Influence in Australia

By Louise Foster

Influence in Australia is about how others can influence your life. Sarahs decisions took her on the road of some disastrous decisions and some small good fortunes.

Sarahs life was difficult; the loss of her mother was so great that it impacted on her mind. When she was a young child, she watched her mother dying. The pain stayed with her through her life. She often remembered her mothers strong words and always felt their power. She became a loner, because she was not as fortunate as other children; with no real guidance growing up, she found her own way and worked very hard to get what she wanted in life.

Her self-belief led to material wealth, which she later lost, since she put others in front of her, and they did not think of her in any way. They made sure they gained from Sarahs hard work; the people she attracted into her life shaped her future. This is a story of courage, drive, determination, and risk. It is also about the beauty of Australia and the funny turns that happen in life. The story discusses friends made and lost, and includes how this affected and impacted everyone.

This story shows that you are not alone. Life can be great, and others can shape your future through what you see and believe. If you feel alone or feel you are the only person to make a wrong decision, then this book is for you.

UGLY DUCKLING

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Mar 14, 2017
• ISBN: 9781524666385

Louise Foster

I wrote Influence in Australia because of the lifestyle my brother and I lived. We experienced a very challenging and different type of life from other children and families. The death of our mother meant we lost everything, which changed our future from there on dramatically. Australia is a country of beautiful beaches. Living in the country provides a very different lifestyle from the city, giving the reader an insight to what life is like and how others can influence our decisions in life. In my later years, I achieved all the areas that teachers and people said I was no good at, and I feel very proud that I gave it a go. For those who I said for many years I would write this book, I am glad I have, since it may help others in their paths and give them courage to do the things they want to do by believing in themselves.

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© 2017 Louise Foster. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 03/08/2017

ISBN: 978-1-5246-6640-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5246-6639-2 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5246-6638-5 (e)

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CONTENTS

Introduction

Chapter 1

Children into Mischief

Christmas at Culburra

Cancer

Chapter 2

Cat Caught in Boiler

Favourite Tunes in the Sixties

Stiff Animals

Festival Weekend

Bush Fires

Journey to Port Macquarie

Chapter 3

New School

The Holiday

Windbag

News of a Death

Fisherman

Competition

Lost Kitten

Omo

Crab Attack

Egg and Tomato Fight

Injury

Storms

Brownies

Flicker

Captain Cook Coin

Night with Windbag

Stealing

Pub Fight

Dot

Bull Charge

Pea and Bean Fields

Mind Torment

Muddy Dive

Mercedes Benz

Tongue for Dinner

Jarah Preaching

Garage Roof

The Fire

Keith Attack

Tension Mounts Up

On the Move

Leaving Home for the First Time

Chapter 4

Hunters Shoes

Opera

Washing

Fainting

Test Results for Sam

RAAF

INTRODUCTION

I would like to thank my true friends who believed in me and encouraged me to write this book. Influence in Australia is about how influences of others around me and life experiences took the turns in life, with some disastrous decisions and outcomes but also some small good fortunes.

Sarah’s life was difficult. The loss of her mother was so great that it impacted her mind when she was a young child, she watched her mother dying. The pain stayed with her through her life. She often remembered her mother’s strong words and always felt their power. She became a loner, because she was not as fortunate as other children; with no real guidance growing up, she found her own way and worked very hard to get what she wanted in life.

Her self-belief led to material wealth, which she later lost, since she put others in front of her, and they did not think of her in any way. They made sure they gained from Sarah’s hard work the people she attracted into her life shaped her future. This is a story of courage, drive, determination, and risk. It is also about the beauty of Australia and the funny turns that happen in life. The story discusses friends made and lost, and includes how this affected and impacted everyone.

This story shows that you are not alone. Life can be great, and others can shape your future through what you see and believe. If you feel alone or feel you are the only person to make a wrong decision, then this book is for you.

CHAPTER 1

Sarah Gibson came into this world on 23 November 1958, in Fairfield, Australia. Her aunt later told her that her mother was to marry a man in Orange, New South Wales, but he was in a car accident and snapped his neck. Unfortunately, he died instantly, leaving Louise lost with pain. Her future in turmoil, as the wedding was in four days time. Her only comfort was the engagement ring on her finger, which reminded her of the love they had. The wedding now had to be cancelled, and she had a lot to do while struggling with grief. After making all the arrangements, she decided to make a new life in Sydney.

Louise Welson moved from Orange to Sydney and lived in Hurstville. She rented a room from the Wilsons, two doors down from where Stephen Gibson lived with his parents. When he was nineteen years of age, Stephen had made the journey with his parents to Australia from England. The boat took three months to get to the Australian shores. The Gibsons arrived to start a new life in Australia after living in Kent, England, during the world war. Stephen had been too young to fight, however, his elder brother Ken lost his life when his plane was shot down on the day the war ended. He was only twenty-one at the time, which left his sister, Noreen, and Stephen’s brothers, Bryant and Rex. As a young girl, Noreen had been in a school bus accident. She was knocked down, leaving her slightly deaf in one ear.

Stephen asked Louise out on several occasions, but she refused. Eventually, she accepted, and they went out on a date on his birthday. They dated for a while, and then after a year, he asked her to marry him. Louise eventually accepted she was now thirty-one. They planned the wedding for 22 June 1957. In Australia, this was the longest night and shortest day of the year. Stephen often joked about that.

