Summer Holidays in Colville

When I was in my mid-teens some friends and I spent two glorious summers in Colville; as one friend grew up there. We spent about 6-8 weeks there during our summer holidays and often I did not want to come home. Even now I yearn for those summers. They were bliss. Not a care in the world.

These summers’ holidays to me were freedom, fun, sun and no parents. Even now things take me back to that time. The smell of a wood fire burning (that’s how we heated the water) and incense. The music of Melissa Etheridge and Prince (‘Purple Rain’) takes me back as I listened to their music on my Walkman for one whole holiday. I would simply swap the tape over again and again.

Because we were only about 15/16 we walked everywhere. If we wanted chocolate (and you could buy this in chunks from the Colville General Store) we had to walk. I lost weight as we ate whole food, fresh food, vegetables, and good grains. At that stage in my life I really own ate fish and no meat. We went floundering for meals and cooked everything on a wood fire (even birthday cakes). We did both yoga and dancing on New Year’s Eve’s in the Colville Hall. I actually think that we cleaned the hall after a huge party and I remember my feet sticking to the floor.

Thinking about this now at 35 I think that weight-loss can actually be fairly simple if you just take it back to basics. It is about smaller portions and beautiful whole/fresh food like fish, brown rice, vegetables and the occasional treat and then a whole lot of exercise like walking, swimming and climbing trees.

Colville was a pretty small community filled with amazing, caring people, hippies, and Buddhists. There were the cool untouchable guys and girls and we spent a lot of time admiring the ‘Mahana Boys’ from afar. These guys played rugby and surfed a lot and worked sometimes. There were so many stories born out of small town truths and rumour. I remember one guy that had been injured in a car accident where he essentially lost half his face on the road. He always seemed distant and also unapproachable; as though he felt that people would only judge him by his scars. Personally, I did not even care.

I had a huge crush on a guy who grew up down in Colville. I spent the whole summer just hoping and praying for just a glimpse of him. I think I spoke to him once, but for over 2 years I totally lusted after him as only a gal in her mid-teens can do. I think we spent more time with his younger brother who was probably 3-4 years younger; I remember looking after him as he vomited after drinking whiskey. When I started writing this blog I actually used Google to find both guys and now they are grown up and so amazingly HOT! I can still see the guy that I had the crush on all those years ago, and his younger brother is still the same except he grew up.

Other things I remember is Layla going without deodorant because she thought that aluminium could contribute to breast cancer. I remember the hot days when she would wipe under her arms with tissues. I remember my friends Aunt burying the placenta from the birth of her son. She wanted to do it in Colville because it was special to her. I remember camping in Waikawau.

And finally I remember climbing up the hill overlooking a farm house after a long night to watch the sun creep up into the sky.

So thank you Colville; those summers helped shape who I am today.