Cleanskin Cowgirls
Page 38
‘It hasn’t ended quite yet,’ Zac said.
Elsie looked at him enquiringly. Amos and Tara looked at each other and smiled while Elvis and Gwinnie reached for each other’s hands.
‘What?’ Elsie asked, through narrowed eyes. ‘What are you lot up to?’
‘There’s one last thing.’
Zac took her by the hand and led her out across the new back deck and onto the lawn. The rest of them followed a short distance away. Beside the house were two trees they’d planted in her mother’s and father’s memories. At first Elsie thought he was leading her to that; instead Zac led her out the garden gate towards the old stables. There, standing in the house paddock, draped in gilded light from the dipping sun, was a white pony. An old, old pony, judging by the deep sway of his back and the high rise of his wither.
‘Jasper?’ whispered Elsie in disbelief.
Zac nodded.
‘How? How did you . . . ?’ Her voice trailed off, weighted by too much emotion.
‘I tracked him down. Pony club is a small pond. He’s yours again, Else. He’s ours. For our kids to sit on and pat.’
Zac opened the gate for her and let her pass.
Tears welled in her eyes as softly, gently Elsie walked towards Jasper. The little pony nodded his head and flicked his ears forwards, taking a few steps towards her. He whickered gently. She put her arms around the pony’s neck and buried her face in his long old-man shaggy white coat. She breathed in his baked-bread smell. She felt joy overtake her.
She turned to see Zac, Amos, Tara, Gwinnie and Elvis looking at her with love.
‘Thank you, thank you, thank you,’ she said.
Later that night, the universe did what the universe does. It created the strangest, most synergistic moment under the stars, as it does every minute of every day.
As the twins lay with the loves of their lives, the stars aligned once again, and there, in the black space of creation, the lives of more twins were sparked. Within Tara manifested two girls, within Elsie two boys, and though they didn’t know it for a matter of weeks, the girls would find the biggest adventure of their lives was about to begin and their greatest lessons were yet to come. In nine months’ time, motherhood would be waiting for them to take them on an even wilder, more challenging and joyful journey. Right there in Culvert.
Acknowledgements
Thank yous can be more challenging to write than an actual entire novel because so many beautiful people help me along this path. From the beautiful ‘standing people’ — the trees that my books are printed on — right to the end point in the process, my readers. I write for you. To inspire you. To challenge you. To show you we can all create ‘planet yum’ — a gently farmed earth we are proud of and healthy in! So thank YOU for picking up this book! I hope it brings you joy and your own inner road map of where you want to travel in life! I am utterly grateful you help me realise my dreams!
Thanks also to Kevin McCloud from Grand Designs. His TV program gave me the inspiration to write an entire subplot on the potential of human methane as an energy source! Thanks to all of the people who are actually exploring this path for humanity. (I just explored it in my head! It’s fictional so apologies to the actual scientists and mechanical engineers who create this technology for real! Bring it on!)
Thanks to my HarperCollins writing tribe — legends, each and every one of you. There are so many of you to name individually we would need more trees to print it. You are so aligned with my vision. I am grateful every day for your dedication to beautiful books and to helping me on my journey.
Thanks to my RT Company tribe — my literary agent Margaret Connolly and Heidi Latham and your family members who support you when you are supporting me!
Thanks to my money tribe — Michael, Kellie and the ACCRU team. You’ve helped a sole parent sleep at night!
Thanks to my Loane family tribe — Ian (Eee-arn-eee), Doug (Daggis), Jamie (Jay-babe-alay), Claire (Wooksamunga). Without your crazy inventions in Pop Collin’s farm shed, I never would’ve dreamed up Zac and Amos. Thanks also to all my blood clan who inspire me to meet the challenges and shatter the old paradigms with my passion and self-belief.
Thanks to my friendship tribe, who keep it all going for me — particularly Jackie and Luella, but you know who the rest of you are! All the child minders, sick poodle sitters, shuttle runners to school, text buddies, wood deliverers, floor moppers, ute fixers, inner-spirit coaches, the list goes on and on. I am blessed I am so loved . . .
Thanks to my Tassie Wolfe pack — the Wolfe Brothers band and Steve White Management . . . you rock. Thanks particularly to Nick Wolfe for writing a song with me for this novel and sharing your cleanskin shots! And to the rest of the guys, thanks for entertaining my wildest dreams of having our song mixed in Nashville! Cool.
To my creature-teachers, my animal tribe. You teach me each and every day to live in the moment, to be grateful for small things, to doze in the sunshine or leap happily about, depending on the mood that takes you.
And lastly and not leastly, thanks to my heart tribe — my kids, Rosie and Charlie. You inspire me each and every day. You give me the gift of seeing life again with fresh, vibrant, grateful eyes and I love you more than words can express!
Poo Power to the People!
Love,
Rachael xx
Further Reading
You may like to Google these good people and their work . . .
People power
Author Gregg Braden
It’s Cool to be Conscious by Harry O’Brien
Dying to be Me by Anita Moorjani
Women Who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés
Diamond Feng Shui by Marie Diamond with Paul R Scheele
You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay
Excuses Begone! by Dr Wayne Dyer
Primary production power
The Biggest Estate on Earth by Bill Gammage
Joel Salatin, Polyface Farms
Colin Seis, Stipa Native Grasses Association
Poo power
Haiti biofuel projects
Arizona biofuel projects
Kevin McCloud’s Man Made Home
Exhaust Fertiliser System, www.exhaustfertiliser.com.au
Many other sources were used for Cleanskin Cowgirls, but the network above will give you a big slice of inspiration.
