At the very beginning of the school holidays my Dad died. He was the best Dad ever. I am an only child and I was very privileged to always have the love and support of my great Dad. He was the type of guy who was full of interesting facts and trivia. He knew lots of funny simple magic tricks to amuse the kids. He was very well informed on current affairs and always inquisitive and interested in my friends. Over the years I made school friends, work friends, play group friends, kinder friends and parents of my kids' school friends.
Dad remembered all of them and their kids and what made them special and wonderful. He had a relationship of his own with lots of those people because for most of the time he was collecting the kids from school or other activities while I was at work.
The partner of one of my closest friends is a hot air balloon pilot. The very special Chris, AKA Balloonman.
Less than a week after Dad passed away, Chris decided that D, the kids & I needed a big distraction. Our two families & Chris' photographer friend Andrew Chapman drove up to Hall's Gap in the Balloon bus. In the frosty cold of the morning before the sun came up we rugged up in all our cozy gear & drove up to the Wonderland Carpark. We all heave-ho'd and unfolded the balloon in the empty carpark. A group of international bushwalkers looked on in amazement. We climbed into the basket and with a long whooshing blast of the burners we climbed up and up and up over the Grampians. It was the most spectacular experience ever. It was a bit terrifying too, especially when we rose up to 10,000 ft to clear an outcrop called the "Asses Ears" only to find ourselves drifting back over the range very slowly instead of towards the pastureland we were expecting to reach. Lisa & I were looking desperately into eachother's eyes over the heads of the children.
Is this IT?
Don't be silly!
While ballooning leaves you at the mercy of the elements, rudderless so to speak, the skill of the pilot is the most important thing & Chris is a master of the craft. It was the best & I want to thank him for his love & care. Thank you Balloonman.
1 comment:
I'm so sorry to hear about your Dad. It is a huge loss and I know you will miss him for the rest of forever. (I'm sure you know what I mean!)
The ballooning looks like a beautiful treat for you all... what a lovely way to watch the day awake and to find some peace. And what a perfect place to do it too.
Take care.
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