Australian Snippets

Ever hear the saying: "We are born alone and we die alone."?

That's a bunch of happy horsemanure, of course. If you analyze the obvious, you'll know it just ain't so.

During my San Francisco years, I was favorably impressed by a warm and friendly, bright and spontaneous, Australian gal.

We used to sit and have tea together.

One day as we sipped the strong brew and munched her homemade pastries, she imparted this snippet with an air of great wisdom.

My reply? The obvious, naturally. "Ah . . . Joanne, have you considered that we are born in the protective womb of our mother's love and she is most often aided in childbirth by many hands. Doctors. Nurses. Midwives. Immediately upon our birth, we are embraced in mother's arms with an adoring papa standing ready to hold us. Not to mention the grandparents. Maybe a few aunts and uncles. That sounds like a crowd to me."

Joanne chewed thoughtfully both on the idea and the pastry. "You know, Chae, I hadn't thought of it that way."

Without twitching a wrinkle, I continued, "If our birth is attended by such a multitude, I highly suspect that folks will flock to our death, too. Now they may all be creditors, with pen in hand, saying: "Ahem. Could I just get you to sign this check before you depart?", but you catch my drift, it will be a crowded affair."

I sure miss Joanne. Our conversations always led to the most interesting revelations, usually about stuff, which like her, I had previously swallowed wholly unexamined.
Australian Snippets © 2005 Chaeli Lee Sullivan