Almanac Life: Dawning Realisations

 

 

The summer holidays have come to an end and for me that means gearing up for the return-to-school craziness; juggling work, parenting and study, while trying to find those precious few minutes to write and edit with some consistency. Most writers I know are doing this dance on a daily basis, bemoaning the fact that there are never enough hours in the day. Yet we plough on, because the need to write is relentless.

 

During the summer  this year, I added a layer of complexity to already-stretched time resources. We got a puppy. Cue the jokes about pandemic purchasing, but he had been a long-awaited addition to the family. Of course, he is an adorable bundle of legs, floppy ears and waggy cuteness—exacerbated by the fact that his stomach is almost brushing the ground. You see, Dash Kelly is a dachshund. This little bundle of joy may be small, but has managed to throw the whole family back into that newborn phase of parenting: crying through the night, toileting issues and early-morning rises. Memories I had tried to push into the recesses of my mind as my youngest starts school.

 

 

 

 

Fortunately, there is a pay-off to these early rises, and it’s not just watching his early-morning antics. I also get to experience summer’s dawn skies for the first time in quite a few years. A morning coffee outside with Dash’s inquisitive little snuffles, while the other family members sleep away the morning, has become my new routine. The sky is painted in a palette of blush and orange each morning. After sweltering nights, where the sheets have been caught around your legs and sleep has been fitful, the cool of the morning is a pleasant relief; the scent of the air is fresh and clean—wet soil with hints of eucalyptus. In the morning light, the raucous call of the kookaburras brings a smile to my face and a bark from Dash. It is the quintessential Australian sound, which I hadn’t realised I’d missed until it broke the silence of the morning.

 

The mornings have been a balm to the hectic nature of life, and reminded me to be thankful for our home in rural Victoria, rather than being surrounded by city noise. We are all back into the classroom tomorrow, in these uncertain times. A world where classroom air is filtered and RATs are not rodents. There is so little that we can be sure of each day in this changeable world. But what I will take into the school year is my new-found appreciation for early mornings and the necessity to carve out time to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard, as it may be). Both will hold me in good stead for a year of more balance and serenity than I might otherwise have had.

 

 

 

 

To read more of Nicole Kelly’s Almanac posts click HERE.

 

 

Nicole Kelly is a writer who lives in country Victoria. Her novel Lament was released in October 2020. Visit www.hawkeyebooks.com.au/lament/ to order your copy or you can visit www.hawkeyebooks.com.au/nicole-kelly to contact her. You can also follow her on Twitter @ruralvicwriter

 

 

 

 

 

 

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