Into the Blue

Chapter 2:  No Pain No Gain.

Be a hill seeker the view is better from the top’ 

Lorna Jane 

 

My legs were starting to get sore. I was slowing down. "Don’t stop," I thought, "you can do this."

 

'No pain no gain' 

 

'The pain stops at the top.' 

 

'Quitting is not an option.' 

 

'Your lapping everyone on the couch.' 

 

'Go hard or go home.' 

 

'Just do it.'

These quotes ran through my head constantly. Do not look up, look down and just peddle. Ten minutes left of pure pain. There’s 24 hours in a day, ten minutes is nothing. Toughen up Grace. Just get to the top of this hill. Do not stop until the top. Distract yourself, I thought. Just forget your pain. This was easier to say than do, I learnt on this epic journey. But I tried. 

I was in Grade 6. I absolutely loved school and had amazing friends. We just had so much fun everyday. To this day, my class are people I respect. I put one foot in front of the other and ran, racing, wind in my hair. My friend was way ahead of me, we were crossing the asphalt heading towards the church where the four-square court was. 

"King!" My friend yelled. 

I was not a fast runner but I gave it my all every time, and to this day still do. 

"Okay I will be ‘Queen." I replied, defeated. 

We were waiting for the others to arrive and as we sat there she said "Your hair looks great!"

"I know," I replied smiling. It was in a beautiful headband kind of braid and I was secretly hoping this one particular boy in my class would not pull it out. I felt so cool with my hair this stylish. This boy ruined lots of girls hair as a joke and was the fastest in the class so I could never catch him when he pulled mine out. He later apologised to us for this and he is a great guy to this day. 

"My sister did it," I said loudly. "She’s teaching me how to braid at the moment, I can do yours soon if you like."

"She is so cool," my friend said. 

"I know," I replied. "She is picking me up after school. Quick, you get the tennis ball!" I yelled, ‘Let’s play two-square, while we wait."

I was in tears laughing as usual from a great day at school with my friends. 

"See you later," I said to one of my friends. Looking around wondering where my sister was, I spotted her. Jane had a study day or something as she was in her last year of high school so she was in her casual clothes. Jane was tanned, lean, long legs and just so pretty. She had brown shoulder length hair, brown eyes with large lashes and a nice big smile. She was wearing three-quarter pants with a cool split at the bottom and a boob tube. "Your sister is so pretty," another friend said walking past. "I know," I thought, "and she’s school captain." She was so smart also, I idolised her. 

I ran over to her. I hugged her and gave her my bag. ‘

"Hey Cooie!" she said smiling. I know my name’s Grace but Cooie is a nickname that has stuck as I always used to get lost so would be found when Dad yelled out Cooie Rup. I also laughed when he called ‘Cooie Rup’ as we passed the place on the way to our family holiday destination Inverloch. People do anything to make babies laugh. So the nickname stuck!  

"Can you take me to get my ears pierced?" I pleaded.

"Soon," she laughed. I loved her earrings. "How was school?"

 "Good," I replied. We walked along the street towards the bus stop.

"Your braid is falling out, want me to do another one tomorrow?"

"Sure," I replied excitedly. As I said that a car pulled up beside us and whistled full of boys. 

"Can we have your number?" they joked and asked my sister. 

"I’m with my little sister," she said in an annoyed tone and hurried her pace. They drove off. 

"Don’t ever go out with boys like that!" she said. "Keep your standards!"

 

I smiled looking down at the melted tar on the road. I could still smell the sea breeze, but it was getting further away and being taken over by a fresh forest smell. My mum was slowly driving behind me in my little Holden Astra. There was a flashing light with blue tinsel glowing in the sun. A sign on the back read ‘Into the Blue’. I could see the beautiful green trees in the distance with a beautiful blue colour of the ocean that I was leaving behind, the blue was growing smaller, which meant I was climbing higher. 

"Just keep peddling," I thought. The support vehicle was close and I could hear the radio. The song 'Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day' was playing, and due to pure exhaustion and heartache, tears appeared in my eyes. Don’t stop...focus. My mind went back.

"Cooie! Turn it up!" my older sister yelled. "Okay," I said. I skipped to the large CD player, grinning. 

"I love this song!" I yelled. She ran over looking stunning as usual. Skinny, tanned and just so funny. 

"You and me, were meant to be walking free in harmony. One fine day we will fly away, don’t you know that Rome wasn’t built in a day, hey hey hey!" we yelled. My sister and I danced and jumped moving the best way that we knew how. She shook her long brown hair, swaying. She was seven years older, and taught me how to have fun.  I copied whatever she did. We laughed after the chorus, moving our hips to the beat. 

 

I smiled as I kept cycling up the hill. You have it easy, I reminisced. This hill is something your sister would climb mentally on a daily level without a support vehicle. Almost there, the pain will stop at the top...... physical pain that is.

 

After what felt like an eternity in the solitary room a man in a white coat appeared at the door. The room was white, he blended in well with his coat. He was a young doctor with brown hair. He had kind blue eyes, with dark bags under them. He’s tired I thought. 

"I’m sorry, but you cannot see her," the doctor said. 

"But she is my sister, and I have driven an hour from university," I replied with tears welling in my eyes. 

"I’m very sorry but she’s too unwell, she will not remember you were even here."

My other sister had the same condition and I usually could visit her, I was confused. I knew the doctor would not budge. 

"When can I see her?" I asked in a worried tone. 

"In a few days." he replied.  

"Can you give her this?" It was a bag of toiletries. 

"Okay."

"I will be back tomorrow," I said. "Can you tell her that I was here?’ I said, wanting to leave before I broke down. Stay strong, I thought. 

"Yes," he smiled. As I started to walk away the doctor said "Grace."

"Yes?" I replied turning. 

"Your sister is very smart, she knows a lot about medicine," he said. 

"Yes she definitely is, I will be back tomorrow.," I said as I rushed off, not wanting to cry in front of him. She received 97% as an ENTER score, I wanted to tell him but knew it would not make a difference. She can be a doctor like you I would have said if I wasn’t about to break down. 

 

"Beep Beep." The horn blasted me back to reality. 

 

‘In this day and age it’s so easy to stress. Because people are strange and you can never second guess. In order to laugh child you’ve got to be strong.’ The lyrics transcended into my consciousness. 

"You can see the sign," my mum yelled, "you made it to the top!"

"Can I have something to eat?" I laughed as I said it, this was a constant question on this journey asked to my Mum.  The cycling took it out of me. 

"Sure, isn’t it lovely?" she said. 

"Yep," I replied stopping and looking out at the top of the distant green tree tops, as far as my eye could see. The sun was slowly starting to set. The air was cooler from being so high, but the green colours of the sky was beautiful. The trees had darkened and the sky was a bright orange colour with some purple in the distance. It was a golden glow. 

We better hurry, I thought. This day took me longer than planned and I had to keep cycling to Port Campbell. My mum came over with a beautiful made chicken wrap. We kept looking over the horizon. I now truly understood the quote running through my head, 'No pain, no gain.’