Seasons are changing

I cannot believe how cold it is getting in the early morning and evening. Autumn has arrived.

Monday seems like years ago already, but it was a good fun day. Kylie and I invited several friends over, from church. We had a quiet morning brunch in the backyard which lasted until well after 1pm for most, and 2pm for others. Our friends here in Wollongong have worked hard to make us feel welcome and we appreciate it.

Tuesday and Wednesday I spent time in my office attempting to refine my topic for my thesis. No luck. I’m learning loads of great things which I’m sure will come in handy, but at this point I have not improved on the direction issues I’m challenged by. That’s fine though, all part of the process, and I’m sure I’ll have many more weeks with similar challenges. I went for a quick surf on Wednesday too, but it was tiny. I only went in because the day was perfect and the water was so inviting. Twenty minutes later I was back in the car and heading home.

Wednesday was also the cross country event at Figtree Primary School. The day was transformed into a major sports day for the kids with representatives from Rugby League, AFL, cricket and a half dozen other sports providing activities for the kids all day. As they rotated around the activities they eventually got to run in their cross country event. Chanel stunned me. She took off with the rest of the pack but remembered my advice to avoid the sprint at the start. This meant that at the first turn Chanel was at the back of the pack. But 100m later the others were already slowing. Chanel kept those feet moving and started to advance. Eventually we lost sight of the group as they went behind the buildings. When we saw them again, Chanel was in 4th place, and only metres from the leaders. She finished the race superbly in 5th place and was super proud of her efforts.

Abbie’s race occurred later in the day. Kylie came back with me to watch the race. Abbie began to run and cried within moments. She was already at the back of the pack. With the teachers permission I ran and joined the race with her. She ran alongside me as I talked to her. A few times she stopped with tears in her eyes as she discovered how hard running uphill can be. Eventually we reached the end, in 6th place. What a great effort! She was disappointed at not winning, but eventually she got over it.

Thursday afternoon Abbie and Chanel had school friends come over to stay. It was really nice. It seems that with a little extra attention on the friends issues, the girls are doing well. Abbie now has a couple of terrific friends, and Chanel has a great friend who has been close to her since day one. We feel better, and Abbie is doing super well. She loves school, and is incredibly optimistic. Speaking of character traits, Chanel made a funny comment to Kylie and I this afternoon. We were asked whether we new about the Mr. Men series and the accompanying Little Miss series of books. Kylie and I responded that we knew the books. Chanel then stated, “I think I should be Little Miss Plan Ahead”. A remarkably accurate character assessment from our little 8 year old. Very insightful.

We took the kids to the park on Thursday afternoon. They spend more time chasing other people’s dogs than playing in the park. The girls love playing with dogs. Perhaps we might buy one when we are in a house that it is allowed (or when we buy our own house).

Saturday was a wonderful day. Two good friends, Kate and Ben Walter, came to visit. Ben and I had a terrific surf for a couple of hours. I love surfing. Then we ate chicken, chips and chicken Caesar salad on the lawn next to the beach and lagoon at North Wollongong beach. The kids had so much fun playing (and accosting other people’s dogs). The Walters stayed until 4pm. Great to catch up with excellent friends. Then I went for another surf. Two in one day! I cleaned the kitchen and made dinner first, and then got nearly two more hours in the water.

Church was a feast today. Kylie spoke in sacrament meeting. Her talk was superb, about the blessings of family. Our stake president was visiting. He was so impressed he invited Kylie to share that same talk in our upcoming stake conference! Kylie was stunned. I was so grateful for such a wonderful wife.

During class I had a wonderful insight about the scattering of Israel and God’s love for His children. I always thought that Israel was scattered because they were wicked and had been punished. But I saw that His mercy led to their being spared but scattered so He could gather more of His children home. The scattering led to repentance, faith and salvation. Without it, they would not have been saved.

Finally tonight, Chanel and I had a long talk on her bed about how much she misses Brisbane and why we had to come here. She is so mature and understanding. As we finished talking Chanel asked, “Can we do this every night?” She really enjoyed it. And so did I.