Girl Guides

This week, Erin joined the North Epping Girl Guides Unit as a Brownie. North Epping has a small, extremely well run unit, which has a substantial waiting list of girls- we were fortunate to get Erin on the waiting list last year when we arrived, so that she was at the top of the list for enrollments this year. She is beyond excited, and is loving all of the activities. We are feeling a bit daunted but excited for her options for earning her badges- there are so many exciting things that she can do, and there is no doubt that they will all help her development as a responsible, respectful and caring child.

She chose a promise which respected her status as a US citizen. In the Australian Guide Promise, a guide promises to serve "the Queen and my country." Erin chose an alternative in which she promised to serve "my country and this country." We were very proud of her for claiming her US ties!

Anne

The blue is much nicer than the US brown colors, don't you think?
(Note the Queen in the upper part of the picture!)

Where in the World?

On Sunday, we headed into Sydney on the train for the afternoon to attend Sydney's St. Patrick's Day festivities. When Rick and I were first dating, and in the beginning years of our marriage, Ireland was a place of important focus for us. Rick, in particular, has strong Irish roots, and we both enjoyed celebrating our Celtic heritage. Our CD collection (which, I must admit, in briefly perusing it, does not seem to have been much updated since those early years) is stocked with Celtic music. We honeymooned on Ireland's Dingle Peninsula and had a wonderful time, and vowed to travel the whole island some day. We even named our first child Erin after the Emerald Isle.

But something happened in 2004. Rick found the opportunity to spend part of his sabbatical here in Australia doing a ministry exchange (Ireland was kind of out of the running for that, given that the Catholic church frowns upon us wives for their clergy). Ireland fell into our romatic past, and Australia became our real present and future. And now that Australia is our adopted home, we thought, well, time to give the kids a little taste of Ireland. St. Patrick's Day is not as widely celebrated here as it is in the US, so traveling into the center of Sydney seemed our best option, particularly because the lovely stretch of weather that I mentioned in the previous entry is continuing.

Well, I must say that our romantic longings for Ireland were not renewed. Unfortunately, what we found was a lot of alcohol, cigarette smoke and crazy drunk people wearing green wigs and orange and green body paint in a very crowded, sunny hot area of Hyde Park. Granted there was music and Irish dancing, but we couldn't see it through the crowds, and the food stalls were disappointing. The lines were too long in the Kids' Fun Area to make it worthwhile.

So, instead, we sought the cool, welcome shade of the giant avenues of gum trees in Hyde Park and rethought our afternoon strategy. First, Rick and the kids thought this would be a good place to enjoy what they call "Tickle, Tackle, Tumble", usually an evening activity, which they haven't had a chance to enjoy for a while:

After the kids brought Daddy down, we decided to walk towards the Harbour and catch the train from Circular Quay (to the uninitiated, like myself until at least 6 weeks into our 2004 stay, "quay" is pronounced "key", not "qway"), and see what we could discover along the way. We wandered over to St. Mary's Cathedral, the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Sydney. It has impressive architecture and beautiful stained glass. Teenagers were out front making a ruckus to encourage people to attend a World Youth Day Event that was taking place that afternoon. In July, Sydney is hosting World Youth Day, a week-long Catholic youth festival that will include a visit from Pope Benedict XVI (only the 4th Papal visit to Australia).

As we made our way down Macquarie Street on the edge of the Royal Botanic Gardens, we noticed that the street was closed off. As we got closer, we could see the tail end of a parade with at least 3 Greek flags flying at the end- from what I can tell from my quick Google research, it was a Greek Independence Day march.

As we quickened our pace, hoping to find more of the parade, we happened upon, of all people, Jesus, on a donkey, and his disciples and many followers in the dress of Biblical times amongst the tourist crowds at Circular Quay! Turns out, again, from trusty Google, that Wesley Mission, a city mission of the Uniting Church, was re-enacting its annual Palm Sunday procession around the Harbour foreshore.

After recovering from our Jesus sighting, we decided that ice cream was in order (much like, I am sure, the crowd that witnessed the first triumphal entry into Jerusalem).

Just as we were finishing our ice cream, we heard pipers coming, so we rushed to salvage a bit of our St. Patrick's Day celebration. But alas, as we turned the corner, the pipers were disappearing up the street. However, during our mad dash, we did witness a number of Greek Orthodox priests with their long beards and flapping robes run across the road to catch the bus!

A 4-hour trip into Sydney, and we managed to trek around the globe- Dublin, Rome, Athens. We were transported back in time to Jerusalem. We even enjoyed some quality family time. A very surreal excursion!

