Naturally, you begin with the letter A.
A is for ...
- APOLOGY - Alphabetically speaking, this is out of place, but it's an appropriate word to kick off with because I think I owe one to the people who come to this blog. I know there are people who visit on a regular basis, and I can imagine their annoyance at nothing being written here for the last couple of months or so. Kind of like visiting your favourite pub, only to find it's always closed for stocktake.
So, without making excuses for my slack attitude - I have none - my apologies and a promise to make more of an effort to keep the Retreat vibrant. Now, on with the dictionary proper - ABLAZE - Three States across Australia currently on fire. In Victoria alone, over 600,000 hectares (1,482,633 acres) have been incinerated. Many properties have been lost. Unfortunately, so has a life. As I write this, the township of Mansfield is bracing for an ember attack.
Summer has always marked the bushfire season, but with Australia suffering the worst drought in 100 years, the problem has been compounded. Surprisingly, South Australia hasn't ignited yet, but I feel it's only a matter of time. Our prayers and thoughts are with those brave souls who are valiantly battling the fires. - ABSOLUTE - A word that means finality, without variance; black and white, without grey. More and more, lately, I seem to be encountering people with this attitude. Everything runs in cycles. Could it be we are returning to an era of intolerance and close-mindedness?
- ABUSE - We hear and see so much of this in our daily lives; racial abuse, sexual abuse, physical abuse, verbal abuse, civil rights abuse. It's getting to the stage where the word itself is practically being abused. Any right-minded member of society naturally cringes at evidence of any kind of mistreatment, and for those who have suffered, the pain runs deep. Sometimes, far deeper than they realise. As I discovered a few months back.
My childhood was not a nice place. Details aren't necessary; that's just the way it was. Needless to say, by the time I left my teens behind, I was a mess. Over the years, I have had to face my reflection and deal with who I am, gradually coming to terms. That I still have a way to go was brought home to me by a radio show one morning.
The announcers of a breakfast show on one of the local radio stations were lightheartedly discussing a news item about the proposed reintroduction of corporal punishment in our schools. The discussion went off on a tangent about the different forms of punishment doled out by our parents, and they invited listeners to ring in and describe how they had been chastised. I appreciate that it was all in a bit of fun, and they weren't being analytical by any means, but I was surprised to realise that their comments were stinging some areas which I had thought calloused. By the end of the segment, I was emotionally responding exactly as if I had actually been abused.
I suppose the bruises may fade, and the scars are less livid, but inside ...well. - ACCIDENT, The - September 23, 1993 - 4:30pm. It was bad, it was horrific. I died. They brought me back. Apparently I wasn't happy with their first effort, so made them repeat the process.
Many things changed that day. - AGGRO - Bloke I work with. Constantly ranting and raving, non-stop whingeing; a headache on legs. Brags about only having about four hours sleep a night, so I'm not surprised he's got such a lousy temperament.
- ANCHOR - This would be my partner, S. Since meeting this wonderful woman, my life has had substance and foundation. I no longer feel like I'm adrift.
- ANTS - With the advent of the warmer weather, they're on the move. Why the feel they need to move inside, though...
- AUSTRALIA - A great country with extraordinary potential. The problem is, we seem to be losing our identity. Political correctness, combined with saturation levels of other cultures, is eroding that essence which is Australian.
It's time to stop bending over backwards, trying to please all-comers. It's time to stand up and say; "No! This is our country. We made it ours, and it made us. We are kangaroos, koalas, emus, the duck-billed platypus. We are football, cricket, meat pies. We are sun-blistered, rain-soaked, cyclone Tracy. We are the Outback, the Nullabor Plain, the mountains blue with the haze of eucalyptus. We are Australia, and it's not for sale at any price!"
Well, that's it for the A's of the subjective dictionary. There are probably more that could be added, but these are the most immediate to hand, thus the most significant at this point in time. I'll start thinking about the B's now
Once again, apologies for the lack of input over the last few months.
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