I love Nord’s Wharf! Quite amazing given that until about September last year when we just happened to stumble across it, I hadn’t even heard of it. But didn’t that turn out to be a blessing. It seems that I am not the only one who hasn’t heard of it. Despite it being January school holidays and simply amazing weather almost all week we had the place virtually to ourselves. In fact there was one beach we went to that we had totally to ourselves (apart from two fisherman and surfer). And it was such a beautiful beach, crystal clear water and surrounded by bush.

The place we were staying in was pretty posh. Slightly posher than I thought it would be and probably more so than I would normally go for but it was nice to have a bit of luxury in my life. The views of the lake were stunning, I enjoyed many an afternoon just lazing around the balcony, and I managed to take advantaged of the massive bath as well. The pool table and the plasma TV was also taken advantage of. Probably more that I would have necessarily chosen but I am glad others enjoyed it.

My general day consisted of waking up to the magpies warbling and the light coming in through the curtains. Martin and I would spend some time hanging out in our room, it was massive and had lake views so it was a very pleasant place to hang out. Then I would do some exercise usually pilates (but did run twice) after which I would have a leisurely breakfast. After some sitting around and chatting or reading we would finally get going to the beach and spend the afternoon there. We would usually be getting home for lunch around 3 or 3.30pm which was probably a bit late but not to worry. After lunch there would be more sitting around and reading or playing a game then I would wander down to the lake for a paddle and a swim as the sun began to go down. It would then be time for some nibbles and dinner and then more chatting or games or movies. While not every day looked exactly like that most were pretty close.

Doing all that surrounded by some of the most wonderful people in the world was simply perfection.

In the last 12 months I have blogged on average 7 times per month. With 10 posts in October being the highest and 5 posts in March and June being the lowest. That’s pretty good for me I reckon. Next year I might aim to make it an average of 8. Probably wouldn’t want to blog too much more but a little more. I like my blog.

So here’s my little summmary of 2008. As usual I am getting in a little late on my reflections but that’s just me:

Worked at Compeer.
Wasn’t at uni
Got kicked out of our house in Enmore
Moved to Glebe. Martin and I lived on own for the first time
Kevin Rudd said Sorry to Indigenous Australians
Got my wisdom teeth out
Was a nominator for St John’s
Celebrated our three year anniversary with a week on the South Coast
Minded Hannah for two weeks while the Frenchs were in Guatamala
Turned 26
Alexis stayed with us for a month
World Youth Day
Attended TEAR Conference
Bought a Mac
Visited Gem in Melbourne for the first time
Went to Alice Springs and on a desert journey
Decided to move to Alice Springs
Started Pilates
Saw Michael Franti in Wollongong
Barack Obama was elected as president of the US
Finished reading the whole Bible
Jo and Victor came to Australia

As with the last couple of years, now that I have finished that list I realise it doesn’t truly represent what 2008 was for me. Certainly it covers some of the important things but doesn’t fully capture what they meant for me. But it totally misses all the little things, the not so significant things that really make up a year. That’s okay, it’s a list and it’s not supposed to do that really.

Day two of being back at work after 15 days off on holiday. I am actually quite enjoying it, I think after 15 days of holidays it is nice to be productive again in a work kind of way. There have been some pleasant tasks to do and as for the hard ones well knowing I am about to have another 10 days off for the holiday of fun means nothing seems that overwhelming at all. I feel completely and totally indulgent.

The last week of my holidays was as good as the first I will continue from where I was up to:
Tuesday: Had a day at home alone as planned, well apart from Leila. I had a swim, did some pilates and some cleaning but mainly just sat around reading.
Wednesday: New Years Eve we hung around in teh morning and Gem and I went for a run. Then we headed over to Cremorne Point. We took the Ferry which was nice. Then we had to wait like 9 hours for the fireworks. It was so hot and not a lot of shade so I got a bit sick unfortunately and spent the night trying to sleep but the fireworks were pretty and Jo and Victor got engaged so I felt like it was worth being there.
Thursday: New Years Day. Hung around home again with Gem, Leila, Daniel, Dean, Ryan and Martin. We drunk lots of tea, had a BBQ and then saw Frost/Nixon which was a really very good movie.
Friday: Leila, Gem and I went to the Blue mountains. It was a bit of a frustrating day waiting for public transport but we evertually got to the three sisters and did a bit of a walk around there. We stayed at our friend’s Michael and Alexis house who are great and have a great house. He is an adult educator too and I really enjoy chatting with him about it. It was a freezing night believe it or not. We had the heater going and everything.
Saturday: Again in the Blue Mountains where we did another walk. It was better, less touristy and along a river with waterfalls. Although me reading the map is always a disaster so there was a bit of a detour. We had a few more public transport issues (when trains only tun every hour it is not good) but all in all a pleasant day.
Sunday: Went out to see another minister, not our man for those who are intersted. In the afternoon hung out with Hayley and Gem at the pool and then went to Newtown for coffee with Helen in a book shop. Very cool.
Monday: Last day before returning to work so just did some at home stuff Nice.

