K2K, An Interval

24/07/17

We came home in April for the birth of our first Grand Daughter ‘Isla Maddison’ who arrived fit, very healthy, and perhaps most importantly, ready to ride, on the 25^th of April and immediately became the new love in our lives. Kangarilla to Kathmandu was interrupted for good reason, but to be fair, after three months of riding the volcanic spine of Indonesia, we were feeling the need for some home time. We were a bit worn out, and the last two weeks of Sumatra saw us battling traveller’s belly and it turned out to be Giardia as well.  We were worried about bringing home a bug that Lauren, and soon to be born Isla, really didn’t need, so we took precautions to get sorted out as soon as we arrived home to make sure that we didn’t pass anything nasty on.  We can’t describe the joy we feel as a result of Isla coming into our lives, and we are so proud of Lauren and Ash and the great job they are doing as new parents.

Joy turned to sadness shortly after this with a phone call letting us know that our Great Niece, Molly, had died tragically in Melbourne.  This hit us really hard, such a young life with so much ahead of her.  We had been planning to meet up with Molly in Nepal at the end of our trip, she was looking forward to a school trip there, trekking and helping on some local projects.  Perhaps hardest was trying to imagine what her Mum and Dad, Tania and Matt, as well as her Grandparents, Lloyd and Gail were going through.  They love her so much and are still hurting really badly.  We are planning something really special to remember Molly when we arrive in Nepal next year.  Our need to once again find the joy is strong.

While all of this was going on, we were noticing a serious turn in Mary’s Mum, Annette’s health. With an ambulance called and a trip to Flinders Medical Centre, things slowly went from bad to worse and despite massive help from the FMC staff and so much support from close family and friends, Annette shuffled from this mortal coil on the Twelfth of June.  Farewell Annette, and thank you for your amazing legacy and incredible memories, but most importantly, trusting me to look after your incredible daughter.  Mary and I are both now orphans.

Naturally this all led to us delaying the continuation of our trip, with Mary being the Executor of her Mum’s estate, this meant we needed to stick around for a while to sort out the endless legal paperwork.  We have always had the attitude that the trip is flexible, to be changed as needed to meet our own or our family’s needs.  It’s sad about the circumstances, but once again, we believe that if by continuing our adventure, we can bring a little more joy into our lives and the lives of our family and friends, then that’s a great reason to “Ride On”.

So once we could see an end to Mary’s responsibilities, we decided that we would re-book our flight back to Kuala Lumpur and box Larry and Priscilla back up, ready to continue on, and bring on the joy of cycling from Kangarilla to Kathmandu.  The adventure continues 25 July 2017.