Monday, July 16, 2012

same old, same old

My dad sent me this photo on the weekend. We were chatting on skype and he just sent it through magically. Sometimes I like to dwell on the technology we have at our fingertips, it makes me shivery.

But the photo. It's my Nana and Pop, with their eldest, my Aunty, out the front of their home in Bankstown. Look at my Pop, casually leaning against the picket fence which he probably built himself. I wonder whether the idea of planting a row of roses behind that fence struck him at that point. Or that he would shoo his little granddaughters out of that garden one day. Look at my Nana, hair pinned in the same way I have always known it. I can hear the clip-clop of her hard shoes heading wearily down the driveway (would there have been a driveway there? Certainly no car in those days.) to put the kettle on, maybe change the baby and fix her a snack. Cuppa tea, Art? I wonder how it is, after so long, to not have that one person there to make a cuppa for.

And it's all just more of the same, isn't it. What I am doing, what all of us are doing, none of it is new, or different, or even that difficult. It just is. It just is, being a partner to someone, raising babies, trying to feed a family, bringing in enough money to provide shelter and clothing. Life just is. And it's a great privilege, and a challenge, and is beautiful and hard. And worth it. The hard bits are hard, but they aren't poverty, or war, or prolonged absence, or illness, or rations, or outdoor dunnies, or washing in a copper. So, tonight I am grateful for a whole lot. But mainly for the same old, same old. There is comfort in all things familiar.

5 comments:

  1. What a beautiful photo, the history and character in it. You are right we aren't doing anything different, it's a hard job but a fun job too and one that I'm so very grateful to be able to do. xx

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lovely photo and I love how much wisdom you've been able to draw from it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh wow. Love the image, and such a beautiful message. It's comforting to think of it like that - in a way that we're all in this together. Same old, same old is pretty great! x

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks Catherine, Elisa and Tat. It's nice to see you here! sarah

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wow, what a lovely post. I love delving into old family photos and thinking about how they lived and how much things change, yet still stay the same.

    ReplyDelete

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...