The Silent Stream

The Silent Stream

By Paul McCann

.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0wBGHNvZiA

.

Sadie met her husband , Sean , while they were both working at the old linen mill by Flax River ,  in Printertown .  They were married before the second war began and had their photo published on the front page of The Printers letter the following day.  Sean was already in the Navy at this time and was given leave for his wedding .

Afterwards when the war began Sadie and Sean were separated quite a bit during those years .

Unfortunately Sean never returned after the war as the ship he was on got bombed and was sank at sea .There were no survivors .

Sadie  was devastated and emigrated to Australia to start a new life in New South Wales .

She was just 27 years old and all alone in a strange new land with no family or friends .

For a while she wondered what to do and where to go with her life and considered religious vocations as a nun .

During this time of retreat in her life she found a very special place of reflection near a little stream on a large property owned by the Catholic Church near the Richmond River on the outskirts of Casino . It was there that she would often go to think and pray .

Sadie was waiting for a discernment and an answer to prayer . As the weeks went by an answer did come . Sadie had noticed there was a great need for nursing aids because a growing number of  soldiers were returning from the war . Many of those soldiers required special   care in convalescent homes and private hospitals .

Sadie could see herself caring for Sean there in a way with those soldiers who did make it home .

Sadie made some enquiries and had an interview for a nursing aide’s position . She was offered the job and afterwards was accepted into studies for a degree in nursing with a view to her continued career at the War Memorial hospital . Sadie worked hard and was rewarded with gaining the position of Director Of Nursing  at the War Memorial hospital .

Every now and then when things got too stressful or she needed an escape Sadie would return to the stream near the crossing place at Casino .  

Her disciplined lifestyle and great concern for soldiers gave her a want to excel and expand the way in which care was being provided .

One of the areas that Sadie felt could be improved was in the way return soldiers could find peace and recover after their experience in battle . The call for better rehabilitation and implementing better recovery programs was the area she wanted to address  . Sadie had always been able to find inner peace and  healing by the stream and she thought to herself wouldn’t it be great for returned soldiers to also find that same thing as well .

So she decided to speak with the owners of the property as well as the nuns who lived in a convent nearby .

Her dream was to have a centre established called The Silent Stream

with special workshops and training for learning new life skills for returned soldiers . With the Catholic church agreeing to the proposal and the council approving the development building began and the project was finished without any problems or constraints .

The Silent Stream was the first of its kind anywhere in the world . It was a centre with three streams . One being a number of small units to provide accommodation for  homeless soldiers , the second stream was a building to educate and train returned soldiers with a trade focusing on woodworking and building skills and the third stream was  a separate facility to [P1] accommodate for the needs of injured and disabled soldiers with a view to recovery and placement back into community  .

Sadie remained at The Silent Stream as Director , homemaker , cook , or what ever and where ever the need was until she retired into a lifestyle of  ,

oil painting ,  folk art , and listening to classical music and watching the flowers grow by the Silent Stream . 

She now had a few small dogs and although she enjoys company, she loves  spending time on her own by the silent stream which has become her home  .

The End