* * *
Download a Free Song
Music makes my day and keeps me not just surviving but thriving, so it was only a matter of time until a country song escaped from the pages of my book for you to enjoy!
How did that happen? A few years back the Wolfe Brothers band and I kept bumping into each other at local shows and utejudging comps. Because creative country artists with international careers are thin on the ground in our island state of Tasmania, it was natural that we would gravitate together and then hook up to blend words and music from our grassroots perspectives.
Nick is a natural poet and a top blokey kinda guy, so it was a joy to pen this song with him and then to weave it through the narrative of my novel. His homemade moonshine helped in the process too!
Not long afterwards, life began imitating art, and like my character Elsie, the Wolfe Brothers were soon headed to Nashville, where this song was mixed! A dream come true for me. I hope it inspires you to have a ‘lazy day’ despite the demands of daily life. Enjoy ‘Nothin’ to Do, All Day to Do It’ . . .
www.rachaeltreasure.com/freesong
* * *
Discover the Wolfe Brothers
www.thewolfebrothers.com
facebook.com/thewolfebrothers
@Wolfe_Brothers
@Wolfe_Brothers
@Wolfe_Brothers
The new album, Nothin’ But Trouble, is available now.
* * *
The Farmer’s Wife
After ten years being married to larrikin Charlie Lewis and living on her beloved property, Waters Meeting, Rebecca is confronted by a wife’s biggest fear, a moth
er’s worst nightmare and a farm business that’s struggling to stay afloat. Can Rebecca draw on the inner strength and optimism she had as a young jillaroo to save the things she loves the most? Or will this down-to-earth cowgirl finally accept that happily ever after isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be?
This uplifting, insightful and enchanting tale reveals the truth behind the Cinderella stories and shows that the rollercoaster of life doesn’t stop just because you say ‘I do’.
Click here to buy The Farmer's Wife
Fifty Bales of Hay
Come have a roll in the hay with Australia’s leading rural fiction author, Rachael Treasure, in her romping, rollicking first-ever collection of Agricultural Erotica. Guaranteed to get your tractor revving, Fifty Bales of Hay is an honest and imaginative exploration of everyday men and women getting down and dirty on the land.
From the dairy shed to the Royal Agricultural Show pavilion, Treasure’s cheeky satirical humour and wicked imagination offer up a dozen fun-filled, and sometimes poignant, tales of dust and lust.
Click here to buy Fifty Bales of Hay
Don’t Fence Me In
In this gorgeous collection of feel-good stories, sayings and life lessons, bestselling author Rachael Treasure serves up a dose of pure positivity with a side of down-to-earth cowgirl wisdom.
Accompanied by charming illustrations, these bite-sized morsels of home-grown advice will brighten the most monotonous day and leave you feeling inspired and at peace with the world.
Get in touch with nature, appreciate the little things, be mindful of your surroundings and learn to love your life with this witty anthology of optimistic thinking.
Click here to buy Don't Fence Me In
About the Author
RACHAEL TREASURE lives in southern rural Tasmania with her two young children and an extended family of Kelpies, chooks, horses, cattle and a time-share Toy Poodle called Megatron. She is passionate about encouraging non-readers to read, as well as inspiring farmers to consider regenerative agricultural practices, and animal handlers to better understand their dogs and livestock. Rachael has been the proud patron of Agfest, Tasmania’s world-class agricultural field day run by Rural Youth volunteers.
Rachael’s first novel, Jillaroo, published in 2002, was a bestseller and has become one of Australia’s iconic works of fiction, inspiring other country women to contribute to the genre of contemporary rural literature. She has gone on to write four other bestselling novels, two collections of short stories, an anthology of optimistic thinking, a TV drama and two country-rock songs with the Wolfe Brothers. She writes because she wants to inspire everyone about the sacredness of good food production and land care.
rachaeltreasure.com
Rachael Treasure
@rachaeltreasure
Also by Rachael Treasure
Jillaroo
The Stockmen
The Rouseabout
The Cattleman’s Daughter
The Girl and the Ghost-Grey Mare
Fifty Bales of Hay
The Farmer’s Wife
Don’t Fence Me In
Copyright
The newspaper article referred to on pages was published in The Land, 7 February 2013.
HarperCollinsPublishers
First published in Australia in 2014
by HarperCollinsPublishers Australia Pty Limited
ABN 36 009 913 517
harpercollins.com.au
Copyright © Rachael Treasure 2014.
The right of Rachael Treasure to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her under the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000.
This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
HarperCollinsPublishers
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National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry:
Treasure, Rachael, author.
Cleanskin cowgirls / Rachael Treasure.
ISBN: 978 0 7322 9902 6 (paperback)
ISBN: 978 1 4607 0267 3 (ebook)
Australian fiction.
A823.4
Cover design by Matt Stanton, HarperCollins Design Studio
Cover images: Girls in car by John P Kelly / The Image Bank / Getty Images; all other images by shutterstock.com
Author photograph by Alastair Bett