A belated Merry Christmas and a very happy new year to all!It didn't seem like the happiest Christmas period for the world at large. We lost more celebrities - I know we'll lose more every year and it's not like I actually knew any of them, but some of them made a big impact. I was quite the George Michael fan once upon a time. And Carrie Fisher? Come on, that's a big deal to a Star Wars mad family!
Personally though, we had a lovely Christmas. I had the day off, which meant we could do the big family get-together, with some of my family driving up from Brisbane to join us at our house. We had a beautiful day - and it rained! It was actually a very cool day, almost like the 'real' Christmas you see on the postcards from far above the equator.
My Mum and sister stayed on for a few days afterwards and we girls treated ourselves ... we went for a nostalgic drive out to a little town we used to live in, called Kilkivan. The only person missing was my brother, who had other commitments and couldn't join us.
My memories of living in Kilkivan (pronounced with the emphasis on the middle syllable: Kill-KEE-ven) could fill a book. We moved there from Brisbane when I was about 11 years old; my mum and stepfather, me and my younger sister and brother.
Talk about a culture shock! There we were, stuck in this tiny little hick town with no big shop, or cinema, or ice cream truck, or anything else city kids expect to have. In fact, one of the first places we lived in while there was a rented house on a farm outside town. No close neighbours (apart from the farmer and his wife) and we had to catch a bus to school. But we adapted and I think we loved it! (Admittedly, I'm not sure if I'm just remembering it fondly ... we may have complained bitterly at the time.)
We kids were allowed to be as involved with the farm as we wanted to be and it was the best adventure. Feeding animals, collecting eggs, moving hay bales, rides on the tractor.
We moved around a bit in those first couple of years: after that farm there was another house on a large property, then another. Then Mum's marriage broke up, and we moved into town, as she didn't drive. The four of us became a really close unit; really, each other's best friends. We were in town for about another 4 or 5 years, I think? Again, moving from house to house, but each one holds special memories for us.
Not every memory from Kilkivan was great, there were plenty of downs along the way. Sometimes I remember the awful bullying I used to get from the other kids in my class at school. Mostly though, I am transported back to the feelings I had about living in the area. It's not just about the school ... and, in reality, we loved living in that little town. Unlike the situation for kids today, when I went home from school the bullying didn't follow me (no social media!), and I learned to 'switch off' to a certain extent.
I made the most of my time away from school; I would read, or write fiction, or do stuff with my sister and brother - we would walk around town, go down to the creek, explore bushwalking trails. We could go anywhere. I think the fact that we had to entertain ourselves helped me to deal with the bullying, or whatever was bothering me at any given time. I had to develop my imagination. What else can you do in a small town?
Eventually we all left Kilkivan to live in bigger places, but going back there again was a real treat - it was a great way to end 2016. I hope we get to do it again sometime and spend a full day.
May you all have a very happy 2017 ... I hope you make the effort this year to revisit a place you loved while growing up.
N.B. This post has been heavily edited, so it's not boring. Really, I could have gone on about my memories for MUCH longer!
