Cautioned to live a quiet life from a young age due to a birth defect, long term Katherine resident Chris Dixon has made sure his years have been anything but.
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Now, newly retired, he says life is busier than ever.
The 69-year-old was born with congenital talipes equinovarus - or club foot, a paediatric condition where the foot, usually the front, appears twisted.
In Mr Dixon's case, both feet were affected, debilitating him for the first 11 years of his life.
"Growing up I had iron bars up to my thighs, so I couldn't do much at all, no sport, no running around with friends," Mr Dixon said.
Lucky to be one of 10 children chosen for a progressive medical trial run by a respected doctor, and following major surgery, Mr Dixon's life changed for the better.
"They told me I would have to live a quiet life, even after my operation," Mr Dixon said.
"Without the operation I would not have been walking much at all, I certainly wouldn't have achieved what I have.
"But in 1971, I was working in an office and I thought 'bugger this', I have all these exciting ideas and plans.
"So I backpacked across Europe."
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The decision was a turning point in his life, he said, and from then on he has made a point to live life to the fullest.
From sleeping in graveyards, and eating mangrove worms on Melville Island, to hitching rides on freight trains in America and travelling extensively, his stories paint an exciting picture.
Mr Dixon came to Australia in 1983 with his partner Pamela. They had both graduated from teacher training college in England with high hopes of hot sunny days and educating students.
"I wanted to teach geography but the teacher training course would not accept me so I had to study religious education.
"I wasn't particularly religious, but I loved it.
"We got here and we were working odd jobs in Western Australia.
"Pamela got a job in the NT as a teacher, but they didn't need a religious education teacher.
"They said 'Jesus was a carpenter, can you teach wood work?'
"I had no experience, but I had built a beach buggie, to which he said 'you'll be right, mate'."
They accepted the jobs and moved to Numbulwar in 1984.
And they stayed, much longer than most do in the transient town, more than 450km away from Katherine.
"We moved to Katherine in 1990 after eight years in Numbulwar. After eight years we were definitely burnt out.
"I thought at the time that Katherine was the London, Paris, New York of the NT.
"When you have come from a place where there were no phones, no shops, [Katherine] felt like the centre of civilisation."
Mr Dixon continued as an educator and took on the role of teaching the Certificate IV in Training and Assessment at CDU.
He taught thousands of students, travelling across the whole of the Top End to deliver the course.
"I learnt a lot about a lot of different things," Mr Dixon said.
"Nurses, police officers, doctors, pilots, they came from all walks of life. I learnt more from them than they did from me.
"They had to deliver an hour and a half training session in their field, so how could I not learn something.
"I just loved the students. Every single one had a unique background and an interesting story to tell," he said.
While Mr Dixon has made the decision to officially retire, his passion for living large has kept him juggling myriad projects, hobbies and passions.
He says he is busier now than ever before.
Last year he threw himself into gathering large donations for the Men's Shed, managing to raise an impressive $35,000, all the while working, running Katherine's oldest driving school Drv4Lyf and actively participating in the Rotary Club.
Now, with more time on his hands he will be devoting all attention to his two life passions: education and Israel.
"I had club feet and two rows of teeth at the same time Israel was being ganged up on by all these other countries," Mr Dixon said.
"I watched six days of war on TV, and they kept fighting back. It gave me the confidence to confront my bullies in school.
"I fought back and the bullying stopped and that was an eye opener for me. I went to Israel when I was older and I fell in love.
"I have been there 10 times and I am learning Hebrew. I have well and truly explored my passion for teaching and now I want to explore my passion for Israel.
"I'm going to be joining the Israeli defence force as a volunteer, helping wherever I can."
"I will be gone for six months and I might never use the language again."
On return, Mr Dixon has big plans to give back to the Katherine community he loves and plans to stay in.
"I am fortunate to have had many opportunities in my life and I have always had big ideas and the drive to carry them out.
"I want to keep teaching. It is part of me, I am a teacher.
"I want Katherine to have a community centre as well as a Men's Shed, a space where people in town can learn languages, woodwork, cooking, computer skills or anything.
"I really want to start a billy cart championship as well. It will attract people to Katherine, and encourage kids to do things other than play computer games, we also have perfect hills like the Low Level and Knotts Crossing.
"It could be an inclusive activity for the community.
"Now I have retired I would like to explore what I want to do, not what I have to do."
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