Stephen and Louise married in a small chapel in Springwood. The chapel was made of light grey stone. The winter sun shone through the coloured windows onto the black Roman cross. A path led from the large wooden doors into an area covered with white roses, growing over a wooden lattice.

The day of the wedding, Louise was nowhere to be found. Stephen found himself wondering when she would turn up. He smiled to himself, knowing that she was always running late. Still, she’s only ten minutes late, which is her custom. The wedding was small, with mostly family. Louise wore a light blue dress with a small hat dotted with white flowers. She looked elegant and lovely as she was given away by her father, whom she adored and loved so much. Steven Welson was tall and handsome, with curly golden brown hair and bright hazel eyes. Louise stepped out of the gleaming black Ford and walked into the church to meet her fiancé.

The reception was in Springwood not far from her parent’s home. After all the speeches, dining, and dancing, Stephen and Louise left for Port Macquarie to start their honeymoon. Louise’s firm offered them a small flat to live in. She was the top bookkeeper and was respected highly. The accommodation came at no cost, but there was a drawback, in that she could be called upon to work, and they both felt their private life would be interrupted.

Luckily, they had both saved enough to move into their new home shortly after they got back, freeing up Stephens parents to retire to the country.

Louise and Stephen had saved enough for a deposit for their own home. They had been offered the house of Stephen’s parents, who had arranged to live in Culburra (known by the aborigines as Windy Place), where the sand cuts through you like a knife on the strong windy days. Their new home had plenty of land and was only ten minutes up a stony track to the beach.

After two weeks of sunning, they returned and moved into their new home, which had a small wrought-iron fence around the front garden. It had large fruit trees at the back, and the large grounds were just perfect for a family. Louise was very particular and liked the best in life. She had a pure silk golden bedspread, a lovely solid wooden table for dining, and a grey lounge in the lounge room. There was a sun room, a laundry room leading into the back garden, and the traditional sixties cupboards of different colours in the kitchen.

A year later, Sarah was born, and the following year, her brother Derek. He came into the world as a big fat jolly baby. They eventually could not feed him enough, or so Stephen said. Her brother had Nana’s temper. He thumped and screamed for attention. Stephen said Sarah was a quiet baby. Her parents became very concerned, since she was late in talking and walking (although he joked that once she could speak, she never shut up). Then Derek developed asthma and became very thin. At one stage, he was so ill Stephen had to push the medicine into him, despite his yells and screams. His discomfort really upset Stephen and Louise. Derek soon recovered and got back to his temper tantrums when he did not get his own way.

Children into Mischief

The Gibsons lived fairly normal lives, with school and work, up to 1967. The children got into as much mischief as possible, playing with imaginary friends. Being so small, everything, including adults and the toilet, looked so large.

One day, Sarah fell in the toilet. Her screams could be heard down the corridor: Mummy, Mummy, I’m stuck!

Sarah could not move, frightened and in an awkward position, with her arms and legs and feet and hands appearing just above the bowl.

Louise and Stephen came running and could only laugh at the sight of their little girl, looking down to see feet in the air and small hands cling to the bowl. Louise pulled the child up, cleaned her, and put her in her night dress, saying, Well, I guess you are not ready for the big toilet yet.

Before long, Derek and Sarah had grown enough to play in the back garden and get into all the mischief they could; their favourite game was to jump up and hang onto the steel clothesline, which bobbed up and down from the uneven grass. They ran around, jumping and using the host as a swing as it swayed.

Louise would catch them every now and then and scold them, saying, Children, the clothesline are not a swing, as the circular host would wobble to a halt.

Sarah enjoyed climbing the trees with Derek. One day, she noticed the cat climbing onto the neighbour’s chick pen. Well, if the cat can cross so can I, she thought. She carefully climbed up the wooden fence onto the thin roof, but when we went too far, all of a sudden, there was a crack!

Sarah felt herself fall into the pen. The chickens and roosters, flapped in the air, squawking and jumping onto each other. She felt the pain from her scratched and bruised knees. She climbed to her feet and looked up into the eyes of her elderly neighbour.

She sobbed, The cat can do it, why can’t I? I just wanted to cross. With her head held down low, she mumbled, Not fair.

Just then, she heard her mother’s voice saying, Sarah, What are you doing? Apologise instantly!

Sarah felt this was out of order, since she was hurt by falling into the pen, not the chickens.

Sorry, she mumbled, it will not happen again.

Sarah cried, feeling herself being lifted in the air by her neighbour. His hands held her firmly and then lifted her over the fence to Louise.

What do you think you were doing? her mother asked, hugging her as she wrapped herself around her mother like a koala bear.

A few weekends later, Stephen announced, Let’s take the monsters to the zoo; it will be great.

After entering the zoo, they walked around and stopped at each cage. Sarah was nibbling Smith’s crisps and standing next to her father; she was only four years of age, and an emu put his long neck over the fence and pecked at the crisps. It pecked so fiercely that she felt its sharp beak and cried out. She was so upset about losing all of her crisps, since there were only small pieces left. The bag then fell onto the cement flooring.

Stephen laughed and pointed at the bird. Louise joined in, while Sarah felt cheated