The Ragtag Daily Prompt today is Posh, meaning high end. Interesting to note the word comes from Romani language, too. I didn’t know this before! It makes my post today more meaningful to me.
A few months ago I had an unexpected wake up call regarding my health. It made me reassess my life and priorities. I realised we work towards a future, forgetting about ‘the now’. As I waited for my results (by the way were all clear), I did not want to share my concerns with my colleague, so I enjoyed the trip as if it was my last one. It made me savour every moment. I travelled light.
As it turned out over dinner we talked about books and she recommended Paul Kalanithi’s ‘When Breath Became Air’. I found the book in the airport bookshop on the following trip and started to read it during the flight. As I turned the pages, the fragility of life as I know it, felt palpable in my hands. I promised myself the words, “….some day …” would not be part of my vocabulary unless I made active plans for that day to eventuate. I came back from my trip and booked a short trip to the Coral Coast.
I fly over the Coral Coast in Western Australia, look down on the stunning seascape and yearn to visit, “some day” and most of all, the tiny airport in Shark Bay is where I wanted to disembark. Now I’ve heard others who choose to fly Etihad and gush about the luxury of Dubai Airport. Not me. I wanted to experience disembarking at Shark Bay airport.
There is just a cyclone fence that separates the tarmac from the airport. I’ve been on flights where the co-pilot stepped out and helped unload the luggage. Everyone here is, “mate”. Give me this over luxury any day!
This is the arrival lounge. It is quite possible there was a water bottle dispenser nearby, and some toilets, but that was it.
Arrival/Departure lounge. That’s it!
To say this is a tin shed is adding glamour to the structure. Posh, it is not! But, I wouldn’t want to see this changed for the world. I love this airport!
At the airport I met another passenger who was travelling to the same hotel as me so we started chatting as we waited for the car to pick us up. She was from New Mexico and doing a quick tour of Western Australia. I was impressed with her ingenuity of researching the areas she wanted to visit. She had avoided the big tourist icons in Sydney and Melbourne to visit the lesser known in the other side of the world. I, on the other hand, had heard about Shell Beach and the dolphins at Monkey Mia but never found the time to visit. To be in the same place at the same time was a logistically challenging exercise for both of us. But, we, two gypsies at heart, found ourselves here and determined to enjoy the experience. Unfortunately the high winds forced the cancellation of her dive tour, and as I had hired a car, we shared the cost and did some sightseeing together.
I left Shark Bay after a brief break feeling I had been on a month’s holiday. It is a 8-10 hour drive from my home in the city. Next time I’m determined to drive up here. My schedule will just have to accommodate that “some day”.
Until next time
As always
a dawn bird
I arrived in Monkey Mia with a travelling companion on a perfect, picture postcard day.
I noticed the speaker kept one hand in pocket and the other held a tiny microphone as she explained the history, ending with a firm warning, no touching the dolphins. As she started her spiel, the dolphins raced in from the open sea.
They lined up for feeding! Yes, queued up!
What do they make of us! Look at the ‘knowingness’ in that eye!
The feeding is strictly minimal, more like a small snack.
And, when excited hands miss their mark, the dolphin scans the sandy floor, with one eye wide open, the other shut.
I watched one get away and slip under the jetty. It swam out to the space between the crowds and a small pier. Then I saw a little girl break away too from her family to watch the lone dolphin. The dolphin swam back and forth in the small space, while the audience of one watched on bemused.
But this moment, between girl and dolphin, certainly made me smile.
Sometimes when fragile, we all need something strong and steady to lean on.
Even flowers unfurl in the faintest sunlight, so be generous with yours.
We all bloom at different times.
Simplicity is best.
This is Kovu. He is a chocolate labrador. To say we are all smitten is putting it mildly. I could not get enough photographs!
We squealed in whispers. “Oh! look at those soft ears!”, “What big paws he has for a pup!”, “Oh, look, he just turned over!”. Everything about him was a magic moment.
Sunrise, Esperance Bay, Western Australia
Sunset, The Fascine, Carnarvon, Western Australia
Full moon, Wheatbelt, Western Australia
A cloud of little corellas, home, Western Australia
The wedgetail eagles were everywhere. This was a juvenile. The adult wing tip span can be up to 9 ft across. They are magnificent in flight.
I left the grey and wet of winter in Perth, to winter in the outback. Warm 18 degrees celsius by day and a brrrr 2 degrees at night. The hospitality at one hotel was interesting. “Dinner is from 6-7 pm. Come early so we can go home early!” was a no-fuss welcome. Despite this, the dinner was delicious. 
