Home in Brisbane

11 October 2018

It was a long journey home to Brisbane from Athens, complicated by a ‘medicane’ (Mediterranean hurricane) that meant our flight was cancelled and resulted in an overnight stay in Athens, another one in Abu Dhabi and an extra flight to Brisbane via Melbourne. Definitely the long-way home. We didn’t find out about it until we were at the airport and my son, who is smart and funny and interested in everything, broke down in tears when he heard the news. You see, he’s 8 years old, and while he’d loved being in Greece, he was looking forward to playing with his toys at home. He also needs a moment to adapt to change … unlike my 11-year-old daughter who takes just about everything in her stride. His tears were upsetting, but we just let him feel it and express his disappointment, knowing that he always moves through the change. It was a reminder for me that: a. you can’t control everything and that change always happens; b. change is not always a bad thing (hello beautiful hotel by the sea, an extra night in Greece and a delicious dinner and breakfast which the airline paid for); and c. you can’t rush someone through their (very legitimate) feelings.

It wasn’t until later, when his head was on the pillow in the hotel and he’d whispered that he was happy we had the opportunity to stay longer, that I could say to him, ‘You see, it wasn’t as bad as you thought it would be. In fact, it ended up being better.’ I know this doesn’t always happen, but it’s a timely reminder for me as I launch back into everyday life in Brisbane. Putting lots of energy into feeling bad about something you can’t control in the first place probably isn’t what I want to do. Every cloud and all that.

Being home under the blinding blue Australian sky is always comforting – like snuggling under your favourite doona (duvet). Plans are afoot for an expansion in my editing and writing – stay tuned.