Fair Dinkum, I'm Flabbergasted (2)

On Friday 29 April I came home after a busy day. Our overseas visitors were still with us and before I hit the bathtub I checked my email. I'd had an appointment that afternoon with the local State MP at 3.30pm re drainage issues in Nobelius Park, and learned at 2.00pm when I went home to pick up some paperwork that something had come up and the meeting had been cancelled. I had been rushing to get things done in order to make the meeting, and I also learned from the answering machine that a late foliage order had come in, one our customers was obviously preparing early for Mother's Day. I switched from meeting mode to picking mode and struggled through, arriving home feeling like a truck had run over me after a testing week.

There were several emails as is the norm these days, including one from the politician's secretary asking me ring to have the meeting rescheduled. The email on top, sent only a short time earlier, was from a name I didn't recognize but was vaguely familiar. It was from Barry and Lesley, and the subject was 'Google is Amazing'.

You could have knocked me over with a feather. In the email Lesley explained she had found a box containing letters from me during a clean up at her house and out of curiosity she put 'Carey Williams' into google and found herself reading my blog. This was the first she had heard of me for 33 years and her email to me was ditto for me.

How come Lesley had letters from me in a box in her house? Late in January 1974, aged 21, I caught a train with Ricky Ralph at Spencer St. We travelled to Brisbane where we separated, he flying to Mt. Isa or somewhere enroute his return to a cattle station where he'd worked as a jackeroo, I enroute to Qld Ag College at Gatton where I had enrolled. I called in to visit an aunt who lived in Brisbane where I stayed for a weekend. For most of the time I was there it rained heavily, the Brisbane River flooded so I was stuck in Brisbane for sometime, before getting to the Ag. College and starting the academic year, a year that was pivotal and for me a lot of reasons, not the least of which was that I made great friends in Dave Suters and Dave Dickson who have both have played roles in my life, and that I was to learn about beekeeping, a wonderful opportunity.

I also met Lesley. I don't understand these things fully but if I said I "fell in love" I don't think I'd be wrong. Maybe "had a crush" would be a better term, or "infatuated". I realize it's part of being human. We didn't have a romantic relationship, Lesley had a boyfriend (Barry), and I accepted she was not available, although my affection didn't diminish. The beekeeping students (3 only) sat in on other classes for things like entomology, botany and business studies and I was in Lesley's entomology class and recall being her prac partner once which had me in quite a state of concealed excitement and agitation.

I returned to Victoria at the end of 1974 and wrote to Lesley in 1975 knowing that she was again at the college doing the third year of a Diploma in rural technology, if my memory serves me correctly. We became pen pals and corresponded for a few years until about 1978 when I stopped writing after she and Barry married. She sent me a piece of wedding cake. I think I'd secretly hoped their romance would not last, and perhaps I was a little piqued. Around that time there was much happening in my life.

Letter writing was common back then. The was no email or mobile phones or texting so people actually sat down and wrote to each other and waited for a reply which may come in some days or weeks depending on the circumstances of the recipient. I was always a keen letter writer, until recent times, now it seems blogging satisfies the urge.

I last saw Lesley on Fraser Island. Dave Suters and I drove to Qld., I think in Feb 1978. We were stopped on the beach for some reason and a Landcruiser coming along stopped to see if we were OK. Amazingly the occupants were Barry and Lesley.

Last October when Lib and I were on Magnetic Island, while walking along the beach, I wondered at that remote coincidence and about Lesley and what her life had been, regretting that I'd stopped writing and wouldn't see or hear of her again. I felt genuine sorrow about it. And now, totally unexpectedly, I have contact again.

I replied to Lesley's email briefly saying how amazed and delighted I was to hear from her and asking for some news of the last 33 years when she had time. A second email came with some news and a great family photo. Looking at it puts a big smile on my dial, so does just thinking about it. I have miraculously found my pen pal again, 37 years after we met, in another record flood year.

Take care Lesley and Barry. Thank you Blogger.