It was June 2011 long weekend when I set off in my car return to South Australia for a few days. Although previous trips since I left for Melbourne late 2005, I was often found clearing out my belongings, everything except my photos.

By this time my parents had moved house, it was winter and no slow combustion wood heater. Although I could see dad had a bit of a wood heap down the back paddock and who would thought what was about to happen make me literally gave up coke-a-cola overnight?

Prior to the weekend I contacted my friend Steve to make sure he was about to help me burn the photo’s. 

First I had the daunting task of sorting the photos and created two piles, one of people and places of the past like my backpacking days, Rotaract gatherings and photos that no longer required memories and the OTHER pile was of my wedding and ex-husband. 

Meanwhile the task was a tedious one and was not complete on that weekend as many more ‘fits’ of removing the past surfaced after that weekend and eventually from several photo albums down to a shoe box full in the end. Oh hum I’m sure some of those that made the pile may surface in somebody else’s long lost collection arhh!

 By early evening Steve carried the basket of my ex’s photos and I carried the other and headed down the slope to the several foot high pile mostly of dried off bracken. 

But my visions and dreams of gently sending the photos to the fire all changed within moments of the fire being lit! 

 I firstly started to ‘throw’ the photos on the fire that within second/minutes it was roaring and so damn hot that all I could master was simply toss them all on in big bundles and hope that they all burn….not my ideal way of closure to a part of my clearing my past that I dreamt of since my Reiki journey began some weeks earlier and I was setting the slate to be cleaned off for the second level of my Reiki the following weekend. 

Even though the fire was immensely in full force I could see the reaming photos of my wedding resting near the edge that I got Steve to make sure everything was in ashes and moments later water began trickling down my cheeks and everything part of my body about to crumble and Steve waiting to catch me if I needed to be held, but I remained strong. We quickly embraced and then we waited for the fire to die down before turning and walking up the hill to the house in silence as family friends had arrived for dinner. 

Next day, I drank the last remaining can of coca-cola and not touch the stuff since. In fact I gave up chocolate at that same time which lasted for four years before remerging. Check out my Ho-Hum that mouse blog here.

Even once I gave up coke it meant my southern comfort days ended shortly after a stint of lemonade before complete closure. Although I had gone off coke, I could not drink any cousin drinks including Pepsi or other verity colas. 

 That’s why I know and believe when your body is ready to give up a food or drink. It will.

NB: Oddly enough I was involved in a 4WD driving accident on the June long weekend, 1988 and glass ended up in my right eye. And while standing outside the Range Rover I asked mum for a drink and she gave me a coke. I instantly brought it up. Not sure if this is connected. Just some things are trauma related and healed in due course. 

Post written circa 16th July, 2019