Video Transcription
How Rubey managed Year 12 and life on the farm
We run Cool Awara and Storybook Alpacas. Alpacas are kind of like cats—they have such a curious personality about them.
We’ve had probably 10% of our annual rainfall, and it’s made you feel a bit more anxious than normal, almost having no power to do anything about it straight away. It’s a gradual thing; things drag out gradually, not all at once. I think that’s difficult to deal with when you’re young. You know, you have your choice—you either lay down, or you get up. Our philosophy is, “Seven times down, eight times up.”
It’s good because it teaches you to have a couple of moments where you can have a little shock moment when you’re stressed, but then your ability to get back on track grows. I think that’s what resilience is. Resilience is not just surviving; it’s learning to think differently.
With Ruby doing her Year 12 this year, it probably impacted my final year of school more than I wanted it to. In some subject areas, I felt like I had to not aim as high as I would have liked, just because I had to consider the work that still needed to be done elsewhere.
I remember resettling guys—I think she had 16 exams over 10 days. It’s the time leading up to that where you’re trying not to be selfish by saying, “You need a break, you need a break.” With Year 12, it’s just about maintaining that sense of balance with it all.
The good thing about us is that this farm is half an hour away from where we actually live. Once we get home, we can separate ourselves from the farm and have that time to be with each other. We’ll do little things like watching TV—we’re watching Big Bang Theory at the moment. On those car trips, we usually all come down in one car, listen to music, or chat about what’s happening. It’s just little stints that are different from what we deal with all the time, and they help keep the communication open.
I’m a total book nerd, so going to bed half an hour earlier to read a chapter or something like that is one of those little things that helps keep me happy.
If you can cope well with adversity, like managing a drought, there’s not much you can’t do. If you put your mind to it, you can cope. If you can keep a thousand animals healthy in these conditions, you can get through that math exam, punch the bag, or do the tax. If you can manage this, you can manage anything.
Video by Reach Out
