It’s crazy how fast the time goes by, before you know about it you’ve been settled in a place for months, with a whole new outlook on your life. And at times I still wonder what the heck you would isolate yourself from the people you love and need for. But it’s definitely the love of the land, and the love of the life that makes it all worth it in the end.
Am I certain that this life is for me? Hell no! But as I write this, after a long weekend away, with friends, I remember why I am here. And the love that I now have for Outback Queensland.
Life on a station isn’t always what you sign up for. There’s long days and weeks, extreme heat, and a hell of a lot of manual labour. It is astounding to think that you would choose this life, but so many people do, ie S and myself. My role on station is as the “Governess”, the tutor, for the kids, in grade 2, 4 and 6. My role extends much further than this. I have learnt that as their Govie, I am also another role model, mentor, and influencer in these young lives. The kids live 400km from their school, and being their educator is so much more than purely teaching them. I have also basically become another member of their family, a friend, someone who is at home in a complete strangers house. Although all of this is true, I still have days in which I struggle, for no apparent reason at all. I have cried through my lunch break, and even sought peace and solace in our schoolroom toilet. I don’t know how I get through some days, but at the end of my work day, when each of the kids gives me that hug that I needed, or comes to visit me in the last hours of daylight to tell me something that seems so minute, I remember why I am doing this all, and that always brings me comfort.
I have done way more than I ever though I would do in my job as “Governess” and I don’t know if it is because our station isn’t fortunate enough to be fully staffed at the moment, or that I get to go out on weekends with S on lick and water runs. These are my favourite type of things to do, get out and see the country and the cattle. Making my experience here a little more worth while.
The first few months on station were literally hell! I had no idea what I was doing, or how I could live so isolated. And the worst part of all is that you never leave work. You live with the people you work with, and never really leave that work housing complex. You become almost trapped in a world that you don’t really know, like or even understand. And somehow it all begins to develop into something entirely new and wonderful. In the last month our relationship with our boss, and the family, has developed from what it used to be. And in the most positive way too. It is the weirdest thing I have ever experienced, but you have to earn your place in the family you live and work for. You have to prove to them that you are worth their love, and within that you become another member of their family. But honestly, this wasn’t something that I expected to have to deal with. And it is hard.
But I am so so lucky to have been able to enjoy being in an area that is very socially connected, and there is always something to do each weekend. I am also super lucky to have met some incredible friends, who also love being social, maybe a little too much sometimes! But in all honesty, I wouldn’t be able to get through the hard days, let alone function as a normal human being, without their continual support. It is incredible how welcomed I have been into this community, especially from other Govies in the area. And I am more than certain that these girls are one of the many reasons that I have lasted so long on our station. The acceptance and love that we have been given is incredible. And to think that after all this time, I have a new home, and even a new family. I believe that it is so important to have those kind of people surrounding you. And in all these new aspects of my life, I had become a part of a new family, made up of friends, new work mates and even our own little family.
And sometimes the worst part about this life, especially for me, is that I am a chronic overthinker. I constantly over analyse my entire life, and the decisions I’ve made. But for me now, I know that there is no place I would rather be. My life is amazing, and I am growing into someone that I never thought I would be. I can’t imagine life on any other station, with any other group of people.
