Changes

A friend sent me this awesome shot (photographer unknown) and it fits well with the my life's path at the moment. Medical problems reared their ugly head in January and resulted in constant trips to the coast over the last two months. Townsville is a beautiful city but I am always so glad to get home again.
This time we trailed over on the tail end of Cyclone Larry. We were worried about what devastation we would find but, apart from a couple of fast flowing rivers, there was little damage around that area. The beaches were all closed because of stingers being washed inwith the storm. That's the first time I have seen it happen.
Poor Innisfail is suffering badly. They have done so much to make it a town to be proud of and it was shattered in just moments. We were so lucky no one was killed, the force must have been something really terrifying. Amazingly, they already have power back on. They expected it to take two months.
We had hoped that we would get some fallout rain from Larry, but arrived back to a sad dry town. The good news is that they think these cyclones may be the end of El Nino and lead into El Nina (spelling?)

Autumn at Last.
Harsh blue sky softens to
smudged blue and gray
of a child's finger painting.

Tiny fiddle-wood flowers
imitate last night's rain,
tapping the tin roof
as perfect blossoms
shower down.

Their perfume mingles
with jasmine, frangipani
and warm damp soil.

Dragonflies ripple over
tomato soup puddles
as our calico cat grumps
from the shelter of the door.

Frances Mackay 2006.