Category: Australia

Australia · autumn · floods · garden flowers · native Australian birds · poetry · rain

Flooding Rains

Joanne5 Comments

Tonight I heard on the news that it rained in every town throughout the state of New South Wales today. The whole of the eastern coast of the state, and towns further north into southern Queensland, are on alert for excessive rainfall and flooding.

While media alarmists cry out “climate change,” the realists among the press – and yes, fortunately, there are some realists remaining in Australian media circles – reminded viewers tonight of a famous poem, once taught to most school aged children. The poem, “My Country” by Dorothea Mackellar, written between 1904 and 1908, is a timely reminder of the predictable harshness of the climate in this country I call home.

“My Country” is a beautiful poem. It romantisises Australia, while at the same time emphasising the ruggedness and challenges of living in this land. The second verse of the six verse poem is the most famous and is the verse I am sharing today. The other five verses can be found on the Official Dorothea Mackellar website.

My Country

I love a sunburnt country,
A land of sweeping plains,
Of ragged mountain ranges,
Of droughts and flooding rains.
I love her far horizons,
I love her jewel-sea,
Her beauty and her terror
The wide brown land for me!

~~ Dorothea Mackellar.

Australia · autumn · daughter · family · grandchildren · rain

A Family Celebration

Joanne10 Comments

With my next grandson due to be born in May, today family and friends went to my daughter’s home where her baby shower was held.

‘Twas yet another day of mist and rain, although it only sprinkled for most of the afternoon.

Soon-to-be a big sister, Aurora, had a great time playing with her cousins and friends, (and sampling yummy treats!)

As for me, I had the opportunity to spend some time with my youngest – for now – grandson. ❤

So no mountain photo today, basically because I didn’t sight the mountain. The mist and low cloud has been thicker than usual lately and it’s becoming a rare event to see the mountain at all.

Further south along the coast of New South Wales, torrential rain has forced several communities to evacuate. My sister sent me a photo this morning of a field across the road from her home, which usually has cows happily munching on green grass roaming around. Today, the field is so flooded that it looks like she is living on waterfront property. She said she’s seen the water this high before, so isn’t concerned. A sight she hadn’t seen before, however, was a house floating through the “cow field” which had been uprooted from its foundations! A very sad situation it was for the poor owner of the house.

Australia · autumn · clouds · Mount Warning · sunrise · Tweed Valley

The Pinnacle

Joanne10 Comments

All I could think of when I saw Mount Warning this morning is that the cloud formation around the top accentuated the pinnacle of the mountain.

This photo was taken at quarter-to-seven this morning. The days are getting shorter and the constant rain has darkened every day this week. It’s very unusual to have the lights on in the house most of the day, even during winter – and we’re not there yet!

Australia · autumn · clouds · Mount Warning · native Australian birds · Tweed Valley

A Break in the Clouds

Joanne6 Comments

My house and garden spent most of the morning in the clouds, with a slight easing of the thick mist by the afternoon. Later this afternoon, the clouds and mist broke, revealing a stunning deep blue mountain scene, surrounded by tufts of clouds both above and below.

I had a sweet baby butcher bird hiding from the dismal day on my back veranda for a while too. Unfortunately, with the light of the day so dark, little butch blends in a bit. Luckily his white feathers allow him to stand out slightly against the dark background. 🙂