dramaticat

No worries, feels good to unleash the story!

1) At the time there was some resentment, being poor and not living in a house like all the other kids made it tought o fit in ( especially being the only black kids in school made us really stand out).

2) My mother sadly continued to deteriorate and lives in a women's home where nurses come morning and night and make sure she takes her tablets, sometimes they work sometimes I'm still the spawn of Satan. She does have the odd good day a few times a year and it is awesome to talk to her :). My brother is a concreter that has been in and out of employment since he was 18, he is now 23. He is an amazing person, people flock to him and he lights up any room with his presence. It's a shame he hangs out with people that don't have higher aspirations than making enough money during the week to party hard Thursday to Sunday. My dad is an arborist now, he used to work itinerate jobs here and there, in and out of employment. He has found a partner that keeps him focused and really put him on the right path. I'm 27 and still undertaking an undergrad degree in science on a pathway to medicine. I'm definitely a late bloomer, I feel I only started to mature in the last few years ( even though I've been out of home since I was 15)!

3) I couldn't say I'd want what I had for my children as it wasn't an easy life with everything taken into account as thankful as I am for the way I've turned out. I'd want a stable home life for my children in a small, coastal town where they would grow up in the one house until they were 18/ early 20s. Prior to the bush life period we'd moved 3 times and changed primary school twice. Since I've left at 15 I've moved at least 10 times.

4) All I'm looking to do is to get a stable job out of medicine, I'd like to work in indigenous health in rural Australia and build my own family. I long for that stability. Thanks for your questions!

They got a bit rough when the drought had really set in. Our tank water got so low we had to buy water to drink, which I was so thankful for because the eucalyptus leaves would land in the tank and the tannins/ eucalypt would stain the flavour, ugh, I hated that water. The dams got so low that it became a bit stagnant. Shower water got a bit smelly at that point :/

My dad is a nature enthusiast and never condoned killing them, unless they started trying to make a home in our home... The best would be when I'd take my brother down to the property border to a spot I knew often had baby browns. We'd gear up, gumboots, jackets, balaclavas ( we used to horse/ motorbike ride so nana would make us "whole face beanies") and 2 liter lemonade bottles and meter and a half long sticks. They were under the same log every year so we went on down, lifted the log and herded the little herps into the tiny opening of the lemonade bottles, it was cold so they moved slow and kept them for a few hours while we made observations. Then we would re release them and carry on. We didn't tell dad until about 2 years ago. He would have gone off chops.

We were extremely lucky. The only time we had a real cause for concern was when I got stung by a scorpion. Might be the most afraid I've ever seen dad, also the fastest car ride into town was had that day. Turned out that the scorpions we had in Victoria weren't life threatening ( if you didn't develop an allergy to them) but are just painful as fuck. Dad was allergic to bees and we had an extensive first aid kit that covered snake bite post care treatment, burns etc...

At the time it was all I knew but seeing the kids at school with fancy clothes and staying at their houses with clear water made me long for a bit more. Now that I am older I appreciate the unique experience and treasure the memories of the good times.