4bees.com

The plans we make;  how quickly they can change! 

My idea of Christmas break was a short trip to Chicago to see my parents and join in a wedding celebration.  Return home with my husband and then spend some down time at home with a few days of visiting with the kids.  Lots of sewing!  Maybe a little school work!

Alas, twas not to be!  Weather!  Instead I traveled to Chicago by myself for an even shorter period of time.  I did get to see my parents and spend some time with them, and I was able to celebrate with the family and witness the vows of Tricia and Emilio.  Came home in time to clean house and prepare for Brian and Jess to come the following day.  Spent time with them and helped out with a funeral.  Wednesday Brad came home.

Helped with the Christmas Eve service at our church and planned for Christmas dinner.  Brian and Jess headed out to her parents place for a few days, but came in for Christmas.

Instead of 3-5 people for dinner, ended up with 9!  Had a great time!  Even made some appetizers to serve before the meal!  Spent a wonderful time with family and daughter-in-laws family and enjoyed the blessings given - so rich and so full - so complete!

Sunday was church and fellowship and reminders to be thankful for the gifts we have and challenged to serve using these gifts.  Brad left to go back to Albuquerque to work on Monday.

Monday was a butchering!  Literally!  Sheep!  The sacrificies of the Old Testament came alive with this experience.  And to do this at Christmas, and think of the shed blood of this baby born for us.  I helped to clean the stomach and empty the intestines and saw the life blood drain from the animal.  Was challenged to make tortillas and eat roasted intestine skins!  The beauty and complexity of life!

Tuesday I worked on quilting and cleaning in the morning.  Made it through the hump that had set me back with the rainbow quilt for Brian and Jess (only 4 years late)!  And worked at the Makeshift Gallery in the afternoon.  Not much happening there, but I did get some other things done as I sat in the store.  Quilted again in the evening!

Wednesday began with some more quilting and dishes and breakfast with a friend.  Helped out with some janitor stuff at church and then - back to quilting!  And now it is finished!  Beautiful!  Can’t wait to show it to Jess.

Today I am packing!  Don’t know if I should with this weather that we’re having!  Once again the weather is wreaking havock on our plans!  THe snow is swirling around and we’re supposed to leave for CA this afternoon to join our children and daughter-in-law-to-be and her parents for a New Year’s celebration.  Only He knows how all this will turn out.  Before I can go, though, I need to put in some hours at the Church office.  Not too demanding, but another small way to serve.

Beneath all these experiences was the joy and excitement of Christmas!  This too was tempered by a sister who struggles to regain health half a world away; the funeral of a co-worker’s mother who died suddenly the last day of school; the news of a friend whose mother had a major stroke and went to be with her Savior on Christmas Day; the news of two church members diagnosed with stomach cancer:  one with major surgery happening the next day to remove his stomach and lymph nodes etc.

A season of joy and hope!  A season of mourning and sadness!  Our world belongs to God!  Come Lord Jesus!

Day 8 was Sunday.  After a light breakfast, got ready for church.  What a wonderful experience to worship again with God’s people on the other side of the world.  Just as I was walking into the sanctuary, (while Betty was checking her mail cubby) an elderly gentleman walked past me and in his quiet gentle voice said, “Good morning Betty!”.  I was about to correct him, and then thought better of it.  Later I told Betty and we had a good chuckle together. 

Singing songs of praise, praying, and listening to God’s word opened for us was a fitting way to end my time in Australia.   Said some goodbyes and hopes for future trips to family members.

On the way home we stopped by Daniel and Orien’s place.  What a beautiful view they have from their back porch.  And again, what a talented guy that Daniel is.  Because it was time for the noon meal to be popped in the oven, we had a quick muffin that the kids had made for us and then we headed on to the house.  After coffee time and some more chatting, we had a final meal together - love those salads that Betty puts together - and then it was time to pack.

An uneventful trip to the airport, checking in, one more “coffee” and it was time to say goodbye - except I found I couldn’t say it - just had to show it with the hugs and twisted smile of someone full of emotion.  Never have been too good at saying goodbye!  But I do have a wonderful last picture in my head of Betty and Herman waving as I walked through the international doors.

