By Mary Lamb
“One life, yeah? We live it.” Quote by Nirmal Purja aka.
John is sitting in Business Class onboard the aircraft holding a tall glass of Champagne. He posts a photo smiling proudly on Facebook which says, “If you have self believe and you have people who believes in you, then you can do anything.”
He was leaving his home in Queensland to start a new career working in First Class as Cabin Crew Inflight Chef for Etihad Airways and would be living in the Middle East for the next few years.
Over this time, he worked hard and had the privilege to see the world and every opportunity to explore and have an adventure he grabbed eagerly with youthful enthusiasm.
Diving with Great White Sharks in South Africa, Skiing in Switzerland, a Rodeo in Texas, Safaris in the Middle Eastern desert, Karaoke in South Korea, watching the full moon view from the cockpit over K2 and many more wonderful experiences while working for the airline.
Petra, Jordan
Times Square New York, USA
Paris, France.
Cappadocia, Turkey
Tomorrowland, Belgium
Northern Lights, Norway
Finally, after years of exploring many destinations, he came home to Australia due to Covid travel restrictions and 2 weeks later I received a phone call in the middle of the night, that no mother ever wants to hear. “Your son is in hospital you need to fly to Gold Coast urgently, he has fallen from a balcony and broken both ankles, we are waiting on the Doctor for test results on his spine.”
In a heartbeat, I was on the plane heading to the mainland and soon standing in front of him at his hospital bed doing my best not to burst into tears.
John stays in the hospital for months and the staff care for him dearly and eventually he is allowed to come home to me in Tasmania.
Fortunately, it is his ankles only that are broken but the road to recovery will take a while and his adventures will have to remain on hold for now.
His mental attitude as always is positive and his life becomes a mantra of smalls goals. First to be able to move from bed to wheelchair to shower and get around the house and into the car.
I had moved to the Apple Isle while John was living overseas and it turns out my new house is a perfect design for a wheelchair as so easy to manoeuvre due to its wide hallways and large rooms.
I am always keen to travel around my new homeland and happily take my son on day trips in the car with his wheelchair.
We drive along the quiet roads taking in the natural beauty of the Island. Stopping to take photos and we park as close as possible to the sights, so we don’t have to worry about the wheelchair and getting in and out of the car. Like this lovely stop on the Tasman Highway which overlooks the Tamar Valley and wineries by the water.
We drive to the Lost falls, which seems like a great idea to see waterfalls and take photos. But then halfway along a dirt track with huge potholes, we find ourselves in a remote area with no mobile coverage and we are lost. Not a great feeling with a son looking at me with that “Oh what are we doing Mum look on his face.”
We backtrack and then decide to stay on the easier roads. Guess the name fits the destination perfectly.
The Little Blue Lake does not disappoint, we park as close as possible to the water and enjoy the tranquil aqua colour of the Lake. The colour comes from high levels of aluminium found in its base, which result from the pioneering mining days from the 1880s. It was a mine hole before it was filled with water and turned into a lake.
Each day my son does his daily exercises with the support of the local hospital and becomes a little stronger physically while he continues to push himself as much as possible. “Mum come quickly” John yells one day. I run into the lounge room worried he is hurt and here he is with a big smile on his face and standing upright. It was just for a minute, but he was so excited.
Soon he is ready for taking steps slowly outside of the house and we head to Lilydale Falls at Lilydale Falls Reserve, a 30-minute drive North of Launceston. We take photos by the stream and enjoy the world freshest air that Tasmania is well known for.
Nothing feels better than sand in your toes at the beach, so today we are grateful to be standing at the most beautiful beach. Located on the North East Coast around 15 minutes’ drive north from Binalong Bay.
We park the car next to the sand and in just a few steps we are standing at The Gardens. Named by Lady Jane Franklin, wife of the governor of Tasmania in the early 1800’s, due to the abundance of wildflowers in the area.
The clear water gently washes over our feet and we look for Whales and Dolphins and we are surprised that we have the beach to ourselves. No one is around and we can see miles of crisp white sand, Tasmania truly is a very special place.
A journey is about setting goals and taking the necessary steps to reach them. Small steps that lead to big results and to have a clear focus is what gets us through our days and we cherish the achievements along the way.
The post has just arrived this morning and John shows me his latest online purchase, a pair of walking boots. We have recently watched the movie 14 Peaks on Netflix and found it so motivating that we have since watched it 3 more times.
Now John plans to see local trails and has set himself a new goal, to hike at Cradle Mountain, one step at a time!
Northern Tasmania
Getting There
The nearest major airport is Launceston and flights operate from most capital cities in Australia with partner airline of Etihad Airways, Virgin Airlines.
Wheelchairs must be prebooked prior to departure.
Getting Around
Hire a Car, Campervan or Motorhome and collect at Launceston Airport
Or from Hobart – Wheelchair Accessible Hire Van
Staying There
Wheelchair accessible rooms – stay in Evandale which is 10minutes drive from the Airport and the village is perfect to get around with great access into Pubs and shops.
The East Coast also has many places to stay with disabled rooms.
National Parks – access friendly
Beautiful national parks with facilities and equipment that are accessible to a broad range of people, including the mobility impaired, vision impaired, elderly and people with prams
What else to do
Easy access places to enjoy in and around Launceston - National Car Museum, Beaconsfield Mine, Queen Victoria Art Gallery, Platypus House and Seahorse World.
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