This will be our first Chinese New Year in the Bush Capital. We’ll get to celebrate this day with Kiddo and her beautiful family. Abby and Zoe have been such blessings to them and to us, so this CNY will be extra special.

Continuing the blessed bliss theme…

(The flower in the photo is the crepe myrtle from our backyard. It’s a close enough approximation of the cherry blossom, the iconic bloom for CNY. This will do…)

Tress and I have had a few wonderful days of bathing ourselves in an experience that will enrich our lives in ways that will be forever etched in our memories. The joy of being with Kiddo, Mic and their two beautiful girls has more than made up whatever we left behind in Melbourne.

Little Zoe is such a beautiful little thing. I can just watch her all day. Seeing a video clip, a short while ago, of Kiddo pushing a pram with both Abby and Zoe next to each other, brought a smile of contentment that belies the great joy beneath.

This morning, as I continued my reading that is now towards the end of Job, I tried to leave dormant, the theme of what was emerging. Elihud chastised the three older men that spoke before him, and also chastised Job for this response to what God has brought upon him (Job). It is a message about what we should be thinking about doing in the midst of suffering. It cannot be further from my current experience. And yet, it is a truth that will visit all of our lives at some point. Like Job, we will all face the consequences of what our forefather Adam did, when he chose a path that says “I”, not God, will determine how I live my life.

I hope little Zoe will grow up to know Jesus and know that God loves her, and want her to be the best version of herself He intended.

For now, there is bliss all around me. Not the little eatery in Melbourne we used to love, but bliss of the real sort.

Last night, as Tress and I were starting to settle down for the night, we got a message from Mic. Kiddo had completed the hard work of ushering in the arrival of their second kid.

We busied ourselves with bringing some dates tea and other stuff to them, including some food that we had intended for our lunch earlier that day. Somehow, we decided on having some other leftovers and so the two serves were readily available for the tired parents. The dirty weather had also cleared up and as drove to the hospital, a rainbow showed up.

G’day Little Zoe. You’re fearfully and wonderfully made. You’re beautiful, and you’re loved – very much.

Last Friday, the sale of our house in Melbourne was completed. “Settlement”, as it is known here, took place just after noon. Early in the arvo, we had emails from our lawyers that it had all been done. This finally closed our chapter in Melbourne.

Later that night, we had Kiddo, Mic and little Abby over for a simple home cooked dinner and the next day, we had a “yum char” lunch at Woden. A little celebration, of sorts.

It poured heavily late on Sat arvo and on Sunday morning when we went our for a quick walk, I slipped on a mud ridden path. My already dodgy knee took a beating and the soreness lingered through the day. No run for me this morning and as I came back from an extended walk, Tress was walking out with more rubbish (it’s bin day on Mondays) and I took it from her and walked towards where the bins were. Surely enough, there was another slip (is it old age or soreness from the day before or just plain clumsiness…).

As we begin life completely untethered from our Melbourne chapter, my knee, back and ego nurse a soreness that says, take it easy (easier). No rush please, we’re in beautiful Bush Capital.

I listened to John Dickson’s “Undeception” podcast this morning, a talk on – wait for it – wine. His guest even has a name that sounds like a very good German/Austrian Riesling (“Gisela Kreglinger”). It was, as usual, a very good podcast. I should put that into practice, as it is such a sensible approach (lots of biblical support too, I might add) to this delicious but tricky beverage.  

It’s the first working day of the new year. 2024 ended so very differently for Tress and I. After almost 20 years, we left Melbourne. We now live in Canberra.

In the first few week since we arrived, instead of my usual weekday runs, I have gone on walks with Tress, and the little fellow. We walked through the neighbourhood paths of Duffy, Rivett, Stirling, Holder and Chapman – the suburbs that are part of the Weston Creek area of Canberra. I visited a dentist over a week ago and she said things moved slower here and we should expect this as we are now in a “rural area”. The pace is slower but I will take that easily. The spaces around us, the trees, the birds – they all add up to provide a more serene feel about things. People aren’t as rushed and are happy to just let things be.

This is actually the second time I’d be living in this Bush Capital. The fist stab was some 10 years ago. Kiddo and I rented an apartment in the city. It was within walking distance to my workplace then (on Northborne Avenue) and also to the ANU. I felt alone and unsettled then, not sure if the experience was only going to be transient, and missing Tress for the most part. This time, it feels far more permanent. Well, as “permanent” as living on “this world is not my home (I’m just passing through)” can be. We bought this house that we’re making our home. We’ve been busy pottering around, making small (and not so small) fixes to let ourselves make it our home as much as possible. This is it, at least for the foreseeable future.

We’re just 10-12 mins from Kiddo, Mic and Abby. They’ve been coming around, for dinner and just to hang out. We’ve been around to theirs too. Each time Tress and I hop into our little hatchback (or the bigger car, the SUV) and drive over, we are grateful that it is not a 7 1/2 hour drive to see them. Likewise, when we see them pulling up at our front yard, we are not greeted with tired faces and a car full of luggage and stuff. They too, can easily hop into their car and make the 10-12 min drive to see us.

We are still going to their church, the “Southside Bible Church” or, simply, SBC. We went once to an Anglican joint in Cooleman Court, but as it is the holiday period, they were a small group and not really reflective of the community they usually are. So we decided to park it and revisit when “normal service” resumes. Till then, SBC it is. Yesterday, after SBC, we trekked into the city. “Tracking” is a bit of a stretch as it is actually a short drive. When Tress and I were driving home later in the arvo, we saw that it took us only about 10-15mins to get home. So trekking into the city wouldn’t be the sojourn that it can be in Melbourne. We went to an Asian eatery and that was probably the only time I missed Melbourne. The Malaysian food choices in Melbourne is paradise in comparison. That however, is (at least for now) a small dink in what has been otherwise a fabulous transition.

This morning as I did a “run” through the neighbourhood, I wore my usual “bone conduction” headphones and paid attention to the abundant flora and fauna all around me. The fat white cockies, the galahs, the rosellas (the smaller eastern are everywhere and the gorgeous luscious crimsons) and even the maggies, caught my eyes and I slowed down as I passed, almost greeting them. It was going to be another warm day but the cool air that was lingering was sufficiently rejuvenating and invigorating. Maybe United’s fighting performance against the Scousers had something to do with it (they defied the odds to draw 2-2 at Anfield) but there was little doubt that being so close to ones I love and care about, and the intoxicating cocktail of open spaces, hills on the horizon, birds and greens, played the much bigger roles. Gratitude…

It’s Sunday morning, on a warm summer’s day. The gum trees hide and tease the sun’s rays. I can do this all day…

This is a family reunion that takes place every 2 years, usually in a cooler part of Malaysia (some “highlands” resort) but in a town called Gopeng this year.

I have yet to be in one. I miss this. I wonder when I’d be able to see this gathering in person … Next one?

Insya Allah…

Tall flourishing gum trees have always grabbed my attention, and I very often stop to take in the raking branches.

This one sits around the corner from our new home in the capital city. It is magnificent, like all gum trees that flourish and stand tall.

A tall, thriving gum tree.

Still grabs me after all these years.