a gentle place

GENTLE has reference especially to disposition and behavior, and often suggests a deliberate or voluntary kindness or forbearance in dealing with others. (Dictionary.com)

Nestled in the quietude of a southern Tasmanian valley, lullabyed by the cascading tones of the North West Bay river, is a 42 acre parcel of gentleness. It’s a place where Plato spent 3 days laying upon the grave of Babs, our first ex-battery hen to enter that final deep dustbath (freshly cut rose by her side), as if embracing her for one last time, missing the days when they lay together on the grass, side-by-side and touching, soaking up the morning sunshine.

A place where Baldrick, a terrified horse with a gaping hole in his chest and charcoal eyes displaying a fading life, was saved by a community that visited thrice daily to help him move when he could not, by a determined Sue who spent a summer dressing his wounds amidst swarms of European wasps, and by 2 young goats who refused to leave his side.

A place where Harry can no longer sleep with his legs together or toss and turn like he did as a child for Thomas and Tobi, once feral felines, have found domestic Utopia atop the doonah between his legs (about mid-thigh level). A place where Harry still longs for a bed large enough for the entire family to sleep as one.

This place is Avondale – a gentle place. And this site is her child:

A place to care for the forgotten,

to speak for the voiceless,

to love those who have not felt it, and

to inspire (and be inspired) through gentle, collective example.

If anything on this site resonates with you please consider sharing your thoughts with us. Better still, leave fresh breadcrumbs for us to follow …