Spring has sprung! Ignore the cold, wet weather of the October long weekend – the bright colours in the gardens make Spring’s arrival undeniable!

We decided to do an overnight trip down to Canberra to visit the Spring festival there – FLORIADE. We chose to go while the night festival was on too – might as well make the most of it! So we packed the car (well, Brooke did actually – I was at school and had Brooke and Cadel pick me up on the way through) and hit the road. It’s a nice drive down to Canberra – and short enough to do in one go, even with an 8 month old baby on board. We were there by 6pm.

The night festival had music, food, floodlit floral displays, street performers, markets and a ferris wheel. But the main attraction for us was the outdoor cinema screening of “Earth” (a feature film version of the BBC documentary series “Planet Earth”). It was fantastic to see the breathtaking footage of God’s good creation, while snuggling up as a family on our picnic rug (snuggles weren’t an optional extra – it was cold!). We did laugh at the way the narrator constantly credited the existance of all life on earth to the tilt of the earth – “Praise be to Tilt”, “Tilt, we lift your name on high!” – it certainly does take lots of faith to believe that this world is the result of an extraordinarily long string of coincidences – each and every one vital, yet having amazingly long odds.

The night had a pretty cool finish. The floraide website worded it this way: “Get caught up in the massive display of spectacular fire and music from the largest hand operated multi-octave fire organ in the World… The Pyrophone Juggernaut.” It was basically a pirate ship with lots of organ pipes, being played by a crew using flame-throwers to blow through the pipes and make the music. Still confused? Here’s a photo:

Pretty impressive, hey!?

As fun as the night festival was, Canberra is not really a place you visit for its night life – and a flower festival is best seen in the light of day. So the next morning we returned and enjoyed wandering around, checking out the lilies, poppies, tulips, irises and other floral displays. I was hoping to take some cool macro photographs, but the conditions were a bit too windy to get any good shots. Of the photos I did take, here is one of my favourites:

Cadel’s reaction to the flowers was typical of what he does with every new thing he encounters at the moment – he was not content with a mere visual appraisal. He insisted on getting a more thorough “taste of spring” (flower lovers, divert your eyes!):

They also had a “patting paddock”, which allowed Cadel to meet various animals face to face. Patting was encouraged, but I don’t think one of the goats would have been particularly impressed with Cadel’s patting style. He decided to take some of the goat’s hair home as a souvenir! Cruel, but hilarious. Don’t worry, this lamb escaped unharmed:

Thanks for looking,

Dave

P.S. The second issue of our newsletter is now available. Please let me know if you’d like a copy.

Last Sunday was a deceptive day. The sun was shining. All was peaceful. The shores of Botany Bay looked like a lovely place to be. But then it happened… a total bloodbath! It was a cruel massacre. My beloved Cronulla Sharks football team were flogged 56-10 by Brooke’s team – the Wests Tigers. And we were there as a family – Cadel’s first ever game of footy.

He seemed to enjoy it – only because he had no idea of what was going on!

Who’d be a sharks fan? And why would I encourage (force) my son to barrack for them too? They have never won a premiership. They sit in equal last place on the table this season. They have lurched from one controversy to another – the club name dragged through the mud.

But I reckon, as a Christian, Cronulla are the perfect team to go for!

Hear me out! In the bible, in Romans 8, the Christian life is spoken of as a hope for something we don’t yet have. It is a frustrated groaning for future glory. A patient wait for the great things that lie ahead.

The life of a Cronulla Sharks fan is like the life of a Christian. Our hope is in future glory. We fix our eyes on future premiership success – rather than looking back to the “good old days.” The Sharks fan, like the Christian, is all about the future! We live for it!

This thinking is shown elsewhere in the bible, in 2 Corinthians 4, which says “we do not lose heart… our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory… so we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.”

This also hints at the other way the life of a Sharks fan echoes the Christian life – “troubles” or persecution. Sharks fans are copping it at the moment – from St George supporters, from Tigers fans, from people who don’t even follow the footy! The person who is living for future glory should expect such troubles! But these troubles are far outweighed by the future glory!

So here comes the “altar call” – if you are not already barracking for the Sharks, now is the time to switch! Become somebody who is focussed on the future, and not the “good old days”! Fix your eyes on that big empty trophy cabinet, and do it with eager expectation!

