8/8

About once a month Pacha, Yani and I travel to the big smoke of the Gold Coast to visit my Mum and sister’s family. This also gives us the chance to visit the ‘dump’ shops and recycle markets to find all the things we need (clothes, shoes, building materials) to make our lives more comfortable in Woombah.

This weekend was the big Burleigh recycle markets and Pacha decided that she might be able to earn some money to pay for an upcoming music camp by dancing in public (busking). I wasn’t really very supportive. I complained when I had to spend $30 to buy batteries for the portable CD player to play her modern rap and disco music in front of the sausage sizzle stand. But then, as I watched, people stopped and smiled, children joined in her dancing and her little basket filled up with spare change.

So there she was, dancing her heart out for 3 hours, smiling and swaying and spinning – wearing out her bare feet on the tarmac. She paid for the batteries and earned an extra $50 toward the music camp and is now determined to dance in public at every chance she gets. Today Pacha brought joy to so many people – and none more than me.

My sister and I often talk about just how ‘out of the box’ we are and how we must remember that when we have such high expectations of people and the world to be able to change so that life can continue. My sister has just travelled with her husband and 3 children (Griffin is only 2 years old) through Cambodia for 6 weeks.

People think she is very ‘rich’ to be able to travel like this – but her family lives on a basic single income, rarely buy anything ‘new’ and don’t worry too much about having a ‘modern’ kitchen and bathroom like most people around them. They make travel their priority because they believe it is the best classroom - complete with real life experiences. It seems their strongest experience was in meeting so many smiling, happy children and families despite living in abject poverty. This gives them new appreciation of everything we have here in Australia.

As we live, so we learn, so we engage in the opportunities that provide a ‘win, win, win’ around us – dancing to that hopeful tune of Love, Life and Peace.