The flight back didn’t go quite as fast, meaning I dozed more than slept and ended up walking around the plane a few times inbetween the “lights out” time.  Long lines for immigration and customs!  I think there must have been 5 international flights that all landed about the same time - makes for lots of time to practice patience.   The last leg from LA to Phoenix was delayed due to snow and icy cold in Salt Lake.   Hate to say it, but I found the US residents quite rude on the domestic flights. Twas a sad thing to experience after all the other travels.   Finally made it to my dear husband.  How wonderful to be back together after these days of separation.

After a shorter night in the hotel, back on the road to Rehoboth.  Thankfully no ice or snow on the roads, and there this journey ends.  A testament to God’s timing, His care, His love and sustaining grace and mercy.

Rain again today!  Partway through the day, Herman commented, “You can officially call this a miserable day” - totally referring to the weather.

Herman had classis meeting this morning so Betty and I laid low spending time talking over a leisurely breakfast, cleaning up, getting wash hung up, pottering in the garden trimming rose bushes, etc.  Shortly before lunch Herman called, so we quickly got lunch ready (bacon, egg, tomato, baked beans on toast yummmm!).  While helping to prepare lunch, I opened up the passionfruit I had bought at the market, took pictures and then ate it right from the skin!  Mmm!  Mmmm!  Mmmmmm!  After lunch we headed out in the darkening clouds and raindrops in the direction of Geelong.  Passing through Melbourne I was struck by the huge ships and factories lining the waterways and piers.  The skyline did not bring much memory except of the rug hanging in Bill and Connie’s kitchen.

Further along, I had memories of the horrible bush fires between Melbourne and Geelong - not sure why they had made such an impression on me as a child.  The You Yangs were hazy hills in the distance (couldn’t get a picture due to the rain) bringing to mind the story of getting lost with younger brother Dave. 

Once in Geelong, nothing registered until Betty said something about this is Packington, and that part up there is what we refered to “walking up the hill”.  And the road seemed familiar somehow in the far reaches of my mind.  Soon we were stopping across from the church.  That was so familiar!  Seemed just the right size too!  What didn’t seem the right size was all the other buildings and things so close.  Just up the block on the other side was St John’s.  Oh how that brought back memories.  The open area where I loved to play ball and have races.  The open asphalt area where we used to stand in line before school and recite the pledge and sing “God Save the Queen”.  The “hall where we used to have our “chapels”.  And then on up the hill to Aphrasia and down to the lane.  Left into the “short” lane and right into the “long” lane.  Around to the front and the porch in the front and the windows by dad’s study.  The hydrengea bushes infront of the porch.  The story of me eating a bite out of each item in the worker’s lunch, the horse drawn carts with milk, bread, vegetables etc.  Mrs. Hoisler’s house.  On to Matthew Flinders Girls High School, Reformed Theological College, the Baxter House where Dave and Chuck were born, Kardinia House where dad had his gall bladder out, the nurses house where Betty lived when doing her training.  All of these were just as I thought except they were so close to each other and so closed in by other buildings.  Somehow in my memory all these things were entities on their own with nothing else around them. 

Eastern Beach was rainy, but still beautiful.   The pleasure boats looked nice, but were not part of my memory.  I recalled that the huge ships used for transporting oil, grain, sheep products were the familiar sights.   We walked the boardwalk around the pool in the drizzle just to get out and stretch.  All during these sights I must have either been obnoxiously talkative, or very quiet as i tried to process all the thoughts running through my head. 

We stopped and parked in town so we could get out and have afternoon coffee and stopped right by a uniform shop.  I’m sure the girl’s uniform hanging in the window is from Matthew Flinders.  I took a picture through the window so I can compare with the pictures I have in my uniform!!!

After coffee we headed back down the road back home.  As we chatted, I mentioned something about Sherbrooke Forest and so Herman headed the car that way, and we got to see the cockatoos (cockies), kookaburras, crimson rosellas - hoping I got some good pictures - out in the wild.  Driving through the forest brought back memories of picnics and camps (that I never got to attend as a real camper) and the wonderful colors and smells of the woods.   Puffing Billy reminded me of the Silverton Railway.   A Mt Evelyn sign reminded me of iced coffees with ice cream in them. 