So a great holiday and lots and lots of people around which has been fun although made me realise that even extovert me has some limits.

Since my very extravagant look after me day on my last day work for 2008 I have continued to have a pretty relaxed and blessed holiday.
Saturday: Hung around at home with Martin and we went for a wander into the city to look at lights. We stumbled across the Carols in the Domain and watched for a bit and came back to Glebe for pizza.
Sunday: Minded Hannah and had lots of fun with her at the pool.
Monday: Jo and Victor arrived and I went to the airport to meet them and then had a scrumptious breakfast in Newtown and sat around at the bushy French house with my amazing friends. Fi and Mike came with their baby Evie and she is so cute.
Tuesday: Leila (Martin’s cousin’s friend from Ecuador) arrived and I went to the airport again to pick her up. Mum and Keith arrived too so I went to French’s again for dinner there with them and others
Wednesday: Had a Christmas Eve lunch at Kat and Tom’s and played some serious Badminton. Gemma arrived and I had a great Japanese meal with her and mum in Newtown. Then we attended the Christmas Eve service. It was a very special service great music, great atmosphere, people taking and drinking champagne after. I did the prayers.
Thurday: Christmas Day. After a relaxing morning we went to my grandparents place. Spent and hour or so on Collaroy Beach (as they live there) and then had a dinner at their place. Grandma as always excelled in her cooking especially the prawns and the Christmas pudding and custard.
Friday: Boxing Day morning spent at the Lady’s Pool at Coogee and then back to Hornsby for coffee with Jo and Jem while the others watched a movie. In the evening we went to Brooklyn for Christmas left overs.
Saturday: Toured the city with Victor and Leila. We walked from Milson’s Point over the Bridge to the Rocks markets and had lunch. Then through Circular Quay for coffee and then through the Botanic Gardens to Woollomolloo (spelling) for a beer. At that point it started to rain. We eventually gave up waiting and walked through the Domain, past St Mary’s Cathedral, through Hyde Park and took a bus back to my place for dinner.
Sunday: Church, a long much needed quiet time then back to Collaroy for some time with mum and family on the beach. Keith and mum came home and had dinner with us. Much talk about Alice Springs was had. Exciting.
Monday: Drove to Wollongong through the Royal National Park and over the Sea Cliff Bridge and had the best Vegie Burgers in Coledale. In Wollongong we went to Jess’s local Lee and Me’s for coffee and then wandered down the the light house.
It’s been really great to hang with everyone (especially Jo and Victor) and I have had sooooo much fun. However tomorrow I am ready for a bit of an alone day before New Year’s Eve.

Yesterday I decided that I would spend the day with myself, doing things that I like doing and just caring for myself. It was my last day of work and I thought I would reward myself for some of the good things I’ve achieved this year and offer myself some kindness and grace in an effort to let go of some of the crappier things.

So I finished work at about 1.30 and went and had a salad roll at my favourite (yummy and very cheap) salad roll place. Then I went and got an eyebrow wax and a half hour massage. The wax sucked, it was painful and not well done but the massage really hit the spot. Then I came home, grabbed my swimming stuff and walked to the Ian Thorpe pool. I did my usual 22 laps and it felt good and then had a sauna just in case I wasn’t relaxed enough. From the pool I went and had dinner at the sushi train and read my book. I am a bit obsessed with sushi trains and my book. Then I went to the movies. I saw Twilight. There wasn’t anything else on and I was hoping it was going to be like Buffy, (you know vampires and stuff) but it wasn’t. In fact it wasn’t very good at all and certainly went against everything I had been reading about (I am reading Passionate Marriage which is all about differentiation, the concept of holding on to and validating yourself in your relationship and I can assure there was nothing differentiated about the relationship in twilight). However I didn’t care that much I just love seeing movies on my own, it feels so liberating. And I enjoyed the champagne and the choc top. After the movie I came home and went to bed feeling very relaxed and all prepared for my holidays.

