Store Your Happy Memories Here:

[Croix]

Dear All~

What this place is for:
This thread is a tool, a resource, and also I guess a dash of entertainment.

I’ve found that when life is grim that sometimes thoughts of past happiness can create a chink of light in the grey overwhelming press of down. They can help occupy the mind with lighter reflections.

With that in view I invite people to set down a brief passage describing some happy event they look back to with fondness and peace.

They - and others too - can then return to it when they feel the need to glean a little warmth.

It is not a place for gloomy or dire tales, those can go elsewhere.

What to do:
Just set out, as simply as you like, your recollection of some past experience that means something good to you, something you enjoyed, something from safe times.

It can be, like my story below, anything – from an account of visiting grandparents to simply cooking and eating a melted-cheese sandwich in a favorite kitchen – you get to choose.

How to do it:
Write. Write enough so someone else can feel the mood, know what happened, find the goodness. (stop at 2,500 characters please!)

Grammar, syntax, spelling, punctuation are not compulsory, just write as you can – the only important thing is the content - not literary merit. Short or long - it does not matter.


I hope you enjoy, contribute and find a little distraction here when you need it.

Croix

[Eagle Ray]

MK and Croix, I very much agree about that powerful togetherness of choirs and how uplifting that can be.

Dools, I loved hearing about your friend’s pet duck she took on drives and to go swimming. Animals can be the best companions. It would be so interesting if your cats did join in doing yoga with you. I have a yoga mat that is somewhat neglected too.

 I’m about to head out from a town I stopped in for a bite to eat and explore nearby lakes. I’m staying at a caravan park an extra night to avoid driving in to bad weather going home. I’ll make some more good memories this afternoon as I explore the surrounding nature areas.

[Croix]

Dear ER (and any eavesdropping puddy tats)~

It sounds like you are having a lovely time away, and seeing all the things that do you good. I hope you observe all sorts of interesting things at the lakes.

I think it is very wise to consider driving conditions and if you can afford the time to stay longer that probably will give you more opportunities for nature and photography.

Now I hate to say this, however I have a suspicious nature. In your absence MK, Grandy and all the rest have been quietly well behaved, in fact everything has been downright peaceful!  I wonder is that means that you are in fact the scurrilous mastermind behind all the shenanigans?

Croix

[Eagle Ray]

Dear Croix,

Drat! You have learned of my mischievous endeavours. But I do believe MK and her sidekick LRC are quite the troublemakers too 😉 And Grandy may be up to something with that locomotive of hers. I wonder what buffoonery I’ve learnt from my trip? Probably the most mischievous bird I’ve met has been the yellow-throated miner. They are noisy rascals creating mayhem from dawn to dusk. I grew very fond of them though and actually almost had tears of sadness when I heard them the morning I was leaving the previous town I was in. It doesn’t take long for me to form attachments with places and living creatures.

Tonight I have been enjoying going through my photo images from this trip. I was so focussed flicking through them on the back of my camera I lost track of time. So had a very late dinner in the camp kitchen heating up my sweet potato and coconut soup. I’m now sipping a cup of rooibos tea and listening to the rain outside. The rain mostly held off for me today. But I saw the most beautiful sight of curtains of rain illuminated by the sun passing over a nearby mountain range. I also saw a huge wedge-tailed eagle atop a tree this morning.

When I got home late this afternoon several species of birds were feeding noisily and enthusiastically on a eucalypt in the caravan park. I had to try and get some photos but it meant pointing it above a motor home under the tree. A fellow came out from the motor home with a look of what are you doing? I quickly explained I was photographing the birds and then he joined me looking at them. Then the lovely lady who runs the park joined us and we all had such a nice chat.

It has been such a great trip for me and confirmed for me how much of a nomad and explorer I am by nature. My energy levels and stamina have increased over the trip. I seem to have needed less downtime with each day and kept going all day today. I have lovely memories of such a variety of beautiful birds. I also got to see semi-arid landscapes which I feel a real affinity with for some reason. They were a mix of delicate eucalypts and other plants in the woodlands, granite outcrops, salt marshes and lakes. I’m now in wetter country that is kind of like a crossover point with the drier country, hence the vegetation is different at each end of this town.

So I feel happiness tonight in the memories of my trip and so glad I did it.

[Patches63]

About 1 hour drive and I’m at the coast and have various different locations to choose from to sit and look over the waves.  My favourite spot where I can sit for hours

sitting in the car in the car park looking towards the ocean, the strong wind blowing outside. the waves breaking as they get closer to shore.  The white caps as the waves come and go.  Off to my left is the land on that side of the bay.  Off to my right in the distance is the lighthouse that is currently standing still and quiet.  In between the two is where my eyes focus and the horizon.  After awhile I see something small and black moving on the horizon.  A small red boat appears from no where on my left and heads toward the horizon.  The small boat eventually becomes a dot in the distance and then too small for me to see.  The small black item has increased in size and is a ship.  As the ship gets closer I see more and more of its details including the huge number of metal cargo containers onboard.  The little red boat is no where to be seen.  Off in the distance on the horizon another black item appears, another cargo boat coming through the heads.

