In case you never hear from me again...

Goooooddd morninggggg from one of my happiest places ☀️

Calm down Mum, this is not a goodbye note... but seriously, just in case I ever disappear it's because I've become a mermaid and now live on Great Keppel Island frolicking in the sunshine and the crystal blue waters for the rest of my days 😍

This week has been such a wonderful reminder of all of the amazing places and situations that we have no idea exist, until we arrive at them. For a few reasons, this week has been one of my favourite weeks in a long time.

Let me lay 'em out for ya:

1. Great Keppel Island: the paradise that I'd weirdly only heard of in passing once or twice before??

2. Overcoming irrational fears about a joining a group trip while solo!

3. Laughing about weird electrical issues that once would have absolutely sent me to the moon with panic and stress.

I had some extra time up my sleeve while staying near Yeppoon on the Capricorn Coast and when I researched things to do I stumbled across a day trip with some snorkelling out at the island. For $160 I got a return ferry pass, glass bottom boat tour, an hour free time on the island, snorkelling and boom-netting, with morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea provided. I was sold. I was also a little nervous about embarking on a group tour on my own- it's been a lot of years since I've really done any solo travel. I know that you're all thinking but you've been travelling on your own for 2 months now?! And you'd be right, but also driving around on your own and doing some hikes is a completely different situation to putting yourself into a group tour when you're on your own and you suddenly feel really exposed. The lady checking me in literally commented 'Oh doing it by yourself dear? At least there's nobody else dragging the ball and chain for you!' I awkwardly laughed with her and then went and sat, on my own, and people watched some of the other couples and families as they boarded the ferry 😅

I made a promise to myself right there and then that I was going to enjoy the day regardless of whether I had anybody next to me to enjoy the sights with, AND I was going to put my phone away. This is a big one and it's something that I've really noticed in the last couple of years: whenever there is a pause in the conversation or a lag in the action, most people avoid that discomfort by pulling their phones out and checking them. I'm definitely guilty of it as well, and I know the only way to combat this behaviour is to keep checking myself with it, time and again, and rejecting the impulse as soon as it comes up.

And whaddyaknow? I had an absolutely fantastic day. One of my favourite days to date! The morning was slow, and everyone participated in the group activities so they kept to their own little social circles. I people watched, I observed the ocean, I basked in the sunshine. For our free hour, I lazed on the beach and went for a swim and read my book. It was bliss.

In the afternoon, we did the snorkelling and the boom-netting and not everyone participated so it forced people to move away from their social units and interact with each other. This is where the magic happened- the laughter increased, the conversations flowed more effortlessly, and looking around everyone seemed more relaxed. The group dynamic was greater as a result of everyone moving out of their comfort zones and interacting with each other. I snorkelled, I chatted, I boom-netted, I relaxed, and I reflected on the lesson that this experience had taught me.

The quiet morning taught me how peaceful it can be when we really give ourselves permission to relax and switch off, and it also taught me a lot about my own strength and willingness. I can do hard things, I can do uncomfortable things, and I can learn and pivot in my way of thinking: I'm perfectly ok traveling on my own, and I don't have to subscribe to anybody else's fears of solo travel. The afternoon taught me about the strength of connection and social engagement. It's necessary because that's how we're wired for survival as human beings, and we're all basically the same underneath our self-imposed labels: just humans doing our best to fit in and have fun and live a life of purpose that means something at the end of the day.

From there I headed up to Byfield National Park, and the Upper Stony Creek campsite for the weekend. I spent 3 idyllic days reading in the sun and swimming in the icy blue watering hole. I had all good intentions of getting a solid day of work in, but this is where the wheels started to fall off the bandwagon (metaphorically of course). My power system, which had been working well for the last couple of weeks, started to crash again after the first night. I'm willing to concede it might be user error: I had been parked at Yeppoon for 4 nights under fairly shady and overcast conditions, and then the drive to Byfield (and another shady campsite) had been relatively short and wouldn't have allowed much in the way of charging. My monitor however, was still reading 94% battery charge available so therein lies the issue: I need to recalibrate the monitor and re-sync it to the batteries and I'm hoping that will solve 90% of the issue... If I can clearly see the power usage then I can do something about it when it is getting low.

It kind of cycled in an out of working for the last two days and I was hopeful that the short drive back to Yeppoon and then a day spent in the sun at the marina would be enough to get it back out of the red on Monday. I was wrong. I took another trip back out to Great Keppel Island to catch up with an old friend who is working there right now (unbeknownst to me last week), and when I returned to the carpark last night, I was frustrated to find the battery still dead, and the fridge full of spoiled food 😷 And I laughed about it.

Not in a manic, hysterical, might be the last straw that broke the camel's back kind of way... but in a oh-well-what-else-can-I-do sort of way. I realised in that moment how much had changed in the last 12 months for me, and even in the last few months. When I had that first problem with the van months ago I cried like a baby and put myself to bed and wondered why me? Last night though? I posted about it on my Instagram story for everyone to see because it's part of the journey, I wondered what the universe was trying to teach me, I had some pizza shapes for dinner, and that was kind of it 🤷🏻‍♀️

Once upon a time, I would have panicked and been so upset and miserable about the fact that I didn't have any power, that I was throwing away $200 of perfectly good food, and that I was all alone and couldn't fix it. But now I kind of know that it's not a massive deal. I can buy more food, I can (hopefully!) charge some of the battery up today on my 3 hour drive, but worst case scenario I just go without power for a few days and stay in a caravan park to use their facilities. I'll be at Mackay this weekend and hope to pick my Uncle Jason's brain about the solar, get some answers, and then put in place a plan of action so I can fix it and sort it out before moving onto the next leg of my journey. Worrying about it or stressing isn't going to solve the issue.

It took me a while to get to this place where the little issues in life are no longer stressing me out. I had to do a lot of self-discovery along the way, and I had to put myself into uncomfortable situations again and again in order to learn that they're not going to kill me.

My advice for you today is this: put Great Keppel Island on your bucket list, AND when you feel that familiar stress start to rise up in your body today over a little thing, take a deep breath and map out the ways that it's actually harmful to you. I'll bet you that the list is smaller than what you first imagined.

We get so caught up in the day to day struggles that we miss the greater purpose of our lives: to love, to enjoy, and to do something meaningful. This is your weekly reminder to reset and think about what really matters to you.

Until next week, enjoy whatever sunshine comes your way ☀️

Haley 🤍