I'll ride with you

It doesn't seem right posting anything frivolous before mentioning the tragedy the occurred in Sydney last week. As the funeral for Tori Johnson and memorial service for Katrina Dawson take place it reminds us all how fragile life can be. I cannot imagine what their families are going through at what is meant to be a joyous time of year.

I watch the event unfold with horror last week. I'd not had a great nights sleep and was up before Mr John's alarm even went off. As he was getting ready, I put the tv on which automatically came up with Australia Plus network. Almost the first thing I saw was the hostages hands on the windows of the Lindt Cafe. A terrifying sight. Needless to say, the channel remained on all day.

Seeing two of the staff running for their lives into the arms of a policeman and the subsequent relief on their faces tore at my heart. I just couldn't believe this was happening in the country I'd grown up in and still, despite many years of living away, call home. The danger with being an "expat" is that your knowledge of your home country is stuck at a moment in time. Inevitably this is the day you left your homeland.

Despite frequent visits home, your hands on knowledge is limited despite what anyone else may tell you. My Australia is a gloriously isolated, young vibrant country trying to grow up and out of the British empire.  A land of opportunity where, with hard work, anything is possible. A country struggling to integrate indigenous Australians with immigrants from all over the world into a just society. Where the most recent arrivals can find themselves at the bottom of the pecking order - kept there mostly by the those who arrived in the previous wave until the next influx. It isn't perfect but my Aussie passport is one of my most treasured possessions.

Getting ready for bed that night there was suddenly flashing light on our tv screen and then the noise. The police were moving in. Then paramedics converged on the cafe and people were being carried out. It was over. At that stage no one knew the death toll. Already there were so many questions that I'm sure, in time, will be answered.

The bright light in all of this was the "I'll ride with you" hashtag on twitter. To say I was proud of this Aussie response would be an understatement. I read somewhere and I'm sorry I can't find the piece and credit the writer that saying all Muslims were represented by this scumbag was like saying the Klu Klux Klan represented alll Christians. I was also grateful for Muslim leaders in Australia publicly condemning this act. I've been waiting for this reaction from a lot of countries and have been frustrated in the lack of condemnation by the people who have the authority to do so and have their views listened to.

So hold your loved ones tight this holiday season. Think what you're saying before you argue with someone - is it really worth arguing over or can you let it go? Mr John says the key to our successful marriage is that he picks his battles. If it doesn't bother him he lets me have my way otherwise he voices his opinion. Of course, this just means that I really listen to him when he does this. He's a pretty smart guy.