Before heading home, we also stopped by the Cardinia Reserve and I got some shots and short videos of the kangaroos.  The big greys were all about eating and roaming through the grass.  A quick stop at the Fish and Chip shop to pick up dinner, and we were back home again.  Oh, I know it’s greasy, but that fish and those chips were so, so tasty.  The added potato cakes and dim sung added extra new flavors to the experience.

Now I’m sitting here, recalling all these memories, and drinking “hot lemonade” just like we did when we were sick in the “sun room”.  I got to pick the lemon from Steven’s tree on Tuesday when I was there.

Tomorrow is the last day.  It’s gone by so fast.  I knew it would, but here it is.  I do believe I’ve been able to enjoy each day and it’s activities as they occurred.  I’ve been thankful for the time to sit and talk with my sister about many, many things.  I’m so thankful for the way God worked things out for me to be here and take her mind off the unknowns of the coming weeks.   God is good!  His love endures forever!  His faithfulness continues through all generations.

Tired tonight - don’t think there’ll be much to say.

Woke up to a brighter, yet still cloud covered day.  It rained off and on, but that didn’t deter us from our activities.  Dandenong market was first on the list.  We met Judith and Megan and walked around the vege and fruit stands.  Coming from New Mexico, this was quite an experience.  All that fresh food!  So much of it!  All looking so good!  And the sizes of some of the produce! After getting making our purchases, Betty and I headed into the “clothes and souvenir” section so I could have a look around while Judith and Megan went to do a little more shopping on their list.

After a “coffee” all together we headed up to the “butchers”.  How lovely the meat was presented in the big cases, and how helpful some of the shop workers were. 

Off home to put groceries away and prepare some items for the BBQ tonight.  Lunch, odds and ends and then it was time to head to Judith and Frank’s place.  We had a lovely time with all their children and grandchildren.  So fun to see all of them interact and enjoy each other’s company.

Once again, time to hit the hay.  Nothing pressing for tomorrow, so hoping to sleep in a little after all the excitement of the evening.  A possible trip to Geelong in the afternoon - we’ll wait and see.

Woke up to rain this morning!  Cloudy grey skies.  Didn’t go for a walk which turned out to be just as well with all the walking we did later.  Herman felt “ill” so HAD to take a day off!!!!  He couldn’t have worked in the rain anyway!

Around 9:00am we left for Phillip Island.  The clouds and mist covered some of the scenery, but it was still so beautiful.  Along the way we stopped at a place to have “coffee” which also included scones, raspberry jam and cream.  Yes, the memories rolled along.  Judith and the children joined us there.  Then we headed on to the island and to the holiday house. What a lovely place.  I’m so thankful they have this wonderful place to use and share with others.   Herman cut the grass (which had grown very long in the last 2 1/2 weeks) and while Judith and kids played games, it cleared up enough that Betty and I could walk along the beach.  The smell of salty sea air, the sound of waves, and finding a few treasures on the beach added to the enjoyment of the walk.   

By the time we got back to the holiday house the lawn was mowed, and everyone was ready to head into “town” to get a bite to eat.  That meat pie with tomato sauce tasted sooo good,  and the vanilla slice just topped off that meat pie beautifully.  Judith and the children headed out to the beach while Betty, Herman and I went to walk the boards at the Nobbies.  How absolutely gorgeous!  The wind was a bit nippy, but the view was amazing.  On one side was the entrance to Western Bay and on the other was the Bering Strait.  Water and sky. . . . . . on and on they went.  So many shades of blue and grey!  And clear, clear water.  The sound of the gulls was almost deafening, and the little penguins hiding under the boardwalk were fun to watch.  With the wind blowing all that salt spray around, my hair became quite stiff and felt very unnatural.  Amazing the memories even that could bring back!

The next stop was to look for wallabies, black swans and other water birds along the marshes further up the island.  Subsequent pictures will tell the story of what we saw there!  Just at the end of our walk, we saw the ears of a wallaby by a tree a few meters from the path.  I got one picture before he took off in the opposite direction.  At least I got to see one.

Hopping back in the car we headed straight for home - the closer we got the more rain we encountered- where  we had a quick coffee and then Betty and I put the finishing touches on some dinner.  Once dinner was ready we started off for Tim’s house and shared dinner with him.  He has a great home not too far from “mum and dad” and has done some wonderful work both in the front and back yards planting flowers, trees, vegetables and making his “chook” pen.  He’s getting two eggs a day from Ken and Tucky!!!!

