I had a dream the other night that upon further review might neatly sum up my state of mind about the end of this Australian odyssey. In my dream, I was on a tram when suddenly the driver decided he had done enough driving and jumped off. Of course, I volunteered to keep the tram, full of people, running. Driving the thing was relatively easy, it was the stopping that gave me fits. As each station came into view I applied the brakes (God knows how I knew which lever to pull) but despite my increasingly frantic and powerful pulls on the brake lever, the tram would stubbornly slide by the stop every time. People started yelling and pleading with me to stop the tram better and sooner but no matter what I did or how hard I pulled, the tram just kept sliding by stop after stop…Now, by putting on my English teacher’s hat or perhaps opening my psychiatrist’s note pad, I wonder if this dream is really my subconscious telling me about the inevitability of our return to Canada. No matter how hard I want time to slow down or stop - the tram is on track, on schedule and not even a Herculean crank on the ol’ brake lever can stop this train from leaving the station!
A second event with equal potential for metaphorical significance took place the other day as we enjoyed our last pizza and movie night. You see, every Thursday night for the past year, we have indulged ourselves in pizza (frozen) and a video from the local independent video store guy. I’m not sure how the tradition came about, it doesn’t matter, but I do remember that at the time it seemed like a good way of creating something fun that we could all look forward to as a family that might, in a way, protect us from any disappointments or difficulties the week may have presented. It’s not something we do at home in Canada and though certainly not beluga caviar and a glass of Dom, it has always felt a tad indulgent – like this entire year. And so again with my teacher’s hat firmly in place I heard something significant in Colin’s announcement last week that this would be “the last pizza and movie night”. Alas, was this a sign from somewhere that all the indulgences of the past year were also over? Did I hear the faint tolling of a bell signifying the end of a year of living…not dangerously…but maybe just a little more carefree? Would two margharita pizzas washed down with a frosty Pure Blonde in front of the latest Pixar goldmine ever taste the same again? Was this big, fat pizza party coming to an end?
My final foray into this metaphorical minefield is perhaps the biggest stretch of the three, but hey, I’m on a roll. The other day Lint and I found ourselves doing some last minute personal retail therapy at the DFO which is a sort of giant factory outlet mall right beside the Southern Cross rail station in downtown Melbourne. As we were scarfing down some mediocre Chinese food, she looked down to notice with horror that her Pandora charm bracelet was not on her wrist! This was bad. In a panic we proceeded to ask at every store we had been in and to re-trace our steps a thousand times in our head, only to realize with growing dread that if it wasn’t at home then it was gone. The bracelet had been a surprise Christmas gift from me to her and it had begun to accumulate some real significance with charms we had bought or she had been given. Of course, my thoughts were focused on the cost whereas Lint’s were elsewhere. She was focused, quite rightly, on what the bracelet had come to represent – call it a multi-layered metaphor for the entire year’s experience. In my attempt to make the best of a bad situation, I offered that we could always replace it. But Lint said no. She didn’t want to replace it. It was a one-time piece and all significance would be lost on a surrogate purchase back in Canada. And this is really where my final metaphorical marker kicks in.
This year, like that bracelet, has been a one-time thing made up of a series of experiences that will forever remain perfect and poignant because they happened or we made them happen in life’s daily adventure. These same “charms” may be replaced, repeated or even purchased by some, but the buyer will always know, deep down, how real or meaningful they are. The real significant charms come the first time; that first moment when you see newness and perspective you could have never before imagined. And for us, those are the indelible bits of insight and memory that have been etched forever into our charmed Aussie life. They are priceless and irreplaceable and will remain with us, even when the t-shirts fade, the posters rip and the boomerangs stop boomeranging.
PS – We found the bracelet at home. Which as I write this, makes me think there is meaning there, too – but I’ll save that thought for another day.
A second event with equal potential for metaphorical significance took place the other day as we enjoyed our last pizza and movie night. You see, every Thursday night for the past year, we have indulged ourselves in pizza (frozen) and a video from the local independent video store guy. I’m not sure how the tradition came about, it doesn’t matter, but I do remember that at the time it seemed like a good way of creating something fun that we could all look forward to as a family that might, in a way, protect us from any disappointments or difficulties the week may have presented. It’s not something we do at home in Canada and though certainly not beluga caviar and a glass of Dom, it has always felt a tad indulgent – like this entire year. And so again with my teacher’s hat firmly in place I heard something significant in Colin’s announcement last week that this would be “the last pizza and movie night”. Alas, was this a sign from somewhere that all the indulgences of the past year were also over? Did I hear the faint tolling of a bell signifying the end of a year of living…not dangerously…but maybe just a little more carefree? Would two margharita pizzas washed down with a frosty Pure Blonde in front of the latest Pixar goldmine ever taste the same again? Was this big, fat pizza party coming to an end?
My final foray into this metaphorical minefield is perhaps the biggest stretch of the three, but hey, I’m on a roll. The other day Lint and I found ourselves doing some last minute personal retail therapy at the DFO which is a sort of giant factory outlet mall right beside the Southern Cross rail station in downtown Melbourne. As we were scarfing down some mediocre Chinese food, she looked down to notice with horror that her Pandora charm bracelet was not on her wrist! This was bad. In a panic we proceeded to ask at every store we had been in and to re-trace our steps a thousand times in our head, only to realize with growing dread that if it wasn’t at home then it was gone. The bracelet had been a surprise Christmas gift from me to her and it had begun to accumulate some real significance with charms we had bought or she had been given. Of course, my thoughts were focused on the cost whereas Lint’s were elsewhere. She was focused, quite rightly, on what the bracelet had come to represent – call it a multi-layered metaphor for the entire year’s experience. In my attempt to make the best of a bad situation, I offered that we could always replace it. But Lint said no. She didn’t want to replace it. It was a one-time piece and all significance would be lost on a surrogate purchase back in Canada. And this is really where my final metaphorical marker kicks in.
This year, like that bracelet, has been a one-time thing made up of a series of experiences that will forever remain perfect and poignant because they happened or we made them happen in life’s daily adventure. These same “charms” may be replaced, repeated or even purchased by some, but the buyer will always know, deep down, how real or meaningful they are. The real significant charms come the first time; that first moment when you see newness and perspective you could have never before imagined. And for us, those are the indelible bits of insight and memory that have been etched forever into our charmed Aussie life. They are priceless and irreplaceable and will remain with us, even when the t-shirts fade, the posters rip and the boomerangs stop boomeranging.
PS – We found the bracelet at home. Which as I write this, makes me think there is meaning there, too – but I’ll save that thought for another day.
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