Waves Across the Nullabor

When you take a slow (or fast) drive across Australia you get to drive 'the longest straight stretch of road in the World' or so the sign says. 1000 kilometers east of Perth on the Nullabor Plain you hit the 90 Mile Straight (146 km). No bend, no kink,no deviation. The only trouble with no kinks in life is that they can sometimes make you become complacent.

One of the many beautiful things about the long drive across Australia is that more often than not when approaching on-coming traffic you and the on-coming driver exchange a little wave of the hand in passing. Sometimes you can go for hours without on-coming traffic, other times there can be three of four vehicles in the space of an hour. These little waves, these acknowledgements of the passing 'ships in the night' help to keep focus, help to jolt complacency. They may be only little waves from seemingly 'complete strangers' but it is a way that long haul drivers look out for each other. It's a way of saying 'Mate, keep alert. You're not alone. It's good to see you.'

Little waves are important in life whether we are driving long straight roads or walking bending streets in a thriving metropolis. Human beings need connectivity, we need to acknowledge and be acknowledged as part of a whole. Little waves in the form of a nod, a knowing smile, a gentle hand, a thumbs up... are ways of reminding us to reach out and understand. Let's not take our fellow folk for granted. Little waves can keep us trucking.