In the late 70s I lived in the township of Corryong, Victoria. Nestled right at the top of the Murry Valley, Corryong had the reputation of often being the hottest Victorian location in the Summer and the coldest in the Winter. The thing I found most difficult about Corryong was the winter fogs which cloaked the township until mid morning, clearing only for a few hours before rolling in again in mid afternoon. For a sunny Queenslander this called for some adjusting.
Corryong is surrounded by the snow capped peaks of the rugged Snowy Mountians and The Man from Snowy River of Banjo Patterson fame has his burial place in the Corryong cemetery. It is also the headwaters of the mighty Murray River. The melting snow rushes from the Snowys and at this point the river is clear, pure, tumbling and icy. It is a beautiful spot and I hold happy memories of my time there, the sweetest being the birth of my first child, a daughter, in the Corryong District Hospital.
The Murray is the longest river in Australia at over 2500 kilometres; it forms the border between New South Wales and Victoria before flowing through the South Australian Riverlands and finding its way into the Southern Ocean near Goolwa in South Australia.
Today, over 40 years later, I am on the Murray again. This time on the Captain Proud paddle boat at Murray Bridge in South Australia where the Murray nears the completion of its long meandering journey. The Murray here is tranquil, broad, slow and a little brown but still beautiful and life giving.
It all reminds me of life. We start off fresh, bubbly and clean and then life takes its twists and turns and meanders off in different directions. We yeild to life and it rewards us with regeneration and new life. Sometimes there are droughts and sometimes people take more than they should and sometimes things stagnate and we need to wait upon refreshment from higher places.
But then as we near the end, hopefully, there us a quality of tranquility. We certainly slow down and usually we have broadened out a bit but there is still beauty and for as long as we have the gift of life, we have something to give back. And finally, just as the Mighty Murray spills out and is lost in the Southern Ocean, our life ebbs and flows until it is embraced by that ocean of eternity.
May we live fully in the present, counting our blessings but keep one eye on the future and two eyes on eternity.
Way leads onto Way 