Broken Records

The drought in Australia has finally broken after years of little rainfall. Desalination plants, water restrictions, recycling techniques and a politically controversial carbon tax to combat greenhouse emissions that supposedly are leading global warming - these have all been at the forefront of the news over the last few years.

And now this.

Tropical downpours and unseasonal rain throughout Australia. While 2 years ago whole towns were destroyed by wildfires with large losses of life, some of those same towns, now in the process of being rebuilt, have suffered flood damage. I heard one resident of such a town challenging God on the news - "You gave us fire, you gave us flood - we've had it all, throw us what you got. We can take it".

I went for a walk with my uncle this week - a kindred soul when it gets to wanderlust - and we followed the banks of Melbourne's Yarra river. While heavy rains had occurred in areas some distance away, the river now periodically burst its banks downstream. We fought the mosquitoes while attempting to traverse the trail, in places a now muddy marshland.

Red barked trees stand out in the landscape, bearing markings that must surely be interpreted by the uninitiated as Aboriginal art. Caterpillars and gumnut flowers provide a beautiful decoration.

How stunning is nature in both its cruelty and and its kindness.