If you venture into Chatswood at the moment all the people in the shops buying up big certainly leaves one a little confused about all the concern and drama that people won’t be spending enough money this year. If this is what an economic crisis looks like I don’t think we have much to worry about. Well only that nothing seems to stop us from spending and consuming in a time where we really need to. And that a slight downturn in our incredibly luxuourious lifestyles cause such anxiety.

40 more (out of the 150) Christmas Card to send
15 messages on the answering machine
5 more reports to receive and send
2 introductions (the volunteer and their friend)
1 interview
1 friendship ending (very messy)
As well as the general stuff that comes in
All in three days of work.
Yay for 15 days holidays!!

P.S. Due to some misunderstanding I wanted to say this is all work related, ie not cards for my friends and family but volunteers etc (so don’t be offended if you don’t get one, no one has really we didn’t get to it again this year); not 15 personal messages but for work; and not one of my friendship’s ending but one of the volunteer’s.

Today I finished reading Malachi and thus I have now read the whole Bible. It has taken me about three and half years which is a lot longer than I thought it would when I set out but that’s okay. I also set out to read it from beginning to end. I didn’t do this either but’s that’s okay too. If the Bible has gotton anything through it is grace. About half way through the old testamant (Chronicles I think) I was really tiring so I thought I would read some new testament instead and ended up reading it all. And then I went back to the Chronicles but got tired again before the prophets so I read the Gospels again. Then I got distracted by “Sabbabth Ecomics” so I read Exodus for a second time and we were reading some of Paul’s letters with my small group so I think they got read twice too. I finally got to the prophets which I finished today. And so the whole Bible.

Now having read the whole Bible for myself I can truly say I love it. I did find some of it boring, some of it offensive and some of it I didn’t understand at all but as a whole I think it’s marvellous. It deals with the biggest questions of life right to the most mundane and trivial parts of human existence.
I still don’t hold entirely conventional views of what the Bible is but the stories, the letters, the prayers, the poems, the dreams, the commands, the guidelines, the prophecies, the people and most importantly Jesus all give a very full picture of the nature of God. A God who can not be boxed into any neat categories at all. It no longer seems at all possible (although I am sure I will continue to do this, see below) to quote one part of the Bible as some kind of proof or answer to who God is or what He wants (and I am saying He because that is all our language allows for but I am not convinced that God is a male).

However, I will say (and no one will be supirsed to hear this from me) that I think the issue of God’s concern for the poor, the oppressed and those suffering or living on the margins in any way is a theme that runs clearly and powerfully throughout the whole Bible. Just one example from Zechariah chapter seven

“There nothing new to say on the subject. Don’t you still have the messages of the earlier prophets from the time when Jerusalem was still a thriving, bustling city. Well the message hasn’t changed: Treat one another justly. Love your neighbours, be compassionate with each other. Don’t take advantage of widows, orphans, visitors and the poor. Don’t plot and scheme against one another – that’s evil.

However, the whole Bible, the story of creation; the freeing of a people enslaved; the commands and guidelines given in the desert to a people learning to be the people of God; the prayers of David and the other psalmists; the people chosen to tell the stories; the anger and the desires expressed through the prophets; the life, the stories, the suffering of Jesus; the actions of the early church; the letters of James, Peter, John and even Paul; and the final images of a life to come all point to a God who loves the poor, who calls His people to do the same and even shows them how. I am convinced that there is still poverty, injustice and suffering not because God wills it or is punishing us but simply because we have not lived as we were called, because we have lived for ourselves and not for others and not for God. But I live in hope…

“But when all is said and done God’s temple on the mountain will dominte all mountains. People will stream to it saying, “Come let’s climb God’s mountain. He will teach us how to live.” True teaching will issue from Zion, God’s revelation from Jerusalem. He’ll establish justice in the rabble of the nations and settle disputes in faraway places. They’ll trade in their swords for shovels, their spears for rakes and hoes. Nations will quit fighting each other, quit learning to kill. Each man will sit under his own shade tree, each woman in safety will tend her garden.” Micah chapter four