A few nights ago I heard an awful, menacing noise coming from under the front ‘porch’ (really a few pallets set up like so). At first I thought it was Naigee growling, but as I woke from a groggy sleep, I realised it could not be the cat… it must be a devil*! What on earth was it doing so close to the cabin? I opened the door (in a somewhat terrified state – honestly, if you haven’t heard a scared devil, you wouldn’t understand) to find d’Art in shock, standing still, with the rustling and growling of the beast. Shining a torch didn’t help; it seemed to scare it even more. Lucy’s sniffing about made it even worse, and when d’Art came-to, her sniffs were equally terrifying for the animal. Monte came out of his slumber (at my request) and on shining the torch he saw a strip of white. Eventually the devil must have crawled away, as it was suddenly quiet.

The sound of a devil is like the sound you would imagine the actual devil making. His menacing laugh, his evil growling… it is indeed a shocking sound. Our suspicions that the animal we often hear making an evil ‘laugh’ in the forest and the animal that took our chicken is indeed a devil. I have seen it running away, with its black behind, but we are yet to see it closer than that (actually, I don’t want to get any closer!)

I think that the devil might have either been attracted to a possible dead creature that lies to rest under our house (indeed, the offending smell seems to have gone); the bones that I gave to the dogs; the chickens; or Naigee. I lay awake that night (the devil came at 6am, but it was still dark), hoping and praying that Naigee was safe. A devil can crush 500 pounds in its tiny jaw, so a small cat is easy prey. Thankfully, Naigee came inside the next morning and was her usual gracious self.

On a brighter note, Georgia is a little princess. I say this because as I type this she is dressed in her princess dress-ups. She is serving tea from her teaset, and she is entertaining her brother, giving me some reprieve! She has grown up and changed so much. She is so happy now she is attending school, and she has more friends now, which makes her chatty and smiley. We had guests to stay on Friday night, and when Georgia was playing with their 4-year-old daughter, Christie, she was laughing and smiling like I haven’t seen her do for a few months. She has some other friends, who we see regularly on the weekend. She is always asking for Tao and Kai. Soon they will be living over the hill from us. Then there’s her friends Ethan and Lily and the other children at school. I am so happy that she is happier now. Plus, she is looking more beautiful than ever!

She is writing like a machine; knowing the letters, writing her name and other words confidently. She is asking to write letters to people, and today she started writing a story (“Once upon a time, princess…).

And

she can swing herself now

and maybe that means she won’t need me to push her on the swings anymore (something I love to do but never did enough!)

How blessed we are.

*Tasmanian Devil