Rain is what our bush kids want for Christmas

There among the swirling dust with the width of their smiles matched only by the brim of their hats are our bush kids.

They are still there quietly toiling beside their parents on feed runs, mustering, and in the wool sheds.

And they are still there silently praying for the heavens to open.

But for many it will be another Christmas without rain.

At the top of many of those children's Christmas wish lists to Santa is a simple request: please make it rain.

It sits above the monopoly set, the new doll and sewing machine.

And it's above the new truck, water pistol and remote control car.

For some who have barely seen a drop all year, it's all they have asked for.

"This year the girls put on their Christmas wish list that they wanted rain, which is hard to take for little kids because they shouldn't have to think like that," said Kathleen Harris from Harts Horn Station, which is 75 kilometres south of Ivanhoe.

Mrs Harris' children, Annabelle, 7, and Cate who just turned five (also pictured on our cover), know all too well about how reliant their 26,304 hectare station is on the weather.

"They understand what no rain means and when it rains it's like you can't keep them out of a puddle even if it only has 10 points (2.5 millimetres) of water in it," she said.

"Their whole mindset changes when it does or doesn't rain as they know they can't go on holidays because it needs to rain before that happens.

"When it rains they ask, 'Mum, can we go here or do this' but you have to prioritise and the farm has come first in the past two years."

Last year they were feeding cattle and sheep, but rainfall just after Christmas helped to kick-start the year.

But after only 50mm fell in a 152mm average rainfall for their semi-arid region, they are back at the point where they need to buy more feed again.

"The kids help out where they can, and as Cate isn't at school she is always with us," she said.

"Last year we were feeding full-time, so they were helping before school and after school."

But she said it was the little things that helped them get through the dry, from the amazing sunsets on the place to the funny antics the girls get up to.

"The kids make you feel a lot happier when things are crappy," she said.

"We have footage of the girls rolling out the round bales and treating them like a red carpet, strutting along it, which was so funny."

They are not alone.

Over at Tom's Lake near Booligal, all Josie Crossley (pictured on p34) wants is a wet Christmas.

"When you talk to her, she says 'when's it going to rain'," her mother Michelle Crossley said.

"It's hard, as in 2016 we had an amazing year. It was wet and she can remember that and then it turns around and we are going through this now.

"For John (her brother) this is all he knows, but Josie remembers when it was wet and we were getting bogged everywhere.

"It would be good to see green again and get bogged and have fun in the mud, that would be lovely."

Josie and her brother, John, have been "quite handy" on the farm in this drought.

"Josie can tie on a fence and clip faster than I can, it's embarrassing," Mrs Crossley said.

"The kids are extra hands when doing big stock jobs, which makes a difference."

Related reading: The Land pays homage to our bush kids in the 'little hands, big hearts' edition

The same story can be told at nearby Mossgiel Station where five-year-old Cameron Farrar (pictured on p33) can't remember a time when they weren't feeding.

Cameron and his eight-year-old brother have been helping their parents, Jackie and Angus, feed sheep for a long time.

"They never complain, always making the most of every day until one day Cam said he was sick of feeding sheep," Mrs Farrar said.

"Gus and I worked out he had been doing it for a third of his life and we couldn't remember a time when he wasn't helping feed out."

She said the boys helped them on the property with everything from mustering, drafting and contract fencing.

"Riley lives for farming, he loves every minute and will muster all day on his little motorbike working just as hard as the grown ups," she said.

"Then there is Cameron who idolises his brother's every move.

"They make every day brighter and every tough day worth the hard work and in the words of Cameron 'we might be little but we make things easier '."

At Tullamore the Mortimer kids - Joe, 9, Annabelle, 6, and four-year-old Charlie - also have rain on their Santa list.

"We talk about rain but they are longing for it as well, the drought has made them mindful about animals and other people, rather than thinking about themselves," their mother Megan said.

"They always ask 'when is it going to rain?'. Rain was forecasted for Christmas day and they were all excited, but now there is only a 10 per cent chance of it."

