On Wednesday, January 22, we had our first Mid Week run for the year. Leading up to this day, we had experienced some very hot weather, so everyone was relieved to hear that Wednesday would be cooler.

I drove up to Lancefield in the Valliant, loaded with a picnic setup. Along with the picnic gear, I brought a large Australian flag, a suitable pole, cable ties, a hammer, small Australian flags on a bunting string for decoration, and some handheld flags. Upon arriving, I was pleased to find that Lancefield felt quite cool. However, the wind was stronger than a gentle breeze and gusted quite forcefully.

I set up in the designated area I had communicated to the members. Shortly after I finished, a few members arrived and decided to walk up the plantation, reporting that they believed it was more sheltered there. This prompted what can only be described as a small-town migration.

Although I doubt the conditions were much different at the other end of the plantation, we decided to set up again, and more people continued to arrive. We expanded the size of our circle multiple times, eventually creating three or four smaller circles. It was wonderful to see some new faces as well as familiar ones we hadn’t seen in a while.

I had asked everyone to bring along some Aussie treats to share if they wished, and we were certainly spoiled for choice. We had Lamingtons, snowballs, Anzac biscuits, fruitcake, shortbread Christmas trees, various dips with pita bread combinations, and green and gold parfaits for dessert, among other delicious items that I can’t recall at the moment.

As the day went on, some members drifted home after lunch, while several of our male members just dropped in to chat and stayed for a while before leaving again.

According to the sign-in sheet, we had at least thirty members in attendance, possibly more, since a few of the guys just popped in briefly. Additionally, we had at least ten classic cars and one classic motorcycle.

I would like to extend my thanks to everyone who brought food to share. It was a bit challenging with all the wind—my Australian serviettes didn’t make an appearance, and some of my parfaits blew off the tray—but overall, I think we had a fantastic day.

Pam Amezdroz for the Mid Week Run group.