Page 119 of Weekends with the Sunshine Gardening Society
‘We will be starting dinner service more nights of the week,’ he explains. ‘Although the position won’t necessarily be for those sittings. It’s just that another manager will be required. We can talk, yes? Perhaps after service today?’
‘Sure.’ Kathy blinks, slightly stunned at this news – she wasn’t expecting her announcement to lead to a better job prospect.
‘And you can also tell me about your parks people,’ Hans says.
‘The Sunshine Gardening Society?’
She’s told him a little about the others and their work, but not enough for her to feel like it isn’t still a bit of a secret society, because she quite likes that idea.
‘No – the parks … association? Is that it?’
‘Oh, yes.’
His question makes her think about something she’s been contemplating for a little while, related to the Gardening Society as well as the Parks Association. Without her completely realising it, she’s developed more than an interest in the local environment. It’s become almost a second job.
It took Michelle to point it out, the other night when they had one of their regular phone calls. ‘Mum, you’re obsessed,’ she said. ‘If you’re that into it, why don’t you get a job doing it or something?’
That got Kathy thinking. And now she needs to tell Hans of the intention she’s formed.
‘About that,’ she goes on. ‘There’s something that may affect which shifts I take.’
‘Oh?’ He frowns.
‘I’m thinking of running for council,’ she says quickly, not sure what he’ll make of the idea.
Now that she’s a permanent resident it has occurred to her that she could commit to the area in other ways. She can see that one encounter with a property developer in a park has started a cascade of notions: to get more involved in protecting the local land, which means staying in Noosa, which means telling Hans she wants to be permanent. She fully intends to maintain her commitment to the Sunshine Gardening Society, and maybe – if the conditions are right – see what else she can do to preserve the land she’s grown to love.
An outsider – someone who knows bare details of her life – might think she’s a middle-aged woman meddling in other people’s business because her children have grown up and she doesn’t have much else in her life. That might all be true. Even if it is, her decisions now are sincere and valid: she wants to stay because this place makes her happy, and so do its people, and its sand and waves and trees and – yes, Shirl – its native plants.
When Kathy moved here, happiness wasn’t in the plan. She was escaping, pure and simple, and she never kidded herself about that. Happiness is a by-product and a bonus and, now, a powerful motivation to remain here.
She’s been alive long enough to know that happiness isn’t permanent. There will be hard days caused by reasons she doesn’t even know yet. But, gee, the other days are so good. When the sun shines on her back while she’s bent over a garden bed, new friends chatting around her and a sense of purpose in her veins, or bent over a canvas with a brush in her hand and a picture in her mind, there’s nothing better.
‘What a wonderful idea,’ Hans says. ‘I think the council would be very lucky to have you.’ He smiles at her in such a way that it seems like a benediction, and she’ll take it.
‘I don’t want it to muck up anything here, though,’ she says.
‘Not to worry. We will talk about it.’ He checks his watch. ‘Now, let us prepare ourselves for hungry people.’
Kathy smiles her agreement and glances around the restaurant – one last check that everything is in place. And it is.
CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR
AsElizabeth turns on the kettle and waits for Olive to join her for lunch, she starts to think about the million and one things to check and organise and tick off before she leaves the house. It’s been years since she moved, and she and Jon didn’t seem to have as much stuff together as Charlie alone has accumulated in his short life. So many books, so many toys; baby clothes that she should really have thrown out except for a while she hoped she’d use them again. Part of her still hopes that, although she has no idea how it would happen. She has no thoughts of marrying again let alone bearing the children of a man other than Jon.
Although Reverend Willoughby said something interesting the other day after the service.
‘You’re looking well,’ was how he started the conversation. ‘Much better than I’ve seen you in … years. I don’t mean that unkindly.’
‘I don’t take it that way,’ she said, and meant it.
‘And I hear you’re moving.’
‘I am. Well, I’m selling. The garden is looking just the way Jon wanted it. I guess I have you to thank for that, for sending Shirl and Barb to me.’
‘Shirley tells me that you have done as much work as any of them.’ He smiled. ‘I gave it all a mere nudge.’
‘I’ve learnt a lot from Shirl,’ she said, although she’d never formed that thought before that moment. ‘Not just about gardening. She really … embraces life, doesn’t she?’
