Voice waves influence our lives

Day: 242-243 Stage three / total expedition days 633-634

Sunrise:
05:28

Sunset:
18:55

As the crow flies:
20,4 - 19,7

Daily kilometers:
31 - 24

Total kilometers:
6663 - 6687 km

Temperature - Day (maximum):
35° - 30° degrees, sun approx. 55° - 50°

Temperature - Night:
20°

Latitude:
23°26'49.4" / 23°28'29.8"

Longitude:
149°10'31.9" / 149°21'55.6"

Hideaway Camp & Five Mile Creek Camp – 13.01.2003 – 14.01.2003

Despite the bad road, the many zigzags, the up to 25 fences per day and the constant disappearance of the track, we make good progress. We achieve our goal for the day and are in good spirits despite the effort. We often talk about the failed sale of our camels. We try to enjoy the last few kilometers to Paradise Lagoons as much as we can, despite the uncertainty ahead of us. “There must be a reason why Paul suddenly backed out,” I say as we walk across a dry grassy landscape. “I think so too. But what kind?” Tanja asks after a short period of silence. “Well, when I think about where our euphoria came from…” “What do you mean?” “Well, after Paul wanted to buy all six camels and then Margaret signaled her great interest, we were euphoric, weren’t we?” “Yes, that’s right. But I still don’t understand what you’re getting at?” “I’m saying that we were suddenly put into high spirits because of one piece of information. Later, due to another piece of information, we fell into a low that is still bothering us.” “I still don’t quite understand?” “What I’m saying is that we allowed ourselves to be positively or negatively influenced by just one piece of information, which, by the way, was far from being translated into reality at the time. This experience clearly shows us how quickly you can be in a bad mood because of a statement, a word, an encounter or other experience. If we hadn’t met Paul, we wouldn’t have fallen into hope. We would not have had a euphoric high because of the future of our camels and would not have slipped back into a low later on. It is therefore quite obvious that we humans often make our happiness or unhappiness dependent on information that disappears into thin air a little later. Ultimately, we’re just wasting precious energy.” “Hm, that makes sense to me. Does that mean we shouldn’t be happy about anything in future?” Tanja asks. “No, that’s not what I’m saying. I’m saying we should be very careful about whether we make our emotional state dependent on waves of language that don’t translate into reality in the end. This experience clearly explains how strongly we allow our emotional world to be influenced by mere words. We humans often suffer from this and don’t have to, because in the end everything turns out differently than we thought or hoped. “So, you think it would be comparable to the example of a lottery player who hears his numbers on the radio and then spends money that he doesn’t even have yet. It could be that he has misheard?” “Hmm, yes, that’s a good example.” “You should be happy about a statement but not make your luck depend on it if it turns out differently.” “Yes, exactly. That’s what I wanted to say. It’s certainly not easy to do, but it’s certainly possible,” I say thoughtfully.

We march for hours through the bush landscape. Only fences, cattle and horses reveal that we are moving through farmland. Sometimes we cross a wide track or pass a homestead. This is when we meet people who greet us joyfully. “What about the poisoned dingo baits? Have you put any out in the last few months?” is Tanja’s standard question. “Not us, but the neighbor threw out dingo bait just a few weeks ago. You have to keep a close eye on your dog,” we hear. In order to keep Rufus safe through the often poisoned land, he is allowed to ride Hardie as usual. When we reach the camp, we immediately chain him to a shady tree. But first we clean his storage area to make sure that there is no dried up poison bait lying around. We have also been checking him for ticks every evening for weeks now. There is a type of tick that is able to kill a dog in a short time. One woman even warned us that a dog can die just a few hours after one of these tick bites. Other farmers have refuted this statement. Nevertheless, ticks are known to paralyze dogs and other animals. If this state of paralysis occurs, it is usually too late. Many dogs have died from it.

Due to the devastating drought, it is still not easy for us to find a suitable place to camp. Only on the banks of rivers and streams, which are often dry, do we discover enough greenery for our large vegetarians. We sneak through the creek bed not far from a homestead. The barking of a dog echoes across the eucalyptus trees. We are dead tired and don’t want to be discovered by people. Not that we have suddenly become misanthropic, but the many conversations and explanations over the last few days have sapped the last of our energy. Our only wish now is to set up camp, eat and crawl into our sleeping bags as quickly as possible.