Five Photos, Five Stories – Day Four

Today’s photo was taken at sunset on December 28, 2010.

I had always wanted to see The Twelve Apostles before they crumbled into the ocean.  So on Christmas Day 2010, we set out to drive more than 2,000 kilometres (1,242.7 miles) to stay at a little B&B for the sole purpose of enjoying the wonder and beauty of those famous limestone formations along the Great Ocean Road in Victoria, Australia.

But getting there was not without a slight hiccup:

Who was going to do the driving?

Normally, this responsibility falls squarely on Dean’s shoulders, but on Christmas Eve, during the customary celebrations with our children and their partners, Dean tried to play in the sandpit with the little boys.

At nearly half his age, their bodies in their prime, and able to process alcohol efficiently, Dean failed miserably trying to keep up.  His body, all that much older, was not able to keep pace, metabolising input stopped and thankfully, eventually, so did he, albeit about two hours later than he should have.

As the perpetually designated driver, at 3 am on Christmas morning, I rolled Dean’s sorry butt into the passenger seat and took charge.  We had a holiday to get to and sights waiting to be seen.

I was nervous.  It was such a long way to drive, but the distance didn’t bother me.  I’d driven long distances before, and by myself.  No, the distance wasn’t the issue.  The issue was the direction.

There are only three things that make me nervous behind the wheel:  Driving on roads I don’t know, or driving at night, or driving in the rain. 

Driving on a road I don’t know makes me nervous.  Driving on a road I don’t know, at night, scares me.  Driving on a road I don’t know, at night, in the rain, frightens me. 

And, surprise, surprise – Driving on a road I don’t know, at night, through a thunderstorm, renders me near catatonic.

I’d never driven on those roads before and, it was dark, and it was raining.  So I took it easy and drove with lots of due care and attention.

After stopping overnight (and with Dean recovered and finally behind the wheel), the following day saw us arrive at our destination.  Eager to ‘see’ something, our hosts directed us towards the perfect location from which to enjoy The Twelve Apostles at sunset.  We parked at a secluded little spot and climbed down countless steps to the beach below.

I was really surprised other people were not on the beach with us, however, it was quiet and peaceful just sitting there, patiently waiting for the sun to kiss the horizon.

The view across the water was breathtakingly beautiful and worth ever kilometre I had to drive to see it.

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The Five Photos, Five Stories Challenge rules require you to post a photo each day for five consecutive days and attach a story to the photo.  It can be fiction or non-fiction, a poem or simply a short paragraph – it’s entirely up to you. 

Then each day, nominate another blogger to carry on this challenge.

Accepting the challenge is entirely up to the person nominated, it is not a command.  Today, I invite Impromptu Ponderings to join the challenge. 

(Actually, anyone can join in, so please do.)

Thank you Rosalyn for inviting me to join this wonderful challenge.