by Roo
Prologue
It was back in nineteen fifty when my mother went into labour on a sheep station in outback Australia, where the only medical help was from the flying doctor service. The pilot had engine trouble and had to land a hundred miles away at another station, and by the time the doctor and nurse arrived by four wheel drive four hours later, my sister had died and I was to face life with half of my soul missing.
My twin sister was buried three days later on the property. She was named Jean, and I was named Carl. I had an older brother John, aged eight, and a sister Margarita, or Rita for short, aged six.
My Mum was a cook for the station homestead, and Dad was the leading hand that ran the sheep station.