February 2020

I was in Athens for the first week of the New Year. The weather was cold, wet, and generally miserable, and I wasn’t too happy, either, fast becoming a Twitter tragic in order to keep up with the ever-worsening news about Eastern Australia’s bush fires. Not to mention the reports of smoke haze in Sydney, Canberra, and Melbourne, with face masks not to be had for love or money. And here we are in February with danger still present. Small wonder, as February and March are often the hottest months of the year in the Wide Brown Land. As I write on January 30, Melbourne is expected to have a top temperature of 42 tomorrow.

But I must report that the New Year’s Day lunch was a very happy family occasion. There were eleven of us at table, and I reflected that there are advantages in being the Older Woman about the place, as my daughters-in-law did all the work, and I hardly had to lift a finger. Honour was upheld, however, as the day before I made another Christmas cake, which was presented with other goodies and the vasilopita, the traditional cake for New Year. It is named after St Basil, whose feast day it is. This cake contains a lucky coin, and it was my youngest grandson, Orestes, who found it in his generous slice. He was thrilled. He is only six, but I hope he remembers the occasion and his luck for a long time.

Today is another Feast Day, that of the Three Hierarchs: St Basil (again), St Gregory the Theologian, and St John Chrysostom, whose last name means ‘golden mouth,’ such a gifted preacher was he. These saints lived in the fourth century A.D. and did much to establish the forms of the Orthodox religion as the faithful still know it today. They were famous for their scholarship and wisdom, and so today is a school holiday. Well, sort of, as for school children church attendance in the morning is mandatory. Once the service is over, they are free.

Tomorrow is a dark day for many people: the day that Britain leaves the European Union. I’m one of those who is sad, as I can’t help feeling this is a retrograde step. Nobody can claim the EU is perfect, but the fact remains that it has maintained a sometimes wobbly peace among European nations for years on end. I hope I am proved wrong, but the pessimist in me predicts many a squabble and upset in the not too distant future. Just the matter of fishing rights seems to rouse the ire of the British. And that’s only one issue.

As if the world hasn’t got enough to contend with, it now has the Corona virus to fight. You rather wonder, in detached, over-rational mode, whether these viral outbreaks might be nature’s way of dealing with our ever-expanding population. (Note to self: a good time to re-read Camus’s novel The Plague? But perhaps ‘good’ is not an appropriate word at present.) Australian scientists are apparently well to the fore when it comes to the skill and sheer hard slog necessary to develop a vaccine: it is hoped that it will be ready by the time the northern summer comes. But of course nobody can predict how long the threat of the virus will last. In the meantime, China is being praised for its swift and drastic action in doing all it can to prevent the disease spreading.

The Australian government, however, continues on its punitive way. Chinese-Australians, in China because of the New Year celebrations (were there any?), will have to pay $1000 for the privilege (?) of being evacuated to Christmas Island, of all places, for their 14-day quarantine. The island is closer to Indonesia than to Australia, is a gaol more than anything else, and has inadequate medical facilities. What will happen if somebody has indeed contracted the virus? Then, when the period is over, they will be taken to Perth and expected to make their own way home, wherever home may be. I wonder if any of them wonder whether they would rather stay in China and take their chances?

You will not be surprised to learn that the Sri Lankan family is still detained on Christmas Island. The elder daughter is due to start school, and will be accompanied by armed guards. Shameful. To think that Australia has come to this.

On a lighter note: January has been a good month, after the inclement start already mentioned. Lots of frosty, sunny days have produced carpets of camomile and the usual miniature purple irises are peeping from among rocks, while their taller white cousins are appearing along the roadsides. Soon the wattles will burst into bloom, reminding me of other times and other places. The locals have been going in fear of a winter drought, but we have had reasonable falls of rain recently, and February will bring more.

And there is a robin in my garden! That little red breast is such a cheering sight in winter.