Memories, Dreams, Reflections

Guest Author Uncategorized

Today’s Guest Author is Ian, who has offered the following tale as his first thread-starter. Ian, thank you. Your wisdom has helped me so often, and your words today have given me refreshment and hope. I hope other readers have a similar experience.

(Photo credit: © Gernot Heiser and Trudy Weibel 2007)

Once, long ago, I met an old man at a billabong. I was there to catch a fat barramundi. He, to reflect on the loss of his wife. She had passed, peacefully, some time before. He never said when. It was me who assumed it was recent. It was me that assumed he was sad in his grief. He told me his story:

I always come to this place. As a boy, as a young fella. As a man. This waterhole is me. Memories, as deep as my soul and beyond, come to me here. Memories that give me the strength, not to lift a heavy rock, but to move the mountain. I see with a clarity that understands that the shadows of past can and must shed light on the future. I saw and felt none of this until I saw her.

I was sitting on the rock you’re on now. Like you, I too, was after a fat barramundi. I had more success than you’re going to have. The day was warm, balmy, a hint of breeze. The kind of day when leaves gently sing, lizards skitter about on their most urgent business, lethargic birds perch and doze and fat, sleepy barra leave the live bait to their fate. I must have drifted into a light, warm snooze, because a splash woke me. I thought maybe a big barra was on the prowl, but it was her.

Swimming. Naked.

Never before had I understood what the old women and men meant when they talked of the purity of beauty. The shining light of innocence. The strength of heart, the depth of soul. All this came to me in the first glance. I was overwhelmed. Emotions flooded to the fore. Most I understood, some I didn’t. All were necessary. I understood then that an ego that ensures a closed mind could never fill an empty heart. Only a light can do that. A bright light. A pure light.

I left her to her privacy. I went home. I was a changed man. I proposed to the girl I loved. We had a wonderful life and at times, together, or with the children, we spent many happy times here. I always waited, for just an extra couple of minutes before leaving, to see if the she’d appear. She never did.

I just wanted to thank her for showing me how strength can move a mountain, yet struggle with a rock. How battles can never be won with tactics and weapons alone. The heart, the soul, the essence of your quest are just as essential. How the gentlest of us can also be the strongest.

How can a glimpse of strength change a life? Simple.

If you have the strength to love and accept love honestly there are no mountains, no darkness and no fear.

A woman with red hair taught me that a long time ago.

Good luck.

(Photo credit: Nitmiluk Tours Pty Ltd)

715 thoughts on “Memories, Dreams, Reflections”

  1. Morgan Poll shows bounce for Government after Sattler
    by @independentaus
    Gary Morgan suggested the reason why the poll differed sharply from the Neilsen poll released last night ‒ which showed a 47% – 53% result in favour of the L-NP ‒ was that Neilsen polled before the full impact of the Howard Sattler interview with Julia Gillard and his subsequent sacking was known.
    http://www.independentaustralia.net/…/
    ============================================================

    thought it would be rather nice to be different

  2. MsGraceCollier Cleavage fact check
    by @NoFibs
    Personally, as a reader and viewer, this exercise has made me question Grace Collier as a genuine political commentator. She’s also not shy of the odd media stunt as in the James Bond style microphone in her bra episode.
    nofibs.com.au/…/

  3. GD..

    Sorry for delayed response ..went to bed after posting Ready Readers FIRST page of “Gillard Gorn!!” nonsense (couldn’t access second page last night for some reason)…

    I’m going to use it as part of my Twitter campaign once parliament rises …quite a list isn’t it? …yet there have been many more such articles Ready Reader hasn’t listed…

    Media bias? …what media bias?? 😉

  8. now does this look like http://www.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2006/04/12/1304WINDFARM_wideweb__470x249,0.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/licence-to-kill-parrots-a-wind-farm-anomaly/2006/04/12/1144521401684.html&h=249&w=470&sz=23&tbnid=MF82rMusAjzOYM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=170&zoom=1&usg=__qB6i3XoIPCcbukb3h2YpybuMROU=&docid=mmdMxxpVBB3J6M&sa=X&ei=RZm_UZPuA4ePiAe1s4G4Dg&ved=0CHYQ9QEwCg&dur=88a farm to you, the public are not allowed access
    conducted tours only ..
    been there many times even when my hearing was good could not hear a thing

  9. https://www.google.com.au/search?rlz=1T4LENP_enAU495AU495&q=wind%20turbines%20on%20office%20blocks%20hpbart&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hl=en&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=7Jm_UZXiBKWfiAfRqYHYDQ&biw=911&bih=337&sei=8Zm_Uf-oDomakAW32YHIDw#facrc=_&imgrc=FSRAcehXlrEqsM%3A%3Bl-7xI9nS4htcBM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.abc.net.au%252Freslib%252F200907%252Fr403313_1897479.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.abc.net.au%252Fnews%252Fstories%252F2010%252F07%252F11%252F2950380.htm%253Fsite%253Dhobart%3B804%3B840

    wind turbines on top of building
    mr jones woulnt like these all over Sydney city
    these building from what I read are self powering

  10. It was after Sattler, denese. That is the point.

    Apparently Nielsen was taken pretty well before that became publicly known, when the MSM was still on the “played the gender card” theme, while desperately claiming ‘nothing to see here’ over Menugate.

  11. Listening carefully to what some were saying, mostly men, it appears that I must not mention womens issues, as it upsets some of them. It appears the port dears do try to understand us women, and it is unfair of us not to appreciate that. It appears if we dare mention things that we say, we will no longer tolerated. it means we are attacking all men. It also appears, it means we hate men.

    So ladies, it appears we shoddily not hurt their fragile natures, accept that such issues are taboo, and go back to suffering in silence.

  12. “…………………

    4:03pm: The Senate has just passed a motion by Democratic Labor Party Senator John Madigan regarding gender selective abortion. (You may be familiar with Senator Madigan’s attempt to ban Medicare funding for gender selective abortions. A bill on that matter has been sent to a Senate committee which is due to report back next week.)

    A few minutes ago Labor and the Coalition voted in support of Senator Madigan’s motion which called on the Senate to, among other things, “condemn the practice of gender biased sex selection in abortion or infanticide whether in Australia or overseas”. The motion also noted recent work by United Nations bodies on the issue which i

    Of course the PM was terribly wrong to mention abortion. OK for religious nuts and far right males to do so.

    Similar moves in Tassie parliament, I also believe.

  13. Why do all males assume, that when women issues are raised, it is an attack on all males. Could it be guilty conscience. The men in blue ties was aimed at a a limited audience, Those sitting on the shadow bench.

    “….Yes, I’m a man, and I vote, and somewhere around 49% of the over 18 year old population shares those characteristics, so why would the Prime Minister set out to regularly antagonise us?..”

    http://www.ambitgambit.com/2013/06/18/im-a-man-and-i-vote/

    The only men being picked on, are the low life that hold such views, and feel free to say whatever they like abut the woman around them. Al we are asking, is the decent men speak up. Thankfully they are in the majpority. They know who they are.

  14. Is this really a acceptable reason for dumping a woman, who has reigned over a successful economy and introduced many need reforms, that many before her, where unable to achieve,.

    Surely men are better than this.

    “…………The latest opinion poll is a further blow to the once-great Labor party. Seems the PM’s repeated, far clumsier, attack on Tony Addott and ‘men in blue ties’ has caused Australian men to … spit the dummy..”

    http://www.henrythornton.com/blog.asp?blog_id=2599

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