In the silence, the oneness with nature, was an embrace like no other. 
We enjoyed the huge vistas. We explored and wandered over rocks and gullies. We stumbled upon a field of white quartz. It looked like water had gone through this part with some force. It was stunning.
A fuzzy mauve stain in the red dirt caught my eye from across the road. I walked up to it and found the most exquisite, tiny flowers growing in the harshest country.
Those who know me, know I love the philosophy of Marie Kondo, the Japanese declutter queen. She says, “People cannot change their tidying habits without changing their thinking”. This is true. Change can be achieved, mindfully. It fits in with three simple words that guide me: “Think. Do. Be”. There is no wisdom here. Just the principles that guide the complex science of behaviour modification.
The results speak for themselves!
I’ve criss-crossed the Wheatbelt, a region of some 155,000 sq km. I’ve been further north east and further east of east, than before. The resilience of folks in farming communities is something that strikes me each time I visit. It must be difficult under circumstances where the pastures are green with rain and then 50 kilometres down the down, they are still waiting for it. People think in terms of community. What can they do, to make a difference. They are quick to minimize the role they play, often with a matter of fact, “Well! that’s what one does!”
Then there was the Kimberley region. Beautiful Kimberley, an area that covers some 422,000 sq km of ruggedness. Broome, is a favourite town but there’s a special place in my heart for Kununurra, a place I want to visit again on holiday. I’ve experienced joy in this town in the company of birds and the excitement of spotting my first freshwater crocodile. There are gorges and ruggedness to explore, and when standing still, blue dragonflies to observe.
I’ve visited the Midwest more frequently than I have ever done in previous years. It is larger area than the Kimberley at 472,000 plus square kilometers. The stunning landscape of the Coral Coast is memorable.
The mining region of the Pilbara, in the heart of Western Australia cover over 500,000 square kilometers. It is harsh, hot, and humbling country. Oh! how I love that red dust! Driving across it in summer was a highlight for me.
And who can forget the South West, nearly 24,000 sq km of beautiful food, wine, trails, forests and coastline.
Last but not least, the Goldfields Esperance region, covers over 770,000 sq km. Esperance is where I spend three consecutive nights each month, so naturally, it is my home away from home.
Curiosity
At the base of the massive boab tree was the tiny chick she so desperately tried to protect. If you look closely you can barely see it at the juncture of the base and the longest root that extends from it (to the left of the screen).
So young, it still had feathers on the crown and eyes that were barely open. In a park where dogs and children played with careless abandon, the vulnerability of the chick, fired my up protective instinct too.
The chick relaxed and stared at me with curiosity.
The mother did the same, no longer flapping her wings furiously. She flew away time and again, returning with a morsel each time. She fed her chick with utmost patience.
I stood guard until the park was nearly empty. The protective instinct of the mother was memorable. No longer anxious, the mother and chick relaxed into their respective roles of nurturer and one being nurtured. The impact of trauma on a developing brain is well documented, especially for learning, emotional regulation and attachment issues. It came together for me in one fleeting moment.
The gull stood still and watched the tide come in. From the road above, I did the same.
Then the gull then strode out purposefully to meet it.
It seemed to know where to stop. 
It stood still and waited.
The tide came in with bounty. The Pacific Gull knew this. This was time honoured instinct. Honed and practiced. No technology to guide it. It was a beautiful thing to observe. A moment of mind-body connection, for gull, and me.
This is Esperance Bay at first light. The winter sun rises further left in the Eastern sky. It spreads the softest light, before it rises. Some people do this in life too.
My favourite spot to have my first coffee of the day is the end of the groyne. Sometimes the dolphins visit to keep company. 
I then head to West Beach to catch the glow of sunrise in the softest pinks, blues and greys.
If I meet my target for the day, I know I’ll find these folks too. Nothing keeps them from catching a set, except maybe a shark warning. Yes, maybe.
Surfers seem to sense the potential in an opportunity and go for it even if it is a short ride. They may not know this or see it as such, but each decision they make is a goal. Enjoy the ride.
And Woody Lake is where I sit and consolidate my day. The solitude gives me vantage point. It is where everything comes together in a moment of quiet. My vision, enhanced with clarity.
Just outside Geraldton, Western Australia is Greenough, famous for historic buildings and the iconic Leaning Tree.
A Shared Space 
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