Just 200 kilometres south, at West Wyalong, brothers Billy and Brumby Johnston (pictured on p33) are still helping their father Craig feed sheep because of the prolonged dry.

"They want rain so bad, they are always talking about rain and when it will come," Mr Johnston said.

"I think they are sick of feeding.

"I went to pick Brumby off the bus the other day with the sheep feeder on the back of the ute and I didn't know if he would get off the bus or not."

Despite that they are still Dad's little helpers, following them around where ever he goes.

"We are so proud of them," he said.

Related reading: The Land pays homage to our bush kids, the unsung heroes of the drought

NSW Farmers' president James Jackson said the outlook from the Bureau of Meteorology was not good for rain this summer.

He said predictions were that it would continue to be a hot dry summer, but he hoped they were wrong.

"All these farm kids want is rain but the reality is it's going to be dry and they will be hand-feeding again," Mr Jackson said.

"There is no doubt this drought is impacting on everyone, including children, but it will define those people to be more resilient.

"This will be life defining and will probably be something they will remember for the rest of their life. These kids are little heroes."

For many families this year, Isolated Children's Parents Association (ICPA) state president Claire Butler said the excitement of Christmas was dulled by the fact they would not get a break from the farm.

"There will be no annual holiday and for many, the lack of water also means that friends and family may feel like they will be an extra burden if they come and visit," Mrs Butler said.

Mrs Butler said children would be helping out on the farm as much as they could and would be doing a mighty job for their parents.

She said halls in small communities were coming to life for the annual Christmas trees and Santa visit that gave families a wonderful opportunity to share some festive cheer.

"These events are vital to small communities and for neighbours to connect - for many the last time they saw each other would have been the year before," she said.

"ICPA-NSW would like to give a big shout out to the kids who are home these holidays helping their parents and if you are thinking of visiting family or friends in the bush this year, we wish you safe travels and make sure you pack your boots and a hat - you'll come in handy too."

CWA of NSW chief executive Danica Leys said children of the land were incredibly resilient and resourceful, and played an integral role on farms and in communities.

"It has been a very challenging year for many families. We hope the children are able to take some time this Christmas to have a break, spend some time with loved ones, and have some time to just be kids," Ms Leys said.

"The CWA of NSW warmly wishes our wonderful bush kids a very merry Christmas."

Back on Harts Horn Station, the Harris girls are learning about farm life while feeding the animals.

"We are teaching them the value of owning a farm," Mrs Harris said.

"Drought is part of life and it has made our girls resilient, they take it in their stride and move on.

"Life is good when it's good and bad when it's bad, but, when you have your family, your home and something to live for, which is the farm, you appreciate the good times.

"It brings back into reality how grateful I am to be in the position to be farmers and definitely brings it all together."

The Land advocates for its readers in many ways.

Through news campaigns, asking the hard questions of our political representatives, and industry, on behalf of farmers, as well as through providing new information to help readers stay informed.

But through our Little Hands, Big Hearts 16-page feature wrap published on June 6, we also gave our readers space to tell their stories in their own words.

The majority of our readers come from family farming operations, many of whom are isolated. During tough seasons, like now, people need to know they're not the only ones going through hardship.

This feature was a way in which they were able to tell their stories not only to the outside world, but to each other.

A lot of farm kids are spending more hours helping with the work on the farm at either end of the day, or are even pulled out of school just to help keep the farm running.

They're hard workers, too, these kids.

They cart feed, drive the trucks, muster stock, and also help take care of their siblings while mum and dad are busy working. And they see a lot.

They quietly observe the stress and heartache their parents go through daily in these sorts of seasons. So we decided they needed a platform through which they could be heard, and their hard work be recognised.

They are the little heroes of this drought.

To launch the project, we ran a front cover on the April 25 edition, with two pages of reader contributed photos inside and a story explaining what the project was about.

That attracted further contributions from readers sharing their photos and stories via social media. These were then compiled for a bigger feature, run as a 16-page wrap on the June 6 edition.

The readers' stories were published in their own words.

That's why this Christmas we wanted to again pay homage to our bush kids who are proud of their farming heritage.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from The Land team.