Anne

The Circle Of Life

So, today is my birthday. Time to celebrate another year of a life journey that is taking me places that I never could have dreamed. Time to give thanks, to spend time just as I want to spend it and reflect on this life that God has given me.

When I first thought about sharing this day on our blog, sometime earlier this afternoon, I figured I would just share the little excursion that Lachlan and I took. One of the things that I really wanted to do on my day was to spend a bit of time on Sydney Harbour. We have had a wonderful stretch of glorious weather for the last week or so, and the Harbour is just stunning at a time like this. I had an image of walking along by the Royal Botanic Gardens, sitting on the grass and watching the boats, enjoying a picnic lunch. Of course, Rick and the girls are busy with work and school during a weekday (for the record, as Rick would ask me to add, he is taking me to lunch on Friday to celebrate my birthday). But having them along would have made it different- less about me and exactly what I imagined, and more about the compromise for the greater family good!

Lachlan, however, on his own, is a great companion for this type of excursion. He happily sits quietly in a stroller and watches the world go by. He adores his mother. He says cute, funny things that make me laugh, and that remind me to connect with that joy inside myself. He has a beautful innoncence that has not yet been tainted by interaction with the "real world", and I love to observe the world from his wonder-filled perspective.

So, I did just what I wanted to do. We took the train to Darling Harbour so that I could break my annual Lenten "sweets and desserts" fast, and I got a scrumptious fudge sundae at the Lindt Chocolate Cafe before I even ate my lunch. Then we took the ferry out onto the Harbour and went around to Circular Quay and we had our walk and picnic, just as I had envisioned it would be. The sun sparkling on the water, the world famous view of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House, the lush green grass of the gardens, the shade of a grand tree, a delightful son marveling at a beautiful tropical bug that he found on my shirt. God is good. I celebrated how blessed I was to be born to this earth, and to be so blessed in my life.

But then, life comes full circle.

I drove directly from the train station to pick up the girls from school, and discovered that Rick was there at a time when I would expect him to be in the office. Turns out that he had come home late morning to be with me when I received an email from Cheshire, one that we had known would someday come, but that we never wanted to receive. Our dear, dear collie MacAllister, who was a cherished member of our family, and the most gentle, loyal, loving companion for all of us, had died.

We shared our grief at leaving him behind in the US in our January 8, 2007 post. Just last week, Erin's topic for her news presentation in class was MacAllister. We loved getting news of his adventures (such as they were in his advanced age!) in his blog, and we always had the sense that he was still hovering right under the dinner table.


We are so grateful to Alison and Matt for giving him such a wonderful "retirement" home in his last year. He was blessed to stay amongst many people in our Cheshire church who had a special place for him in their hearts. Thank you, Alison and Matt, for loving him and leading him in his final journey.

And so I end this entry that begins with a life celebration, with the memory and images of a life well-lived, and truly, well-loved.

Anne

Sorry Day

The Aboriginal Flag

The Australian Flag

Today, the prime minister of Australia, Kevin Rudd, fulfilled an election promise and made a formal apology in Federal Parliament to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders of the Stolen Generations. The Stolen Generations refers to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders who were removed, under government authority, from their families by Australian government agencies and church missions between approximately 1869 and 1969.

In 1997, the report of an offical inquiry into the Stolen Generations recommended that a national apology be made. However, John Howard, who was Prime Minister when the report was issued, never apologized, and he was defeated by Kevin Rudd this past November.

People all over the country gathered to watch the live broadcast. It was a profoundly moving experience and, certainly, long overdue. The girls' school had a presentation at their morning assembly, and the Aboriginal and Australian flags are hung in the main assembly area for the rest of the week. If you are interested in hearing Kevin Rudd's apology, follow this link: http://www.smh.com.au/multimedia/2008/national/australia-says-sorry/main.html?s_cid=rss_national

The movie Rabbit-Proof Fence, which won worldwide acclaim in 2002, tells a gripping tale based on a true story of three children who ran away from a government settlement to return to their Aboriginal families. We highly recommend it if you are interested in learning more about the Stolen Generations.

Anne

Australia Day 2008

Yesterday, we celebrated Australia Day, Australia's national day. It commemorates the establishment of the first European settlement on the continent of Australia. It is much like the 4th of July in the US, although there seems to be an even greater amount of flag-wearing here (you decide, in light of the picture above, whether it is for better or worse!) As the kids and I had just returned a few days before from our January trip to the US (which, by the way, was great), and this was the first day that we did not feel jet-lagged, we were keen to celebrate our return to our adopted home.