Tim made us a wonderful fruit dessert and while Betty and I did dishes, Tim and Herman chatted outside.  Herman had to take off for a session meeting, but Betty and I were able to stay and visit with Tim for a while.  Talking with Tim and his experiences with “Christian schools” in Australia really stoked my hairbrained idea of how fun and enlightening it would be to come teach in Aussie land for a while. 

And now, once again, we’re home and it’s time to get some sleep.  Supposedly the rain will continue tomorrow - but I’ll take that over the snow that I’ve heard is falling in different parts of the US.  Hoping and praying that those in the US have had a wonderful, blessed Thanksgiving.

My sister was up before me this morning!  While I rested well, it took a while for me to get to sleep, so I ended up getting up just before 8:00am.  After breakfast we headed to the grocery store.  What a lot of fun to see the different foods and packaging.  Took a picture of the sign that said “Chocolate Biscuits”.  My students sure won’t know what to do with that.  Lots of memories that came out between the two of us as we saw items and walked around the shop. Picked up my bottle or two of vegemite and a couple other little Aussie items.   I got to meet a few of Betty’s “friends” in the stores. Was reminded again of how often I overlook the people God puts in my way who need me to be his hands and feet.   The lady who “checked us out” was one she has had some conversations with over the years.  She asked about me, and when Betty said we were sisters, she said something to the effect - you don’t look anything alike.  Whoa!  Haven’t heard that one too much before. 

After we left the shop, we headed to the “food court” to get a coffee and donut.  Met up with Nicole, Chloe and Ella.  The girls (having seen us at David and Carolyn’s on Sunday) were all smiles and ready to give Grandma cuddles and hugs.  Ella especially was ready to just look and look at me.  While Nicole and Betty went to get the coffee, Ell drew closer to me across the table and whispered “you look just like Grandma”.  Imagine that!  Within 10 minutes time two different people had told me that I didn’t look a bit like my sister and that I looked just like my sister.   A wonderful time connecting with and watching connections with my sister and a daughter-in-law.  What a blessing!

Following our wonderful coffee and donut, we headed out to the shops and browsed some more, sharing memories and experiences as we looked.  This took us to lunch time when we headed to David and Carolyn’s again - this time for lunch.  Samuel was sooooo excited to have Grandma come and take Auntie Bev along.  We enjoyed a cheese and salad bun (great fresh rolls from the deli style) and fruit.   Betty entertained Samuel while Carolyn, David and I chatted for a few minutes.  Another time to tuck away and remember as special.

While David headed back to work, the 4 of us went on a walk to the “kinder” where Samuel attends.  I was very impressed with the quality, space and conditions of this facility.  It was evident that this was an important and enjoyable place for Samuel to learn.  A little swing, and little stop and we headed back “home”. 

The rest of the afternoon was spent with a putting groceries away, laundry, preparing dinner and just visiting some more.  Sharon, Betty and Herman’s neighbor stopped by.  Poor thing - in many respects!   Even I was able to pick up on the tension, nervousness and insecurity of this lady.  Praying that she will one day be able to trust in the only One who can save her.

  By this time the clouds had moved in and the air was cooling off.  Supper was breaded cutlets, scalloped potatoes and sweet potatoes, salad, applesauce and squash. 

Following supper we headed to Andrew and Nicole’s house.  The girls were so excited to see us, and Ella was even willing to share some of her cuddles and hugs with Auntie Bev after she had given the first ones to Grandma and Grandpa.  Then while the girls were in bed, some wonderful chatting time with the 5 of us.  That Andrew is one talented man to be able to draw up plans and build his own house. 

Come 9pm I started to yawn again.  By 9:15 I couldn’t hide them any more and we said goodnight and headed for home in the sprinkles and spits of rain.

Tomorrow is a trip to Phillip Island.  Haven’t been there before, so am looking forward to seeing more of the surrounding area.  Time to hit the hay!

Day 3 - already done!  How quickly time goes by.  After another good night’s sleep, I woke to a much warmer morning - 80 degrees at 7:00am - Whew!  I still went for a walk up Bailey Rd just past the turn.  Beautiful rolling, green hills and elegant gum trees greeted me before I turned back and walked by the road workers - finally getting a paved road in front of Betty and Herman’s house.  Found out this is another one of the things done very differently around here.

