The Singleton sky was a pale shade of blue, and the violet jacarandas and golden silky oaks were blooming. At the showgrounds, amid a solemn crowd, a mother climbed the steps to a temporary stage.
Jacqui Varasdi had been dreading this day, as she had come to dread so many mundane things since tragedy had split her life in two and snatched her first-born son, Zach, from this world. She knew she was not alone in that feeling and so, to honour those who were there with her and those who were not, she began to speak.
“Don’t think of them as gone away, their journey’s just begun. Life holds so many facets, this earth is only one … ”
In front of her, emergency services workers sat side by side, the SES in their orange uniforms, the NSW Rural Fire Service in yellow. Their protective gear shone in the morning glare, looking like the “bright lights in the dark” they’d been, as they’d fought so hard to save the lives being mourned. Tears rolled down the faces of the servicemen and women as Jacqui read on.
She had chosen a poem called His Journey’s Just Begun but she had altered it for the occasion and renamed it Our Beautiful Ten.
“He [Zach] was a lucky unlucky one,” Jacqui reflects, weeks later. “He was the happiest I’d ever heard him the day before. I’m just glad he was super happy. They had a fantastic day and as I said at the memorial, they’re all together and that, for me, is comforting to know.”
Denne historien er fra Christmas 2023-utgaven av The Australian Women's Weekly.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra Christmas 2023-utgaven av The Australian Women's Weekly.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Hitting a nerve
Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes - could aid physical and mental wellbeing.
Take me to the river
With a slew of new schedules and excursions to explore, the latest river cruises promise to give you experiences and sights you won’t see on the ocean.
The last act
When family patriarch Tom Edwards passes away, his children must come together to build his coffin in four days, otherwise they will lose their inheritance. Can they put their sibling rivalry aside?
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.
The wines and lines mums
Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.
Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?
Indigenous women are being murdered at frightening rates, their deaths often left uninvestigated and widely unreported. Here The Weekly meets families who are battling grief and desperate for solutions.
Growing happiness
Through drought flood and heartbreak, Jenny Jennr's sunflowers bloom with hope, sunshine and joy
"Thank God we make each other laugh"
A shared sense of humour has seen Aussie comedy couple Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall conquer the world. But what does life look like when the cameras go down:
Winter baking with apples and pears
Celebrate the season of Australian apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the midwinter blues away.
Budget dinner winners
Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of low-cost recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.
