At the moment I am in the process of writing and producing a video course, which we will be presenting on-line from April 21 for Culture Concept Circle Members.
It seemed poetic on Saturday that, as I was working on the production of the Roman epoch and destruction of Vesuvius in 79AD by the forces of nature, when wild storms unleashed their full fury on Melbourne.
Huge golf ball size hailstones cut swathes through people enjoying the festivities at Flemington races and those at the Moomba festival set up alongside the banks of the Yarra and they were covered physically with cuts all over their legs and arms to prove it.
Parents cowered in doorways shielding children while everyone ducked for cover just like the residents of Pompeii had done, to no avail, so long ago. Flinders street became a river, while the accumulation of hailstones formed a giant iceberg on the glass roof of the cities main central station and down it came.
At South Yarra my son was forced to quickly tape up our glass windows in case they shattered inward and we were reduced to sitting and talking, which we both admitted later was a wonderful experience. The power failed for hours giving us time for reflection and reading while also reminding us vividly of how crippled our civilisation is when energy sources failed.
It also strengthened and confirmed how important is the retention of knowledge and what can happen when it is lost. As darkness approached and we lit our candles it reminded us of the European dark ages, where often for so many of its inhabitants, all must have seemed completely lost. Then suddenly, as a symbol of hope, the lights came on.
As the rain and gale force winds subsided my son returned to his world of websites while I returned to the land of which 19th century swoon poet Lord Byron said… ‘Oh Italia, thou hast the fatal gift of beauty……the orphans of the heart must turn to thee.
Carolyn McDowall at Melbourne – March 2010
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