MEET KELVIN, ‘THE GREAT AUSSIE NEIGHBOUR’
AN ALMOST-70-YEARS REZZADENT Words by Shailla Van Raad Photos by Julian Abrahams
I hear a crackly voice over the other end of the line.
Reservoirian man-about-town, the local Whitelaw Street socialite.
“Hello?” it says tentatively.
I pursue the conversation, shrugging off the awkwardness. This is because he and I aren’t there in that moment on Whitelaw Street anymore, as we have been hundreds of times before, where we pass each other by, and wish each other well.
This is the voice of my now former neighbour, Kelvin. It’s so strange hearing him so far away because I’m used to seeing his face on the opposite end of the street, peeking above the marigolds, stone statues, and French lavender, whilst he sits grinning on his mobility scooter. His dog Sam, a black doodle-cross yaps at his ankles, while his red-brick veneer house ‘Kelvetta’ sits proudly behind him. A kingdom fit for a
I miss Kelvin. He used to be our neighbour but has recently ‘moved on’. Now in his 70’s, Kelvin is now a resident of a Mernda retirement village.
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