Reflection on the Eve of the Event.

Just set the out of office message at work….

That’s something I’ve never done before to that magnitude, and if I’m brutally honest, unlikely to do again in the near future!

Finishing up on Friday was quite the surreal experience. On one hand it was very exciting and there were well wishes and messages of support and on the other hand a sense of apprehension. There’s quite a lot of change going on in my work place, and it’s always a matter of opinion on whether or not that’s a good or a bad thing.

But change is here, and for me, I’m going to focus on the positive aspects of it.

As I sit here camping in my lounge room (as all the furniture is in storage), it’s safe to say, change is upon us.

Whilst we were hoping to get away tomorrow, with a grand plan of a fanfare departure picking the kids up from school, unfortunately the pure logistics of change was a bridge too far.

We decided to spend Saturday down at the Little Athletics Championship day, which on recollection was the reason we chose this weekend as departure week anyhow. Seeing the kids excel in their sports of choice was brilliant, and well worth the sacrifice of packing more boxes.

Evie getting gold in 60m, to go with a silver in high jump... Neither events I would have thought my baby giraffe would have excelled at. Brilliant stuff. 

Sam collecting gold in the Turbo Javelin, to go with a second in the 400m and bronze in the 60m hurdles. Oh, and just a lazy 23 PBs set over the season... Just wait until he grows!

So rather than try and rush, force the issue and stick to the “plan”, we’re already adjusting to the lifestyle and making sure that we are comfortable and prepared for the next leg.

The kids were disappointed as they were hoping to leave tomorrow but alas, they’ll have one more day to hang out with their mates at school. I reckon by 10am on Tuesday they’ll be over it.

But it gives me time to reflect at least….

One of the interesting things people, and with absolute best intentions, have said to us along the way is how “lucky” we are. It’s something that is of debate in the house at the moment and trying to teach the kids about the difference between “lucky” and “deserved” or even “earnt”. We came to the definition that “lucky” is when something good happens to you which you either weren’t expecting or had very little control over. Deserved was when you worked hard or dedicated time to something and have it eventuate.

So relating it back to the trip, we asked the kids if they were lucky to be going on the trip. And they all agreed they were. And I believe they are correct. Kids are, at the stage of their lives ours are, generally lucky or unlucky as most things are out of their control. Their lifestyle, the clothes, their food, their education, the examples they’re set, morals they are taught… all largely out of their control. So yep, the trip, a decision by B and I, was out of their control, and I’d certainly agree that they are lucky to be going on it.

But what about B and I….

5 years ago (give or take a bit here or there) we decided that we’d like to travel around Australia. Having travelled prior to kids, and to an extent with them afterwards, we knew it was something we wanted to continue. So we forecast into the future, looking at ages of kids, school years and potential resources. And 2017 or 2018 came up as a window. And the snowball started rolling… the ideas, the spit balling, the afternoon dreaming.

Around 3 years ago, when the hard decisions needed to be made. Disillusioned with a particular work situation, B and I were trying to work out how the financial situations of the trip could eventuate under a huge amount of scenarios. In the end, a commitment to the trip was made, and a sacrifice of dare I say sanity, time, potential career development was made.

Fast forward on, the work situation improved, a few financial injections were provided and the stars aligned on some minor bits and pieces. All were, for all intents and purposes, lucky.

But at the heart of this, this trip, this adventure, isn’t luck. It’s a culmination of many decisions, many sacrifices, a lot of dedication and commitment to something we wanted to do not only for ourselves but our children. Luck for me has played a part in shaping how the trip was undertaken (i.e. caravan vs camper, Colorado vs Pajero, etc.) but it has very little to do with the trip actually happening. I think I’d be just as happy undertaking the trip in a camper with a couple of swags, as I am with the Big Green Lizard. But I’m happy creature comforts can be afforded.

And whilst I’ll never be offended or off put by someone calling us lucky and I know the sentiment is genuine (I hope!). But I know deep down, that B and I have made this happen, not luck.

So, for those we hope to inspire and entertain on this trip and to those who have said “I wish we could do something like that” we simply say… make the call. Make the choice. Make the decision. It might not be a trip like this or on this scale… it might be to learn an instrument… do some renovations… change your job… lose weight or get healthier…

…but life waits for no one. No one has yet to cheat death (depending on your interpretation of some religions) and rarely does change work in your favour without your influence. If it does, it’s just luck…

To quote my favourite movie of all time: