Everything I Know...

When I agreed to come on this road trip with my parents to see my terminally ill grandmother, I don’t think I knew exactly what I was in for. We’re on the return trip now and after 10 hours of talk-back radio and 3 wee stops an hour, I’ll be more than ready to get out of this car. I’m attempting to drown out the radio by cranking my iPod really loud, but all that does is distort the music through my cheap service station replacement earphones because I was stupid enough to leave my good ones at home. Every half an hour or so my mother says, “Little A, do you remember stopping there for a wee last time? Remember?” It’s like ‘Around the world in 80 wees’ and we still have at least 9 hours to go.

It’s not all been bad. I did get to say my goodbyes to my Nanna who they don’t think will last for more than a week or two. It’s so sad, but she has told us she is ready to go. Her body is too strong just yet and she’s endured weeks and weeks of palliative care, which isn’t so bad in itself, but everyone, including her, knows that it’s just a means to an end. I think the next time I make the trip back, it will be for her funeral and I’ll be relieved because she’s in so much discomfort.

I’ve been pleasantly surprised about Victoria, as I am each time I visit. It’s a very pretty state, which has an Olde Timey feel about it that I’m not used to on the coast of NSW. The tree-lined streets bare a filtered light that make me think of a thousand movies that I have seen. Every time I return I feel like I'm stepping back in time, the victorian style houses that are covered in creeping vines, the fountains and stone statues and my Grandpa. He's a grumpy old man that is so visibly hurting that my Nanna is dying, but tries to cover it by busying himself with zipping about after everyone.

We'll be pulling up to McDonald's soon, so I'll upload this then. In the meantime, think happy thoughts for my Nanna - she's a lovely lady.