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Because I had zero money, I had to continue sleeping in the Morris Minor for the first two weeks after mum threw me out of home.
My most urgent needs were simple enough.
I needed to find a job that enabled me to have at least some money.
I needed to find somewhere to live that I could afford on my income of zero.
I needed to attend my university lectures often enough to be able to pass the examinations at the end of the year and graduate with a degree
I tried not to panic even though my whole being desperately wanted to panic.
Somehow I knew that in this terrible situation, I needed to come up with a plan – and that would be impossible if I panicked.
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I loved Margaret pretty much from the first moment I ever met her. This photo was taken at Victor Harbor in South Australia when we sneaked out of town for a weekend away. Margaret was fun loving and so generous with her wisdom and knowledge. She brought joy to everyone she met.
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The love that Margaret and I shared was complete magic. I cannot imagine how she could possibly have loved me more or how I could possibly have loved her more. This photo dates from 1999.
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Even my family loved being with Margaret. This photo shows me, Margaret and Peter Hankin in 1999. Could any two people have possibly been more in love with each other? I had won First Prize in the Mega Lottery and I definitely knew it.
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Go with a clear, open and receptive spirit, and the universe will not treat you badly.”
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In 1969 I was sleeping in my Morris Minor, I was studying third year law at Monash University in Clayton, Victoria and I needed a job that would not prevent me from getting a degree at the end of 1969.
I was 19, I had zero money and I had no idea what I ought to do.
I decided that sleeping in the car worked, so until I found somewhere more permanent to sleep, I would keep sleeping in the car.
As for finding somewhere more permanent, my options were very limited. I would ask friends to let me sleep at their homes and I did ask. Unfortunately, most of the people I knew then were still living in their family homes. Not many parents wanted to have a stray university student sleep on the floor in their son’s bedroom.
I tried attending lectures. It was impossible for me to take in what the lecturers were saying. I was enrolled in four subjects:
Politics 1;
Administrative Law;
Constitutional Law; and
Property Law
I estimated that if I kept up with the news, I ought to be able to pass Politics 1 even if I missed most of the lectures. I began skipping most of the Politics 1 lectures because I was too mixed up to take in what the lecturers were saying. In any event, Politics was so boring.
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The lectures in Administrative Law were the usual boring legal lectures, but I was able to force myself to keep going because I sort of understood what the lecturers were talking about.
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Constitutional Law was almost impossible. I had no idea what the lecturers were talking about and my brain refused to make sense of the subject.
Shortly after I became homeless, I had to submit a written essay on constitutional Law that was worth 20% of the maximum 100% available in the subject. I submitted nothing. I understood nothing and I was definitely panicking. Because I did not submit the assignment, I needed to somehow get my 50% pass mark by getting a much better than average result on my final exam..
I was in big trouble with constitutional law. I would need a significant miracle to pass the subject – and if I did not pass Constitutional Law, I could not get a degree.
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The lecturer in Property Law was Professor David Jackson who had written a book called Principles of Property Law. The book was a dense legal work that probably only Professor Jackson was really able to understand. I certainly had no idea what Jackson was trying to teach me and many of the other students in the lectures seemed to understand as little as me.
The whole concept of property law was impossible for me to grasp – and Professor Jackson’s lectures did nothing to help me understand. My homelessness was definitely having an impact on my ability to study.
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It was two weeks before I found a job and that job paid $8.00 for working on a Saturday at the Victoria Market.
At about the same time I got a job, a friend found a flat and told me I could share the bedroom with him. He knew I was unable to pay any rent.
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My situation was still desperate and terrifying, but not quite as bleak as it had been.
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Terrible situations can be overcome. Try not to panic.
Add meaning to your life by acting with purpose.
When you add meaning to your life, the way out of the Pit becomes clearer.
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I will tell you more tomorrow.
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