Two weeks
into our long service leave we are wandering the West McDonnell Ranges, wending
our way closer to Alice Springs. During the day we walk through arid
countryside, adorned by wildflowers brought out by recent rains. Magnificent
gorges protect permanent waterholes that keep wildlife alive through the dry.
Floodways on the roads tell us that when it rains the road may be under up to
two metres of water. Dry creek beds are wider than the widest part of the
Yarra, gouged out by the floods that leave debris matted six foot or more up
the trunks of the gums.
A magnificent
land – yet so fragile. Life often persists despite the odds. The harsh beauty
around me firms my resolve. There is so much worth saving in this world.
The news we
have heard when we can get radio reception - planes shot from the sky, deaths
in Palestine – remind me that human beings have a talent for bad as well as
good. I pray to whatever God will listen that we can start using the
intelligence and compassion we were given – use our gifts to create our own
Eden in this paradise that surrounds us.
