In the write mood again.

It has been a while, years in fact since I ventured into blogland. It has taken time to let my life settle into that space that lets words bubble up to the surface. I won't bore you with the details, I save that for facebook. That's where we put up our raw self, that part that we allow ourselves to be seen. Not that I have ever been naked and unafraid. My Facebook is full of cats, dachshunds and jokes. Friends post their journeys -pre covid - the world, post covid, their backyard or local highlights. No crowds, just lonely explorers, sharing nature's delights.

I have endured the isolation with good grace. I am still fit enough to walk and see my pal Noodles. Walking the park at Springwood is a pleasure. Like me she lives on the cusp of introversion. Happy enough to be alone, but not for too long. I have watched all the Netflix, Stan, Prime, Foxtel and Disney Channel I can afford. I have watched enough SBS Scandi Noir to be fluent in Danish and Swedish.

Now I have created my writing space again. Following the advice, and paraphrasing,Virginia Woolf I have that very necessary "room of my own". Here I have my books and my uncluttered place where my mind can wonder and be curious. There is something magical about writing, and a blog is a place of pure indulgence. It's me with words at play.

You may well ask - what is she writing? Well its a story of a young girl who is caught pocket picking in 1826 London. She is transported to Van Diemen's Land. She is a fiesty, tough girl of 18 years. She survives, she marries three times. She serves her time and moves to South Australia. She was my 3rd great grandmother. The more I look into her life the more she comes alive. The lies she told and the secrets she held. Did her sons and daughters born in S.A. know they had sisters in Tasmania? Why did she leave her children behind?

Mary Davis is my project, my focus, she has drawn me back to words, to make sense of her world. To make sense of the now, looking at the resilience in my genes. I am not that confident I could have survived in her world. It was tough and unforgiving.

I will let you know more as time goes on.