Dave

P.S. Yes, this post may be a little tongue-in-cheek. And no, Brooke does not endorse these comments.

P.P.S. And there may be some differences between the “hope” shown by Christians and that shown by Sharks fans. The Christian hope is not uncertain in any way. It is based on what Jesus has already done. It is absolutley certain. The hope of Sharks fans may be a little less certain.

Travelling again?!

Yep.

It seems like we’ve been “on the road” alot lately (we’ve actually been away from home for two and a half of the last six weeks). This most recent trip was up to Laurieton (near Port Macquarie) to visit Brooke’s grandparents, then stop at Barrington Tops for a bit of rest on the way back home. I really don’t need to write much, except to say it was great to see Cadel being loved by his Great-grandparents, and that the Barrington Tops really is one of our favourite spots in the whole wide world! Besides that, I’ll let these photos do the talking.

Cadel meeting a baby that’s even smaller than him:

Feeding the birds:

Cuddles with his Great-Grandma:

Getting messy at his own feeding time:

As usual, if you want to see more of our photos, click HERE 

Brooke, Dave & Cadel

P.S. It was weird running into one of our very good friends (Clarky) while checking out the Laurieton Sunday markets – especially since he’s a fellow Sutherland Shire hobbit.

Cadel proved to be an excellent flier on our trip to Perth, so we thought we’d give road tripping a go. It wasn’t (yet another) holiday, but rather a conference down in Melbourne for Pioneers. Pioneers is the Mission Organisation we have applied to join, and the conference was orientation for all newbies like us – explaining who they are and what their core values involve. It was an intense week, but really helpful and encouraging.

We decided to drive down, and stop at the snow on the way (just for lunch – having a baby makes skiing impossible). Cadel didn’t know what to make of the snow. He was constantly licking the cold air, and when we put some snow in his hand it took him a while to realise it was cold – he burst into tears when he realised, yet didn’t think of actually opening his hand and dropping it!

We stayed in Melbourne for the weekend at the end of the conference and did a bit of sightseeing. I must admit, I had never really been all that interested in Melbourne. I always thought of it as a cold, wet, drab version of Sydney. It pretty much lived up to the “cold, wet” bit, but I really enjoyed it none-the-less. Unlike Sydney (which is usually full of tourists and office workers rushing about), Melbourne seems to be the playground for Melbournians. The CBD actually has a vibrant feel to it. We loved wandering up little side laneways, drinking good coffee, heading to the markets, then buying some Italian for dinner on Lygon Street. Good times.

Brooke, Dave & Cadel

P.S. We have printed up the first issue of our newsletter “Irish Eyes”, so please let us know if you’d like a copy emailed or posted to you.

“Go west! Life is peaceful there

Go west! In the open air

Go west! Where the skies are blue

Go West! This is what we’re gonna do”

No, we have NOT become fans of the Pet Shop Boys, but we have become fans of Western Australia! We spent 10 days there during April, visiting Catriona and Tony (my sister and her partner) with my Dad. It was Cadel’s first time in an aeroplane (not a surprise since he’s only 3 months old!), but also my Dad’s first flight. Both handled it well – hardly any compaining from either of them!

It was a really good time – chilling out with family, seeing the beautiful beaches and countryside of Western Australia and watching Cadel grow older by the day (including having some new experiences – first swim at Rockingham).

We were quite nervous beforehand – it had been a long, long, long time since Catriona and I had spent time with Dad, so we were nervous about how old relationships would be rekindled. Praise God! It went so well. It was a very special time of getting to know each other again and creating some shared memories for the future.

Plenty happened in the lives of our friends while we were gone. There were four babies born! Welcome to the world Isabelle Martin, William Follet, William Veltmeyer and Tobie Sanders. We’ll be praying for all four of you.

Catriona and Tony own some property south-east of Perth. It’s called “Elbow Room” and is a great spot to have the quintessential “Australian” experience. They’re currently preparing to set up their dream home there (which will be a shed to begin with) – so we hope going west will become a regular thing for us from now on!

To see some more photos (be prepared for an onslaught of jealousy – it’s a beautiful place), click HERE

Dave