25.06.2016

Saturday was a day for words beginning with the letter F, (relax this is G rated).

Welcome to 'Billabong', the farm that has hosted many a family holiday and created endless childhood memories.

One by one, car loads of family members arrive, packed to the brim and bursting with enthusiasm.

Let the fun and festivities begin..

With cousins as playmates and wide open spaces as far as their little eyes can see, what's not for a kid to love.  

The horses and cattle watch on curiously as they race past on motorbikes, little voices are heard through the scratchy speakers of walkie-talkies and it is stacks on when it comes to the tyre swing. They graze on pickles, pistachios and homemade damper.

The fire, like so often becomes the gathering point.  Everyone is drawn to its warmth in the hope of escaping the chill of the winter afternoon. Conversation flows freely, only to be interrupted by a burst of laughter, a toddlers cry or a ninja-like move to avoid the engulfing smoke and ash.  

'Billabong', has been a place to escape the stresses of reality with its idyllic surroundings and limited mobile service.

Unfortunately, there is one reality that this family cannot escape; their father is fighting Motor Neurone Disease (MND).

Nerve cells (neurons) control the muscles that enable us to move, speak, breathe and swallow. MND is the name given to a group of diseases in which these neurones fail to work normally. Muscles then gradually weaken and waste.

The heartbreaking fact is that there is no cure.

There are approximately 140,000 cases of MND diagnosed worldwide each year. That is 384 new cases every day.

These aren't just cases and they aren't just numbers; they are people.

People who are loved....

A husband, a Dad to four children and an adored Pa to ten grandchildren (nine boys and one costume loving little girl).

Thank you for sharing your little piece of paradise and your story with me, here are a few extra to add to the long list of memories for your family at 'Billabong' x

If you are interested in making a donation towards research for a cure, please visit the MND and Me Foundation.  A not for profit organisation raising awareness and assisting people living with MND and their families to maintain independence and quality of life for as long as possible.