On Monday we travelled to Roma for Scripture Union's Stock Up For Hope cattle sale.
The need for chaplains in rural and remote schools is as great as any with students facing the same issues as their city counterparts, but with isolation, the drought, and lack of work playing a part in their lives as well.
In order to raise much-needed funds to support school chaplaincy in Queensland, SU Qld runs an annual cattle muster, asking for graziers to donate cattle so they can be sold and the proceeds be used for school chaplaincy.
Over the last few weeks, drovers and corporate guests (who are Stock Up sponsors) have been droving the donated cattle towards Roma in preparation for the sale on Tuesday 13th. We all went to see the cattle sale and to get away for a bit, but mainly to be a part of Mr de Elba's work for a few days.
And with the three vomits in the car, it was the longest 4-hour car trip of my life. Mainly because it took about 5.5 hours.
While Mr de Elba was at work meetings (okay, top-notch lunches and dinners, and coffees with colleagues,) it was hard pretending to the children that there was actually some fun to be had in the cabin where we stayed. All we had were four library books and a TV that was conveniently positioned here:
We city kids are positively oozing Country Style.
Kidding.
The Cattle Sale was great to watch.
We didn't understand 95% of what the auctioneer was saying, but we know that:
(a) we can't afford to buy a bull
(b) we are pleased that we didn't accidentally buy a bull,
(c) everyone stands with their thumbs in the jeans pockets to stop them moving their hands and inadvertantly buying a bull,
(d) if you're dressed like a city girl carrying a baby, camera bag and five drink bottles (I know! More than the number of people needing drink bottles! I hate freebies!) holding your camera high above your head to get some good pics of the auction, they look nervously at you, worrying that you may inadvertantly buy a bull and then get mad because you didn't want to.
And finally, I was a little mystified by this:
12 comments:
Love it! Glad you survived the cattle sale and didn't buy a bull. My enterprising husband once had ambitions to put a bull in the backyard of our house in Longreach (bit of easy money on the side, or so he thought). He then, sensibly, downgraded ambitions to a ram. But it never did happen.
Ahhhhh! It's all falling into place now. I get it. Thank you for explaining in more detail for the, um, not so rural-savvy readers.
Looks like it was fun, anyway!
Except the vomit. Vomit in car = bad, bad, bad.
Love this! What a great cause. Where do little girls get that innate fickle gene??? Maybe the word fickle should start with 'x'.
Good for you making the extra effort to support Mr. de Elba. I think it makes such a difference not only to our husbands but to our kids when we put action into our admiration.
So that pink country getup? Quite possibly the cutest picture ever.
Sounds like a great time other than the car trip.
Cute pictures! You never know what is going to scare kids (or not).
She is just too cute, and I'm glad you survived.
PS. Love YOUR boots!
That is, I'm presuming that they don't belong to Mr de Elba?
Har, har harrr! I also had another photo of our 3 try-hard country boots with Mr de Elba's shiny black shoes in front, the ones he wore to ritzy dinners. Should have posted that.
The little city slicker sure is cute. I think she's staring down the cows.
♥
Joy
How fun is this?! You guys are real troopers going all the way there to support this wonderful cause. And THREE vomits?! Wow. Sainthood.
At the only auction I've been to, the auctioneer drawled his words so slowly that you nearly fell asleep. And you had to raise a number to bid, which is much more sensible than buying something because you flicked a fly from your nose.
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