful for these wonderful, amazing people who came into my life and I was so happy to be spending some time with them before I had to leave.

Bridget and I spent a weekend in Newcastle with my Aussie brothers and sisters.  Bek had just finished uni and so we had to celebrate!  We had a lovely weekend hanging out by the water, enjoying coffees and walks on the beach, and some time together.  My Aussie family, as they have become, were so welcoming to me and they all embraced me with open arms.  They are already talking about a trip to see their Canadian sister and I really hope that they will.  I would love the chance to show them the same hospitality they did me.  The Manns are truly an incredible family and I feel blessed to be an honorary member  :)

School was so busy at this time with year end events, reports, preparing to move classrooms and so much more!  Chaos reined quite a bit, but then that's something that is a similarity to home - year ends are always crazy busy!!  We had field trips to the zoo and to the city council chambers, year end dance extravaganza, BBQs, and so much more!  Year end with the kids was a lot of fun as we took time to enjoy some Canadian Christmas traditions.... ok, not Canadian traditions, but traditions in my room... and to try some new ones.  We had a Polar Express Day when Santa even made a visit to our classroom! Instead of serving hot chocolate though, as the temps were in the 40s, we had chocolate milkshakes and watched the movie in our shorts and t-shirts.  A bit different from home for sure, but still fun! 

I made my last trip to Orange to say goodbye to Lynda and George, Bridget's sister and brother-in-law.  Lynda and George welcomed me into their home as if I was one of their own.  Again, this family never ceases to amaze me  :)  George was my personal bartender and cocktail mixer whenever I arrived.  Both Lynda and George taught me how to cook a new dish every time I visited and their door was always open and "my room" was always ready for me.  I hope that they too will make the trip to Canada soon :) 

This goodbye actually started a chain reaction of goodbyes and tears from that point on...

The last month was so busy and so full, that I started to feel like I should have filled other months more and spent more time with people.  Honestly though, I looked back in a notebook I had kept and out of 52 weekends, all but 5 had been busy doing something, travelling somewhere.  I kept wishing for a bit more time with my Aussie friends, but at the same time I was so excited for Heather and the kids to come and wanted to time to pass more quickly. 

Anne and Jeremy

Bridget and Geoff

Bek, Vic, Joe, Bridget, Dave, and Kate

Newcastle