RED CENTRE TO REEF

I just wanted to quickly share a video that I made about a week ago. It was a bit delayed, but it brings together some of my highlights of July when I was travelling around Australia one last time. There are times in my daily life recently, where a memory from Australia floods my entire brain and senses and I have to take a moment to smile and remember how I felt in those moments.

Some of the greatest moments I had on this trip took place in the Outback. Who knew how stunning and magnificent heaps of rusty rocks could be!? Uluru was wonderful and it was a time where I really got to feel how small I am in comparison to the world. The Olgas had me experiencing a breathtaking hike through the curves and valleys of sacred stones. Kings Canyon had to be my favourite though. It was spectacular. One memory that often floods my mind is the moment I stood on the edge of a cliff at Kings Canyon at half six in the morning after hiking up through the darkness. I stood there watching as the sun rose over the beautifully rustic, red rocks. It's just one of those moments that are hard to explain, but I will never forget it. In moments like those, I remember the feeling of being so ALIVE and so extremely grateful to have such experiences. 

So here it is, a bit of a summary of my last Australian experience. I can't wait to go back one day.

YOU CAN BE BATMAN IF YOU WANT TO BE

As a CRT, yard duty (supervision) can be rather stressful at times. I actually don’t mind yard duty at all, in fact, I will even offer to take a yard duty from teachers who look like they just might need an extra break. There are many things that I enjoy about doing yard duty such as being outside and having the opportunity to observe students in their natural habitat of play and exploration. However, we all know that there is a tendency for many things to go wrong at recess. Being a CRT does not help in these situations. It’s not that I can’t solve problems, break up fights or reason with tempered students, it’s that I don’t KNOW any of the students very well, including their names, especially at  schools I don’t go to often. I'm never sure which students I should be keeping a watchful eye on or the ones who tend to over exaggerate conflicts with friends.

With that being said, today was what I consider to be a good yard duty day. While the playground was still bustling with busy students at play, boys getting more footy balls stuck in the tree tops while trying to get one ball down and major girl drama under the play structure, I had what I would consider to be a really great moment with a student.

“Excuse me, miss” I hear as one student comes running up to me. I get to be decked out in a lovely florescent orange vest, which makes me an easy spot for anyone within a few kilometres. At this particular school, we also carry around a first aid kit and a clipboard with a paper to record any serious situations on the playground. No matter who you are, you will always be followed by a posy of preppies (kindergartens) who beg to carry all these things around for you. It’s insanely cute.

“My friend has been punched and I think he’s hurt!” I get him to lead me to his friend. On the way over, I ask, “So do you know what happened?”

“Yeah, I punched him.”

I stopped and looked at him saying, “Dude, why would you punch your friend?” and I thought, this has to be to most incredibly unique situation where someone punches their friend only to feel really bad about it and go to retrieve help.

When I arrived at the scene of the crime, there was a boy laying on his back with tears rolling down his cheeks. A group of students hovered over him speculating him like a foreign subject. As soon as I approached, all the witnesses wanted to share their take on the story at once. There were names being thrown around, fingers being pointed and nearly a dozen voices explaining everything in discord.

“Jude took my batman mask and I can’t find it.” This was part of the story that I had heard before I stopped everyone, “Woah, woah, woah. Let’s break this down.” I pointed to the student who came to retrieve my help, “So, you’re Jude?” “No, Miss. Jude is a boy who doesn’t go to our school anymore.”

Alright, let me get this straight. This entire brawl got started by a student who doesn't even attend this school?! What is going on? While I'm still not sure I understand exactly what happened on the playground this afternoon, here are the facts I do know.

One student wants to be batman. He lent someone his batman mask..in grade 3 (we're dealing with grade 6 boys)..to a student who no longer attends this school. However, said student lent it to someone else who still does go to this school. He just wants to find his batman mask. If Ben Affleck can be the new Batman, he can just as well be Batman if he moves to America. In his search, his friend told him he could, in fact, not ever become Batman. In frustration of having a friend not believe in his dream, he punched him. Complicated, right? RIGHT.

Even though I have only ever seen one Batman flick, I can relate to this student. He understandably became upset because someone didn't believe in him and let me tell you, that kind of stuff hurts. It doesn't matter who you are, if you have the ability to tell someone their dream is stupid, you probably have no heart.

After getting all the students involved sorted out, making sure everyone was feeling at par again, I asked the student if he wanted to take a walk and hang out with me. He agreed.  I had him explain to me what his dreams were, what he wanted to do and how he would achieve this dream. He had it all figured out. At the end of our talk, I turned to face him. “Now, if you have a dream, I don’t want you to think that anyone can stop you from achieving it. Just stay positive, do what makes you happy and don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do what you set your mind to..but let’s not use violence if someone does tell you that.”

It has nothing to do with becoming the next Batman or not. Who knows, the odds could be in his favour. But I wanted him to know that if he has a dream and if he believes in himself - that is all he needs. And it felt good being, perhaps, one of the few people to believe in his dreams and let him know that anything is possible. If even for a moment I gave him the courage to go after everything he has dreamed about, it made my little heart smile. I am always the happiest when I can make other people happy and I know after our talk, he was feeling pretty happy too.

We high fived it out before I headed up to the staff room for lunch and he went off running in the opposite direction, chasing his dreams. 

Unlimited Possibilities

Isn't it strange how some things never even seem possible until they happen?  I mean, if you would have asked me five years ago where I'd be today I'm certain I wouldn't have been able to tell you that I would hold a Bachelor of Education degree and be moving to Australia. On the other hand, if you ask me today where I will be in the next five years, or perhaps even in just one year, it's likely the answer would be quite vague. It just goes to show how we have no idea what is in store for us. 

I like to think of my life as a novel, and that each different part of my life is divided into chapters. Anyone who has read a good novel can hardly put it down because the suspense of not knowing what will happen next compels us to read on. The difference between my life and a novel is that I cannot flip ahead and peek into what happens next. Whatever is in store for me, I cannot wait to fill the pages of each chapter with happiness, excitement and love. 

I've got 43 days left until I hop on the plane that takes off to Australia. I have finally got my flights booked and the excitement is starting to kick in although it still doesn't seem possible. When I think back to a year ago when we were in South Africa, it didn't actually kick in that we were really in South Africa until the beginning of our second week there. Strange isn't it? Anyway,  I'm slowly getting things together and getting rid of other things that I no longer need. I'm hoping to fit everything into one suitcase and a carry on. I already know that it's pretty far fetched, I will be the person in the airport with two full sized suitcases, a carry on and a really big personal bag! Ha Ha! 

A huge CONGRATULATIONS extends from me to all my friends who received their degrees last week! All of the hard work, early mornings and caffeine filled nights have paid off! I hope your heart is smiling from your wonderful accomplishment, I know mine is!