[Eagle Ray]

I loved reading this description Patches. I love being by the ocean and I have a favourite spot too where I can sit for hours. Thank you for sharing your experience.

[mmMekitty]

Thank you, Patches

Makes me want to make time & take time to go to the beach & I would love to walk in the waves. Maybe i'd go in as far as my chest ... if it's not too cold for me. But I'm not actually (only pretending) to surf.

Hugzies

mmMekitty

[sbella02]

Reading everyone's happy memories is so nice. It's a gentle reminder to enjoy the little moments in life, isn't it?

Patches, your memory about the ocean is beautiful. There's something so calming about nature.

I have many to share but one that comes to mind is a night where I was hanging out late with two of my closest friends, and we had driven to this playground. We were climbing up this huge frame of ropes and reciting lines from movies. It was really fun, and we have lots of videos and photos from that night. Such a simple memory but so joyful.

SB

[Croix]

Dear All~

I'm sitting inside in the lounge room this evening, with a wood fire and Sumo Cat toasting in front of it.  The wind is howling outside and that takes me back to when I was a lad in Wales.

We'd walk along the promenade of a stormy evening with wind blowing us in all directions and the seagulls ashore and sheltering. The waves scrunching on the shingle beach and gurgling in a clatter of pebbles as they receded.

I know when bedtime came I'd be tucked up with a hot water bottle, in the dark listening to the pine trees thrashing outside the window. I'd shiver with delight to be so snug.

Croix

[Croix]

Dear All~

New Year's Eve

Now this is something I've been doing for over 35 years, first with Mrs C who passed away and now my lovely Mrs C who has put up wiht me for 25 yours. They (and assorted animals) have really enjoyed the experience.

I know I have talked of this before, however it is a big token of continuity in our lives, and at the same time a reminder there is so much in the world we never normally get to see.

I place a plastic tarpaulin in the back of the car and whatever the current animals are pile in the back. This year it was just Foxy dog, who has to be on a lead otherwise has a tendency to take over the  driving.

We take thermoses of hot water, coffee and biscuits and a bowl wiht cold water for Foxy. And set off. It takes an hour, which means we leave home at 10pm and drive though the night on deserted roads. This year like many there are few vehicles, it is almost like we are the only people on earth. A funny feeling.

Arrival is via a very rough track that was last graded around WW2 and then forgotten, so we take it very slow, weaving between the potholes.

The beach itslef is just as we like it - deserted, so we let Foxy out, who thinks there must be a tempting rabbit somewhere and dashes off, we settle down to have a picnic.

There is a moon, reflecting on the water, the swish of the waves expending themselves on the long flat rippled sand, and a breeze coming into the land. There are piles of kelp with their own distinctive odor.

Foxy returns and demands water (and a biscuit).

Then we sit looking over an estuary to a city. We talk of consequential things until midnight. Then hte fireworks start. Seemly put on by the City Municipal Council just for our benefit. Huge starbursts, fountains and sparkles, lots of color. We hear the bang delayed about 5 seconds, but it is muted and does not upset Foxy.

By the time 10 minutes is up we have seen everything possible, and admired the ingenuity of the people that set it all up.

Time to pack up had head home. Foxy snores in the back and steams up the rear windows.

Croix

.

[Eagle Ray]

Dear Croix,

I just love that description of your New Year's Eve ritual. I am often drawn myself to go to the places a bit more remote. What you describe is like finding that peaceful remoteness while still being connected, even if at a distance, to the New Year celebrations and fireworks.

Being in such a location gives you space for reflection, to speak of those consequential things you mention. It is a wonderful way to reflect on one's life and the things that feel important, and a meaningful time to do so as the new year turns and we continue on our journey.

I love your descriptions of Foxy too who no doubt loves this adventure to the estuary. I live very close to an estuary myself and I can easily walk there. The main town is this side of the river and at night when you look across it is mostly pitch black on the other side. Sometimes it is incredibly still and the moon rises over the water casting its magical reflection. One morning, when visiting this town several years before I lived here, I was walking down by the estuary just before dawn. I noticed there were thousands upon thousands of smallish silver fish leaping out of the water. It was a truly magical phenomenon. I find living close to wildness is important to me and I frequently encounter wonderful creatures and natural phenomena down here. I am very grateful for it.

Thank you for sharing your lovely memory,

ER