Welcome to Australia

The siren’s blare startled me out of a fantasy world, one that had been quietly woven in my head while I was engrossed in my book.

“Attention, attention everyone. There has been a shark sighting".”

I had heard stories of course, of sharks making their way to Sydney’s famous beaches. The joke is that everything dangerous lives in Australia - box jellyfish, venomous snakes and spiders, crocodiles, and sharks - I just didn’t think I’d ever come across this because well, hello… I live in a city!

I wonder if this is why Australians are so chill and carefree: so present and alive, living to live rather than live to work. Maybe it’s because they’re aware of the constant danger that lurks around them, making them aware of their mortality and thus more willing to pursue a life well-lived. Maybe it’s because they lose any illusion of control, knowing that these dangerous creatures are precisely not in their control, allowing them to live in the here and now.

The lifeguard’s announcement continued over the loudspeaker, “We ask that all swimmers come ashore. The beach will be closed for the next hour as we monitor the situation.”

I laughed. Wow, I really am in Australia.

This sign went up shortly after the shark sighting.