After I ate breakfast - Betty couldn’t eat - she need to go to hospital for some more tests this afternoon - we took a short trip to a shop to look for crafty items - man was I surprised and I guess somewhat disappointed.  All the Christmas stuff was so “American”.  Nothing unique.  But I did find a couple pieces of cloth with Indigenous patterns.  Got a couple of pieces and then found a few items that sparked some ideas for other craft projects.  On to a scrapbooking place to look for ideas, but nothing found that clicked.  So we returned home, stopping along the way to look at a nursery/coffee shop to look at some of the “knick-knackky” items they might have.  Saw some absolutely beautiful roses that smelled so, so good.

Lunchtime brought Lucia and Steven.  They picked us up and then we dropped Betty off at the hospital for her tests.  Herman picked her up when she was finished - things didn’t exactly happen the way we thought, but then, we get through these kind of days too.

Steven and Lucia brought me to a “shopping mall”.  We had lots of fun chatting and talking as we looked at different items in the stores.  Lunch saw us stopping at the food court and there I got a most fabulous latte and a sausage roll.  Haven’t had one of those in a long time.  The tomato sauce was also just that little bit different and enjoyable to experience once again.  After looking through a few more stores, we headed out to pick up Phillip and Luke from school.  Even though we ended up being a little late, we were greeted with smiles and I even got a hug and special smiles from the boys.  Having just seen them 18 months ago, it was much easier to connect again. 

Once we got to their home, we spent more time chatting and looking through the garden and picture albums.  Around 7:00pm we took off to a restaurant for dinner.  Lucia and I tried the “daily pie”.  It was a chicken, bacon (ham really) leek with a cheese sauce mixture covered with a very flaky crust.  Oh so delicious.  Don’t think I’m going to be losing any weight while on this trip.  It was served with chips (the kind I remember, nice and fat) and mixed vegetables (broccoli, carrots, pumpkin and something else).  THe pumpkin in the mix was actually a very nice change from my usual fare of broccoli, carrots and cauliflower.  Might have to try that at home sometime!

Now, back at the house, ready to hit the hay again!    Supposed to be another hot day tomorrow and then the rains are predicted to come on Thursday and Friday.  Wonder how “humid” and hot it will get!  Tomorrow is “grocery shopping morning”, lunch with Carolyn, home in the afternoon and a dessert time with Andrew and Nicole - can’t wait.

After an amazingly good night’s sleep, I got to spend the morning chatting with my wonderful sister.  No special activities.  Just sitting around, doing a few chores and breakfast and lunch.  Also took some pictures of the beautiful plants around the yard.  Wishing so much that I could take some of the gum nuts and leaves, and banksia and bottlebrush back with me. . . . .  ah, all those regulations.  A blue tongued lizard had me racing around trying to get it’s picture - wasn’t fast enough - maybe next time.  Just a few minutes later he scared the bijeebers out of Betty as she walked outside to hang the wash on the line.  Can’t wait to tell the kids about the size of this lizard as compared to the ones we have at home.   I thought I heard a kookaburra in the morning, and later Betty talked about hearing one - hey, maybe I wasn’t dreaming after all.  The house stayed nice and cool while the temperatures rose into the 90’s.  Beautiful, beautiful day.

Early afternoon we popped in the car and headed to Lachlan’s school to pick him up and take him back home.  Then we spent the rest of the afternoon and evening at Frank and Judith’s beautiful place.  The younger kids are still spending time trying to figure out who Auntie Bev is!  She looks like grandma, but talks so funny! Judith served a very yummy lamb, rice and curry meal - and then we had coffee and cheesecake dessert a little later after the kids were in bed.   What a pleasure and blessing to be able to spend time with this niece and her family, along with Betty and Herman.

I’m still trying to figure out how to explain what it’s like in Australia to my students.  And again, I’m realizing that the differences are in the details.  Better start making that list so I don’t forget.  Now it’s off to bed and see if I can get another good sleep.

Welcome to 4bees.com - in its latest iteration. The author speaks only for himself, and he doesn’t always know what he is talking about, and even when he does he may not make any sense at all. Other than that disclaimer, I hope you enjoy the time you spend with us.