Australia – Long Lost Ellen

Perhaps you thought I’d gone home, well not yet.

I’ve been silent because I have been busy catching up on 20 years with Ellen.

Ellen (an Australian) and I met working on a Moshav (a cooperative farm) in Israel in 1985/1986. I was 22 and it was an experience we shared and possibly shaped us both, good and bad. We went our separate ways, Ellen continued travelling and I came home. When I returned I became a self employed gardener and moved into a shared house. Then one day in the preceding year Ellen contacted me out of the blue and arrived shortly afterward, sick (with glandular fever) and stressed. She stayed for several months and worked for me occasionally until she was fit and ready to move on.

We loosely stayed in touch but eventually lost touch about 18 years ago.
It’s funny how people stay with you and are important to you. So I often wondered what happened, I knew she married and had a child after our last contact but, from there nothing.

Anyway the day before I flew across the world on this journey, Barney (my ex husband and friend) phoned to say he had found a professional email address for someone with Ellen’s initials and in Brisbane (near her family home). I was doubtful it could be her. “What have you got to lose?” He said. I quickly knocked out an email and bingo! Here I am in Brisbane staying with Ellen!

We seem to have had parallel lives. Some of the similarities are so striking it’s spooky. Even down to her up bringing and parents who I had the pleasure of meeting and staying with.

I’ll put a bit of meat on the bones of my recent travels soon.

I have enjoyed my memory jogging experience! Not all of it came back at once but in a series of ‘Ah Ha’ moments over the last few days but, I don’t think they are for sharing. It’s just good to feel we are not strangers after all.