Sunday 10 November 2024
Vishal and I got ready and drove to Stratford early morning. After paying my homage to Mother Earth as I daily did, I started the walk towards Bairnsdale. After a short breather for a quick bite, we kept walking. Vishal drove ahead and was waiting at the Billabong Petrol Station. Vishal told me over the two-way radio that the Petrol Station was still closed,. By the time I reached there, the owner, Greg an elderly male had come out and changed the sign from ‘Closed’ to ‘Open’. We were the first customers for the day. We asked him, if he could make us some coffee. He said, yes, but we would have to wait a few minutes for the machine to warm up.
After a few minutes, he called us over to the counter and asked what we would like? We told him a double black coffee for Vishal and a cappuccino for me with a couple of vegie sandwiches and some biscuits. The total came to $32. But as soon as he found out that we were walking from the MCG to the SCG to raise awareness and funds for the McGrath Foundation, he said, “No charge. It is on the house, don’t worry about it.” In addition, Greg tried to persuade another customer to make a donation to this worthy cause. Unfortunately, he didn’t have any cash on him.
In a typical Indian context, this scenario would not be possible. We as the first customers for the day would be considered auspicious for the shopkeeper’s Bohni for the day. Giving your first sale for the day free of charge would be unthinkable. Perhaps you could consider doing it if you knew the customer well. But to give your first sale away free to total strangers, would be a no no in countries like India.
After finishing snacks and coffee, we called it a day and drove back to Stratford. On our way back, we spotted an area we thought we would take photos of. We enjoyed taking more photos with the Ute, on top of the Ute, at the back of the Ute rather than the landscape. These became cherishable memories in a larger scheme of things.
We parked the Ute on the main street so that Michael and Shekhar would easily spot it and come to the Café. Michael was coming with the Van and would take over from Vishal the role of support crew. Shekhar was coming with supplies of home cooked food because we had lost the van on day one of the walk after its gearbox began overheating and the air conditioning stopped working. We all met at the Badger and Hare Café for lunch.
After lunch, Vishal handed over the Ute keys to Michael. Shekhar took Vishal bhayia back to Boronia. I drove the van to the house of Kylie and Jeff Dixon and Michael followed me in the Ute. We left the Ute there and Michael took over the van. We drove back to Billabong petrol station and resumed the walk towards Bairnsdale.
We got a message from Chris Dixon that his parents were preparing woodfire pizzas for dinner and he would be there with his family. Around 5:30 PM, we called it a day and headed back to Stratford. Kylie and Jeff Dixon have a beautiful home built on a large block of land to park a large number of cars, boats and other vehicles. The Dixons also have a big and kind heart to go with it. We parked our van there to stay the night in the van but with an access to facilities through the night. I wanted to have a shower first before sitting down for dinner. Michael was happy to join in and started with a soft drink and later switched to beer.
Kylie and Jeff’s generous hospitality could not possibly be described in words. You just have to be there to see the sparkle in their eyes, feel their joy, and happiness, and witness their selflessness. Kylie had gone into so much trouble to make a variety of salads and entrées. She had also made so much dough for the pizzas that would be sufficient to feed an army. They have a beautiful woodfire oven in their backyard. Jeff had already fired up the oven to get it to the right temperature and save time. What a beautiful team they are! Soon Chris and his wife Emma with their two beautiful children Gracie and Otis joined us . We had an endless supply of a variety of smoked vegetarian and mixed pizzas that were finger licking good literally. It wasn’t just about food or drinks, it was about having a great evening. Jeff is such a knowledgeable person that one could discuss with him just about anything. Kylie and Jeff both are amazing human beings with hearts of gold. Hats off to their generosity and hospitality! They deserve a big thanks!
Chris shared his plans to participate in the near future in the 100 mile (160 Kms) race at the Grampions. Early this year, Chris had won a similar race in New Zealand against the best in the world. In January 2025, he would take part in the run from Sale in Gippsland to Phillip Island. I am almost a month behind in writing these blogs. Before I could write this blog, I learned that Chris took part in the race at the Grampions but 100 kms into the race, it was called off due to excessive heat. I personally find it a bit odd to cancel a race after it has been run more than halfway. However, that’s just my opinion and not a criticism of the decision-making process. Those responsible for the event must have considered many variables as they have access to much more information and data than a person like me sitting hundreds of miles away from the event and writing this blog post hindsight.
After Chris and his family left, Kylie and Jeff kept us company for a while. The evening was so enjoyable that no one wanted to go to sleep. However, we had another long day ahead with our walk to Bairnsdale the next day. Kylie explained which door would be kept open for us to use the facilities throughout the night. We thanked them for their amazing support and selflessness, returned to the van and went to sleep.
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