Finding riches at the bottom of the hill 1



img_2375

I always knew I was going to be rich.  I don’t think I ever doubted it for a minute.– Warren Buffet

There’s a hill in Yallingup. Just one hill featuring about 150 homes of some of the most exclusive real estate on the planet. I’m holidaying there. Well almost. I’m at the bottom of the hill. Taking up residence in a 6 metre by 6 metre campsite in the caravan park by the beach. But everyday I take the hill at breakneck speed to keep up an exercise campaign that started 7 weeks ago. And I get a glimpse of life on the hill. Along the way I look at ever-renovating home projects, hear the music and conversations from big and small parties, watch family groups stroll to and from the beach, and then move deftly to the kerb as P plate drivers glide by in the latest 4WD. It’s a life of luxury and ease.

So this early morning I sit in my camping chair, to one side I look up at the hill and to the other, I see our small city of tents, eskies, and a rope clothesline tethered between a trailer and tent kitchen filled with sandy jocks and yesterday’s wet towels. So I ask myself, ‘Where do you want to be?’  

No need to pause. No need for a second question. Right here. Right now. Surrounded by my husband, three sons, their mates and their mess. Calls for more food and more sunscreen. Constant queries over lost clothes, lost wallets and technology chargers. Bragging over body surfing and tanning lines.

A kerbside game of cricket and kicking around of the football with delineated goals between parked cars and semi permanent caravans.

This is the fifteenth year of the Yallingup camping holiday. And though the boys have grown to men, the fun and laughter and card playing is as rich as ever. Too rich to measure.


About Kelley

Kelley is a speaker, author, overseas aid worker and perpetual student. She is passionate about women and gender issues, both in the local and international context, which underpins her enthusiasm for kinwomen and its contribution to women ‘living their finest life’. In 2014 Kelley completed a Masters in International and Community Development before establishing The Foxglove Project. Foxglove is a registered charity focused on supporting international development projects that are sustainable and driven by indigenous leadership. Kelley’s paid work requires her to travel extensively to evaluate and support projects supported by Australian funds. This experience and networking enables Foxglove to partner with outstanding overseas agencies delivering real opportunities for the poor and vulnerable to lead independent self-determined lives. Kelley combines these passions with a love of family and faith. Across more than 30 years of marriage, Kelley and her husband have worked through many of the challenges of building a relationship while raising three sons. Their boys have now finished high school changing the dynamics of family life and relationships. One of her great joys is sharing parenting lessons and learning from good and bad (sometimes disastrous) experiences. She uses humour and common sense to talk about the everyday challenges facing parents in today’s context.

One thought on “Finding riches at the bottom of the hill

Comments are closed.