Like a House on Fire (28 page)

I only realised later that next year, when school starts again, I will be in secondary school across the road so you won't be my teacher anymore. But when you gave us the books you said it didn't matter where we started and finished and maybe the journal will never be finished but it doesn't matter. I kept writing mine these holidays so that you will know you were right. I have been thinking and thinking about when we went to your house to see the budgies and they ate seed out of your hand and you said, Tyler, our true friends never ask us to do favours as a test and you looked so sad. I want to say I hope you are not sad now because you helped me and I tried to be brave like you said and now I think I'm going good.

I still remember where you live. I'm going to put this in your letterbox. I hope that is OK. I hope you are still living there. If your budgie's eggs hatch please will you call one of the babies Alicia. One day I will get an aviary and then I will come and get her, Mrs Carlyle. That's my promise.

Acknowledgements

To name just a few people I am indebted to, thank you David Dore, Robin and Margie Hemley, Hal Wake, Kate Rotherham, Terry Jaensch, Hannie Rayson, Yiyun Li, Willy Vlautin and David Francis. I have experienced nothing but support and warmth from those who make Melbourne the city it is for a writer from the sticks, namely Michael Williams and the staff at the Wheeler Centre, Steve Grimwade, and of course Henry Rosenbloom at Scribe, and Ian See. Thanks to those stubborn and dedicated people who have given some of these stories a home in a time of huge uncertainty for literary journals, magazines and anthologies. And, as always, thanks to my terrific publisher and editor Aviva Tuffield — still loyally in the car I seem to be driving, still holding the thermos.