The kids and I headed into the center of Sydney (dad, much to his dismay, was working on a sermon) on a beautiful summer day, where we enjoyed lots of festivities at Hyde Park, including music, food, displays, and, of course, free tatoos and flags! There was so much going on- unfortunately, we had to forego all of the celebrations on the Harbour, which included tall ships, as the little feet could only carry us so far....

Asked to write the best thing about being an Aussie, Erin wrote "Fun in the Sun", and
Claire wrote "The best thing is going swimming."

The kids enjoy a ride in an Australian military vehicle.

I should note, also, that we are now celebrating one year of living in Australia. Wow.

Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi!
Anne

Happy Christmas!

While we are winding down our first Christmas Day in Australia, we wanted to take the opportunity to wish you and yours (especially those of you who are just now starting your Christmas Day) a Happy Christmas, as Australians like to say. We are having a wonderful Christmas season, full of new discoveries and traditions.

We have spent Christmas Day for the last decade with both sets of parents and other extended family, and knew we would miss them dearly. Fortunately, we have found the celebration of Christmas to be different enough here (in terms of climate and traditions) that we did much better than we could have hoped. We enjoyed a Christmas Eve BBQ at the church, a festive and informally celebratory Christmas Eve service, 2 Christmas morning services for Rick, a Christmas dinner gathering (which included yummy salads, fruits and hot and cold meats) with close friends, Christmas crackers (a cardboard tube wrapped with Christmas paper that pops when opened and contains little gifts), the wearing of Christmas crowns during dinner, Christmas pudding and a game of street cricket afterwards.

May God's richest blessings shine on you and yours,

Anne, Rick, Erin, Claire and Lachlan

Our gingerbread houses (Australian house with veranda on the left)

Joseph, Mary and Baby Jesus on Christmas Eve

All but one of us wearing our Christmas crowns

Our first game of street cricket!

Aussie Jingle Bells

The Christmas season is well underway here in Australia. The retailers, as faithful as those in the US, were setting up their Christmas displays at the beginning of October. Christmas carols are playing in the shopping centres. The kids are doing Christmas crafts at school. And the temperatures are starting to rise. Go figure.

I am having a very difficult time trying to make my brain compute that it's time to start opening the windows on the Advent calendar, get all the gifts in order, buy and decorate a tree and start making my cookie plates. My body refuses to send those messages to my brain. It would rather jump in the pool or enjoy a day at the beach.

I am madly trying to figure out how one balances end of the year gatherings, end of the school year assemblies and performances, a clergy husband's busiest time of the year and Christmas preparations all in the span of a couple of weeks. I'll let you know how it all turns out- but not until February, which is the first time I imagine I will find time to breathe and be able to write our annual "Christmas" letter.

Until then, I wanted to share a song that we have all been enjoying for the past few weeks. I bought a book for the kids that I had seen in the Christmas display at the bookstore. It's called Aussie Jingle Bells, and it illustrates a delightful song by Colin Buchanan, an Australian children's songwriter. Tonight, the girls did a dance/concert for me of this song, and I realized I should share it on the blog, as it paints a unique picture of an Australian Christmas.

Dashing through the bush, in a rusty Holden Ute, Kicking up the dust, esky in the boot,
Kelpie by my side, singing Christmas songs, It's Summer time and I am in my singlet, shorts and thongs

Oh! Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way, Christmas in Australia on a scorching summers day, Hey! Jingle bells, jingle bells, Christmas time is beaut !, Oh what fun it is to ride in a rusty Holden Ute.

Engine's getting hot; we dodge the kangaroos, The swaggie climbs aboard, he is welcome too. All the family's there, sitting by the pool, Christmas Day the Aussie way, by the barbecue.

Oh! Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way, Christmas in Australia on a scorching summers day, Hey! Jingle bells, jingle bells, Christmas time is beaut!, Oh what fun it is to ride in a rusty Holden Ute.

Come the afternoon, Grandpa has a doze, The kids and Uncle Bruce, are swimming in their clothes. The time comes 'round to go, we take the family snap, Pack the car and all shoot through, before the washing up.

Oh! Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way, Christmas in Australia on a scorching summers day, Hey! Jingle bells, jingle bells, Christmas time is beaut!, Oh what fun it is to ride in a rusty Holden ute

This website provides some explanation of the terms in the song: http://alldownunder.com/oz-u/songs/jingle-bells-12.htm. And this youtube video shares it in song and picture (the kids will enjoy this): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiRgEVliuYU.

Happy Christmas!

Anne