One Day . . .

• Hannah Bouma, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2022

Six weeks after I was born, my family and I embarked on a two-year trip around Australia.
Now my memory is entwined with crisp and cold 2 o’clock mornings, stunning sunrises, breath-taking landscape and the excitement of a new destination and another adventure.
Travelling is grafted into my heart and soul. The prospect of another holiday is more than just an opportunity to get out of homework, it’s the excitement and thrill of seeing new places, and meeting new people.
It’s the opportunity to connect with nature and your family, to relax and forget about your worries, doubts and fears.
An opportunity to find a quiet spot and listen to the wind in the trees while the birds sing and the cicadas buzz. A chance to reflect and a chance to discover who you really are, then lose yourself in the sheer beauty and magic of nature.
Each new place is unique in its own way. From the rugged landscape of the Grampians to the breathless beauty of the Daintree. From the glorious sunrises to the magical sunsets.
Travelling changes you and shapes who you are. When you immerse yourself in the delightful simplicity of camping, your view of life changes.
Complicated problems can be solved.
Gut wrenching worries are eased.
Difficult choices become clear, and you can finally be at peace.
Travelling is a time to become close to your family. When all meals are enjoyed with everyone. When work and school can be put aside. When new, strong relationships can be forged and you can open up about your own problems and your whole family can help you and support you, just like you can support them.
Because travelling can be shared, you can finally be with your whole family.
When an experience such as travelling can be shared, the memories becomes truly precious and will stay with you for the rest of your life.
Travelling has become a part of who I am and you can never take that away from me. The yearning to hook up our camper trailer and start a new adventure is deeply embedded in me.
Even though I live in a house like most people, it’s really like a base we come back to at the end of each trip.
My real home is our camper trailer. It always will be my home because it was home since the day I was born. The happiest of my childhood memories were forged while camping, playing with my two older siblings. We were like the three Musketeers, running in the bush, free as eagles collecting cicada shells, beer lids and pegs.
Bush walks, camp fires and freedom is like paradise for me. Some people might not understand the sheer joy of simplicity. But for me, it’s part of my life, especially as my first days on earth were literally in a camper trailer.
Travelling inspires, refreshes and reinvigorates.
Travelling gives you a chance to be alone, soak up the beauty of nature and laugh with pure joy.