Natalie...

Natalie in Swanston Street, Melbourne, March 1, 2009 : Photograph: Julie Clarke

It's cooler now. Patchy grey white clouds color the sky view from my kitchen window. A cool breeze that won't last, so I'm making the most of it - breathe slowly and relax - all is well. Last night my beautiful and thoughtful son Erin, brought over and assembled my new office chair, which is more of an effort than you might think, because if it was 35 degrees outside then it was 40 degrees inside my flat. Too small, too claustrophobic. I dream of Autumn days, the cooler weather, the different coloured leaves, falling. If I wrote Haiku (and I don't), I'd be writing it all the time for I'm absolutely obsessed with the weather. Yesterday, whilst I was in the city I ran into Natalie (I've never known her last name, but we talk a couple of times a year), she was homeless for about 15 years and was known as the 'bag woman' who would walk in off the street and play the grand piano at David Jones. I became aware of her about 20 years ago and would sometimes glimpse her in the distance, a strange shadow of a woman, almost ghost-like, an apparition with her long white hair and strange allure. She's no longer homeless and her skills as a pianist are appreciated by those who hear her play the music of Rachmaninov, Chopin and Mendelssohn. She told me yesterday that people focus too much on saying that she looks young for her 60 plus years. She said the only thing that's important is practicing your art and being happy. I watched her walk away, pulling a few possession on a little shopping trolley (I guess old habits die hard). Her left foot turns slightly outwards as she walks and her back is bent. I wonder if she will ever know she's such an inspiration?

http://www.theage.com.au/national/virtuoso-has-grand-plan-to-soothe-the-city-streets-20100105-lsda.html