Robinson River Moments

• ·      It was almost 9pm and we were standing outside admiring the spectacular night sky. Suddenly out of the darkness came one of the children riding like the wind on his unlit bike. In his hand and wrapped around his waist was a looped rope. As he skidded to a halt and gave us a quick hello, I asked what he was doing. “Roping dogs, Miss,” he said, racing off again like the ‘ringer’ that he may one day become. We both looked at each other and almost burst out laughing.

• ·      I sat chatting with my neighbor one afternoon and asked what she would be having for dinner that night, hoping for some inspiration for our meal. “We be having echidna; found a good big one near that house over there,” she replied pointing.

• ·      I have been fascinated by the way some of the women and children, have parts of their rich dark hair lightened. I asked one of the women, was it from the sun or a custom. She told me that they do put something in their hair to lighten it. What plant does it come from and is it part of the women’s ceremony? How do they make and use the potion? I was fascinated. She gave me a look I have been given on several occasions…. ‘crazy white woman’. They buy it from the shop in a packet she told me, it’s called hair dye. I should have known, I follow that same custom.

• ·      I rang the bank to find out what had happened to my bankcard, after I had been waiting for it for five weeks. They had sent it off and suggested it might be a hold up/glitch at the post office, so after school we dropped down to the local council office where the mail goes. There is no Post Office at Robinson River.  I asked if they had any missing letters. “Sure have a look through these” the girl said, then she left the counter for us to go behind. Letters, hundreds of them, were just tossed into assorted old boxes on the floor, on the desk, on the counter, …..everywhere. We worked our way through them collecting any names we knew and replacing them neatly in order…..(I couldn’t help myself.)  No security existed. We found peoples’ opened tax returns, bank statements and an assortment of private mail… but not my letter!  Two weeks later, after I had cancelled it, someone found it at the shop!!