26 November, 2005

Far, Far Away....


Last Monday, OBF (Other Best Friend) called me to tell me that his partner - POOBF (Partner Of Other Best Friend) was on his way to Australia due to the fact that his father had been taken very ill with heart problems. It was apparent that he was going to have to undergo open heart surgery urgently.

Clearly, POOBF was very distressed and made the decision to travel back to Australia very quickly. Of course, the flight itself takes just short of 24 hours - so in a situation like this, the 24 hours is fraught with anxiety.

Yesterday, OBF called me to tell me that POOBF's father had died. Fortunately, POOBF had reached Australia in time to see his father and have some time together with him and the rest of his family.

It really 'sent home' how very far away all of us Australians live from our family. Often my English friends joke with me that I see my family more regularly than they do (I usually get back to visit my family at least once a year); but the reality is, we are thousands of miles away from home.

And for approximately the last ten years, I've been living my life away from my family. How much have I missed out on during that time? And how much more will I miss out on if I continue to live away from them?

4 comments:

Nick Stephenson said...

Sorry to hear about your friend's loss. Words of comfort are difficult to find in this kind of situation. I'm sure you're a great support.

Life away from your family must be hard at times but don't think of it as stuff that you've missed. Think of how you've enriched your life by living in the UK. Er ... there's ... um ... art and ... um ... we're not too far away from Barcelona ... and ... um ... there's the weather ... er ... yep, maybe we should go out for that drink.

ziggystardust73 said...

Thanks Nick.

And re. the drink... I thought you'd never ask. So when/where?

Nick Stephenson said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
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