Elysia at Mount Waverley Secondary College – For a Day

It was just starting to rain when I dropped Elysia off at the Mount Waverley Secondary College on Stephenson Road this morning. It was an orientation-cum-test day for Year 6 kids for when they start secondary school next year. Many of her school friends were also walking there at the time, along Jacqueline Road, Lechte Road and Simpson Road.

She was quite worried.  I wanted to drop her off on Jacqueline Road/Stephenson Road junction but she said she didn’t know where the school was! Then we turned into Simpson Road and I told her to cross the road properly. In my rear view mirror I saw her trying, for a few minutes, to cross the road at the Simpson/Stephenson junction. I panicked a little. I parked, wanted to go down to take her to the pedestrian crossing but then she saw the lollipop man further down Stephenson and went to join a friend there.

It was only when I saw her crossing with a friend (she didn’t realise I was observing her from a distance) that I felt comfortable. It was good to see her walking and chatting with a friend, with a smile on her face.

It had been a hot night (temperature wise – before the reader’s thoughts stray) with temperature nearing a record high for November. So the rain and thunderstorm earlier in the morning was a cool respite. It meant I skipped gym again this morning but I was feeling unusually restless through the night anyway.

 

Prayer Meeting (at International Christian Community)

I had attended the prayer meeting last night, after several months’ absence. It was very warm in the room where the meeting was held, and I was wrestling through the session, perspiring at times. Although I had a good time of prayer, I didn’t “receive” what I went there for. I didn’t mind, as I know this would be an on-going process. I simply have to hang on and work on things. Anyway I was also worked up by two things – one was how many felt compelled to say something, the lateness of the evening notwithstanding. This was especially bad (for me) when someone goes on interminably. I know I shouldn’t be worked up as I should have allowed God to work His agenda in His own time, not my own. I could for example take everything in expectantly, go home at 1am and still feel fresh the next morning because God gives good sleep to His children. Anyway, I need to learn, I guess to truly “let go and let God”. To complete this record, the other matter was how Julie (Pastor’s wife) right at the end said she had a message, which was in the form of a song. She proceeded to sing the song. It was a hauntingly beautiful tune. The problem was it was in some foreign language and I didn’t understand a word of the whole thing. I hope someone did, as otherwise it would have gone across the face of what Paul taught – that if someone should speak or pray in tongue there should be someone to interpret. Anyway as a closing message Pastor said God’s communication would continue in the next few days. So someone will hear something in the next few days.

I came home from the prayer meeting tired, feeling dehydrated. Then I realised I hadn’t made the sandwiches for next day’s lunch… So I made these with Theresa but when we finished, I felt I couldn’t sleep – too restless. I was still smarting perhaps at “not receiving” anything in the prayer meeting. A nice glass of chilled Penfolds’ Rawson’s Retreat calmed me down – enough to get into bed with less frayed nerves.

 

Straightening Things Out

Anyway, despite the “cool respite” weather wise I feel tired, almost drenched. I feel like taking the afternoon off –pick Elysia up from school and then go off somewhere with her. This has everything to do with my state of mind at the moment. I don’t know how to break out of this mould of being in a corporate/city firm mindset to re-cast myself as an all-rounder suburban lawyer. People here are very nice almost all the time and most people I deal with are fair-dinkum honest-to-goodness sort of people. Working here can only make me a better person character wise. It would however, erode my interest in matters that used to scintillate me – corporate agenda, potential targets, suitors, available assets, interest rates, bond yields, latest structured products, what the regulators are doing, if they are sniffing on any trails, what the Fed is doing and thinking and all those other ho-hums. I used to be tuned into what the Wall Street gurus’ latest thoughts were on reading the Fed Chairman’s minds. When Ben Bernanke’s appointment was first announced I immediately googled for his cv and tried to track his beliefs and agenda. I don’t know if any of my present clients give a flying toss about who Ben Bernanke is and most wouldn’t know him “from a bar of soap”, I think. So this is still new territory for me – much like Elysia trying to find her way in Mount Waverley Secondary College, I guess. I need to find the lollipop man to help me across the road, find a friend and find my smile again. God, be my lollipop man.