Day Forty-Nine - 8/1/26

After another very rough night’s sleep, the day started slowly. Emmett had been creaking around on the bed and it was surprisingly cool overnight. We’d shuffled the sleeping arrangements with me swapping spots with Kia so I could stretch out a bit more. Sleep was slightly better, but still not great, and we all woke up pretty tired.

I got up a little earlier so I could make a coffee before work started on the farm. Kia was already up as well, and Emmett was still asleep after his rough night, so we just let him sleep in.

I was put on the gardening team for the morning, digging a trench as part of a new septic system for some new toilets. The trench was for a water runoff pipe so overflow could drain into the bushland beside the property. There were three of us digging, and the trench was probably five to six metres long. Maddie jumped in to help, and one of the other dads’ sons did too, so it became a proper team effort. Everyone took turns digging and we got it done pretty quickly.

Kia was on animal duty again, looking after the cows, pigs, goats, chickens and sheep. Emmett helped a little once he woke up, and Maddie left the trench to help with the animals as well, so there was plenty going on all at once.

Breakfast was delivered again and we’d learned our lesson from the day before, ordering extra bánh mìs. The kids also wanted to try sticky rice, but as soon as they opened the container they decided they didn’t want it anymore and went back to wanting bánh mìs. The sticky rice turned out to be a big clump of rice with some fake sausage meat and a few other bits on top. It wasn’t great, but it was cheap, so you can’t really complain too much.

After breakfast, it was free time. People were hanging around, chatting and doing their own things. I did a bit on my phone, and Kia worked on sorting the room and moving things around to make it more comfortable. That carried on through to lunchtime, when we all sat together again in the eating area with shared plates. The conversation flowed easily and everything felt very relaxed and slow.

The afternoon followed the same gentle rhythm. I lay down for a bit and worked on adding photos to our website, just catching up on small tasks. Emmett spent hours learning guitar with one of the women staying here and absolutely loved it. Maddie drifted around doing different things as well. It’s been really nice seeing how comfortable the kids are with the younger people here. Most are in their twenties, very friendly, very patient, and genuinely happy to spend time with the kids and show them things.

I went for a walk in the afternoon up to a nearby quarry. They used to cut granite blocks there, but it looks like that’s no longer allowed. There’s a huge hole filled with granite and it’s been replanted with what looks like eucalyptus trees, probably grown for timber. The walk was beautiful and peaceful, especially after a wet, miserable morning. It had been raining earlier, but by then the clouds had lifted a bit and the sun was peeking through.

I had to hurry back because the afternoon work shift was starting. We needed to extend the trench we’d dug earlier to another small waterway trench. Again, it was only about five to six metres long and around 300 millimetres deep. The ground was wet, so digging was easy. The hardest part was the tools, which aren’t great, but with three adults and a few kids helping, it didn’t take long at all.

Later, I decided to head out for another walk. Maddie had had a tough moment earlier with Emmett while Kia was on animal duty. Maddie kept starting tasks, and Emmett would jump in wanting to take over each time. She kept giving in and moving on, until she finally had enough. She flicked a hose in frustration, some water went into Emmett’s eye, and everything escalated. Emmett got upset, tried to push Maddie, and Kia ended up telling Maddie off. Maddie stormed away, really upset.

I managed to convince her to come for a walk with me, and it turned into a really special moment. We did a big loop through the surrounding bushland and noticed graves scattered throughout the area, quietly tucked among the trees. Then we came across one much larger burial site with a gate, fencing all around, and three graves inside. There was music playing from a small solar-powered speaker. It was peaceful and beautiful, but also strange and unexpected, sitting there in the middle of the bush. It made us wonder how and why people are buried like that, and what the story behind it all might be.

When we got back, a new person had arrived, an Italian guy, and we spent time chatting with him and everyone else. The weather stayed nice and people lounged around in hammocks, talking and relaxing together.

Dinner rolled around and, once again, we all sat down together with shared plates. After dinner, everyone lingered, chatting and enjoying the evening. Ha, the owner of the farm, turned up and we ended up having a really great conversation with him. He explained the vision for the farm and how much has changed since it was first created in 2021. Volunteers are literally building this place from the ground up, with the long-term goal of it becoming a teaching facility where local students can come to learn, work, and experience hands-on farming and sustainability. It’s such a cool thing he’s created, and Ha himself is a really genuine, inspiring guy.

He also talked us through some of the tasks for the following day, including continuing work on the sewer overflow system. He’s organising conduits and sand to be delivered, and we’ll need to work out how to grade the pipe from the overflow pit down to the outlet area. That actually sounds like a fun job, and I’m genuinely looking forward to it.

At the end of dinner, everyone put their names down for the jobs they wanted to do the next day. Kia chose cleaning, and I put my name down for working with Ha on the pipe system again. As much as I like being around the animals, cleaning up poop in the rain really isn’t my idea of fun, so I’m happy to leave that to others and stick with cleaning, gardening, and digging.

Tofu, who helps run the place day to day, mentioned that if the weather’s good in the morning, we’ll all walk down together to have breakfast instead of having it delivered. Everyone seemed pretty keen on that. It’ll be nice to choose what we want, get proper coffees, and eat as much as we feel like rather than guessing the night before.

As the night wound down, we headed back to the library bunkhouse. Some people had set up karaoke on the TV and there was singing, dancing, and a lot of laughing from about seven until around eight thirty or nine. I didn’t join in. I just felt like having some quiet time, so I retreated to the bunk and worked on the website again, tweaking and improving things and slowly pulling it all together.

Showers here are cold. I’ve moved past boiling water and splashing it on myself and just embraced the cold showers instead. They’re hard to get into at first, but once you’re in, they’re actually not too bad. Kia and the kids still make warm water to splash on themselves. Maddie was a bit upset earlier because by the time she got in, the water was really cold and not very enjoyable. Other than the showers and the sleeping arrangements, though, this place is genuinely lovely.

The people here are kind, welcoming, and easy to be around. I think I’ve pushed through that initial discomfort and urge to leave quickly, and now it feels like we might actually stay the full week we originally planned. Kia is really keen to be here over the weekend when local town kids come to hang out for the day, so it’s looking likely we’ll stay for that and then work out our next move early next week.

All in all, day 49 was another deep dive into farm life. Tiring, uncomfortable at times, but also grounding and quietly rewarding. Looking forward to seeing what tomorrow brings.