Family Celebrations

During my week off in September, I celebrated my 35th birthday, my Aunty Kay's and cousin, Andrew's birthday on the same day, what would have been my Gran’s 84th birthday, and my cousin’s 18th birthday.

The drive from Brisbane to Glen Innes is a 5-hour trip south-west through rural Australia and one of my favourite drives. It takes me from the city, past horse studs, through the rainforest in the Scenic Rim, to the Granite Belt and the Northern New South Wales Tablelands. It’s five hours of me in one of my most blissful places: on the open road, in the bush with the music blaring and me singing my arse off, and at the end of the journey, I get to hang out with my family members.

I’m crazy close to my family, especially my mother’s side. No matter what crap happens in my life, whether I am having the time of my life, or going through a rough patch, that mad lot always has my back, and spending time with them recharges my soul. And we ARE mad, and silly and absolutely act like a bunch of children when we’re together. It’s bloody brilliant.

Nowadays, we only tend to be together for the occasional Christmas and milestones like my lovely cousin’s 18th birthday (there were still a few of us missing, sadly). As us kids have grown up, and found jobs that have taken us interstate and around the world, the get-togethers may have become less frequent, but all that means is when they do happen, they are all the more special.