Over The Hills And Far Away

Courtesy of NZToday Magazine.

IT IS ESTIMATED THAT millions of trees in the world are accidentally planted by squirrels who bury nuts and then forget where they hid them. I can empathise with this; I have hidden special treasures throughout my life in such secret places that I have never ever discovered their whereabouts again. Namely a greenstone given to me by a good friend and also my favourite He-Man figurine which I buried in the damn garden but forgot to mark the spot. So the squirrel and I are not so different and even though we have one in New Zealand, took quite a liking to them when I lived in Scotland seven odd years ago.

The Scots are a brilliant bunch, despite their reputation as stingy buggers — Besides, I wholeheartedly refute his stereotype- I hardly paid for a pint the whole time I was there, the Scottish hospitality exceeding any I have ever experienced. Kind, patriotic, always up for a laugh, and ALWAYS  up for a drink, there are a lot of good things about the place to keep your mind off how freezing it gets in winter.

I arrived in the middle of the coldest time- January 9th 1999 — with a freshly broken leg (New Year’s eve wakeboarding accident). It was a disappointing start to my OE, especially since half the reason for the trip was to play some good honest Northern Hemisphere rugby. I was in a bit of a state when I arrived at the boarding school where I would work as a student teacher/rugby coach/mail boy. Especially when they showed me to my room. It was in the crow’s nest up six flights of stairs. And I was on crutches. Suffice to say the muscles in my arms got a good workout every day, at least three or four times. But I got used to it. My time there wasn’t how I expected it to be, but I made the most of it, and even turned it to my advantage. At lunchtimes I would do time trials for some of the students to bet on. It was easier than going to the TAB for sports betting, and usually a lot more entertaining. To the top of the stairs and back. One leg, two crutches, a whole lot of noise from the boys shouting, and a big cheer as I finished. The person who guessed closest to the time it took me won the loot, and whoever won or lost, I would usually get a cut of the winnings, or get a beer brought for me at the school’s pub (YES THEY HAD A PUB IN THE SCHOOL FOR THE EVENTH FORMERS!).

It was still one of the best times of my life. Broken bones can be a lot worse than just a leg. Two weeks ago my best friend in the world broke his back after a pretty bad fall. He severed is spinal cord and the doctors have told us he won’t ever get to walk again. I can’t begin to imagine how he feels and I can’t even begin to describe how inspired I am by the spirit and strength of character he has shown in dealing with the situation. His smile is still as wide as it always was and his laugh is still as loud as ever. He has down times of course, but if there is one person who can make the best of a bad situation, it’s him.

While my broken leg is nothing compared to what Ben will have to deal with, I mention it because despite my dreams being crushed the moment I broke that leg, I still had the time of my life because the people that were around me made sure I did. When one door closes, another opens, and even though the journey you wanted to take may be out of reach, it doesn’t mean the journey you DO take will be a bad one. He told me the other day he’s heard more clichés in the past two weeks than he has in his whole life, and I am probably adding to that pile. So sorry about that bro.

We’ve discussed things a lot. And although he won’t be setting any time trial records traversing stairs, he will be building an upper body that will turn concrete into powder, and we have a cunning plan. The Auckland underground, pub arm wrestling circuit beckons.

With his natural strength and perfection of the ‘over the top’ method, there’s no doubt he’s going to win big. Life is what you make it, and he has always made it a pretty interesting thing to experience despite the obstacles he’s come across. And I salute him for that.

To subscribe phone 0800 611 911 or Subscribe via e-mail.

print