Roll up! Roll up! It's Show Time!

Yesterday was Heavenly Beverley's agricultural show. An absolutely brilliant day, judging by the reaction of everyone who attended.

For me, the show signifies the end of winter, the promise of budding trees and flowers, baby birds and animals, the glorious yellow blast of canola and the revitalisation of our garden after the cold and the damp.

And I love the Beverley show, which is a huge community event. Every year, the show gets better and better, which is pretty amazing for a country town the size of ours. The Agricultural Society has a tiny organising committee and they have done a fabulous job again.

This year, the joint was jumping from Thursday onward. First were the stall holders arriving, followed by all the caravans, RVs and campers. Saturday morning saw traffic jams on the main drag, a queue (unheard of!) to the main gate, stalls galore and people. People were everywhere. We entered the show ground (our town oval) and prepared to enjoy ourselves!

There was something for all visitors. We were greeted by a kilted bagpipe band the minute we had our entry tickets. The Exhibition Hall was bulging with every conceivable display. Cakes, paintings, home brew, craft, photographs, flower arrangements and kids' creations were viewed with much enthusiasm by the crowd. Stalls offered visitors all items from soaps to whipper snippers, tea towels to backpacks, tractors to garden seedlings and hardware supplies to earrings.

There were vintage cars, vintage machinery and even a vintage caravan. There were animals of course - sheep, sheepdogs, horses, a donkey and an Old McDonald's Farm. There were showbags for the young and young at heart, fabulous physical rides and activities, face painting and wine tasting.

The food vendors offered cuisine from Argentina, China, Greece and every country in between. The volunteers in the sports' centre made tasty sandwiches and cakes. They were all run off their feet. I have no doubt that all the stall holders would have slept well last night.

We wandered from one end of the show to the other. We bought lunch (delicious chicken wraps), snacked on fresh donuts, bought plants, wine, earrings and half a dozen different hardware items. We chatted with stall holders and friends, enjoyed the atmosphere, and left exhausted. Later, we joined Yvonne and her friend Ellen for dinner and watched the spectacular fireworks, which brought the Beverley show to its conclusion for another year.

Everyone we spoke to at the show and in town had noted the friendliness of Heavenly Beverley. We met people from all over Australia. The hardware stall holders had come from Queensland and were delighted at the warmth of the welcome. I am certain they will return next year.

As will we.