August

"....and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty." - Exodus 3:21

August has brought an abundance of friendship and fellowship, a wealth of hugs and laughter. It has brought two-jacket weather, cups of pink tea, and sisters who sing loudly to Tim McGraw as we drive west. August brings dogs of all sizes. Whale-watching. Hunger first thing in the morning. Friends with swags and cameras. August brings this big sense that we won't go empty, that we are rich, we are blessed. It brings birthday cake, sparklers by bonfire and prayer that burns through the darkness. 

driving

He and her and his parents are walking back to the car from Grilled and the Porsche dealership.

"Are you driving home?" she asks him.

"What?" he says, "Shall I sit in the back with you so you can hold my hand?"

And she just smiles in reply.

dog

The best sort of holidays have at least several evenings where I'm running along beach dunes with this dog and this guy and THIS much happiness.

the long and the short of it

fish

I liked when it was 8pm and dark at the bay, and the crisp cold air was throwing itself at us, trying to push us into the water. We were huddled by the edge of the rocks on the breakwater, dolphins were playing in the water half a metre away and the guys were waiting for fish to bite.

You and me won't be unhappy.

We are blessed well beyond our brilliance, sitting here for longer than an hour. Wind kicking up at my face. Sun purring into my shoulders. A tonne of sparkling water merrymaking at the rocks.


















Isn't it awesome how flat the horizon always is? How open the sky always looks.

brunch

I love september mornings that involve brunch with a gentleman.

this

If you look down you'll see this.

If you look up you'll see this.

moments

"Is everything okay?" she asks after a few moments. Belly-up to the star-spotted sky. Cold concrete beneath their backs.

"Yeah, I now know where you belong," he says, arms wrapped around her. "Right here."

And when spring-storm lightning and a handful of shooting stars flash across the sky, nobody here makes any wishes. Nobody here wants anything more than this.

xo

How to have a great Thursday in 37 magnificent steps:

1. Bounce out of bed.
2. Before 9am be walking to the computer lab with your fresh-washed wet hair drying in the sunshine.
3. Print final draft of article critique. Happiness predicts longer life for healthy people.
4. Leave a note for 7 remaining flatmates to water my peace lily, cordyline & ferns while I'm away.
5. Bus to the city and then people-watch at Starbucks.
6. Have unagidon eel for lunch at Hosaku with brother.
7. Coordinate a speedy exchange of a can of coke for a monopoly card game.
8. Walk to the train station only to discover trains aren't working due to a power outage and consequently get a free taxi to the airport (3rd time in my life I've been in a taxi).
9. Squint at the hazy sunshine & wear red prada sunglasses if necessary.
10. Remove boots with buckles for airport security whilst security guys stare at your chest trying to work out what your shirt says. Have a conversation that concludes with "well, I guess the world does need more cheerful t shirts and less rude ones."
11. Call your father for a chat while eavesdropping on small children who are SO excited to watch planes land and take off.
12. Get excited to watch planes land and take off
13. Grin at the wide open blue sky as you walk across the tarmac to board the plane.
14. Ask a lady to get out of your seat so you can have the window seat 28A you booked and proceed to chat about her kids and her travelling misfortunes while watching the hot flight attendant's safety instructions.
15. Don't purchase anything from the inflight cafe.
16. Write several postcards instead and do some spanish verb conjugation.
17. Contemplate a nap.
18. Take photos of what you think might be the Gold Coast.
19. Don't have any checked in baggage to wait for.
20. Get picked up by Paul and Aaron in a vehicle playing loud Bliss n Eso, and stop at Bilo on the way home to buy razors.
21. Claim the spare bedroom with a double bed and huge stash of huge pillows.
22. Greet Tia the and a cat called Mountain Puss.
23. Admire a guy's new moto boots.
24. Plot to use popcorn as bribes so we can borrow someone's car over the next week.
25. Have difficulty finding the Thai restaurant we booked for dinner (ie walk up & down Beaumont street holding hands with someone handsome)
26. Eat chicken satay sticks, moneybags, macadamia king prawns, plenty of vegetables and Siam duck until we pleasantly get extremely full of great food whilst discussing things with gusto and with Paul (wide eyes, gestures, giggles and grins).
27. On the way back to the car get stopped by a guy inviting us to church & have a good chat with him about christianity, peace, the local area, how he works as an electrician & how Paul wants to work in sales.
28. Notice the night air is beginning to get rather chilly.
29. Stop at Macca's on the way home to use their toilets and look for Rich (don't find him).
30. In the car, listen to inspirational CDs about network marketing.
31. Stargaze on the driveway.
32. Grin a lot. Confirm that most everything is brilliant.
33. Grin a lot more.
34. Enjoy some additional mandatory admiration of the new moto boots.
35. Nibble at a cube of cheese while chatting with Maxine about life and work and uni and health and happiness.
36. Check results for Adult Development & Ageing mid semester exam & discover you got a grand 82%.
37. Spend forever trying to get to sleep 'cause you're too busy grinning at the ceiling and being horrendously happy.

june/july

It's the strangest sensation to be in a huge crowd of people and suddenly remembering that you're probably the only person who is thinking in English instead of Japanese.

Best thing about coming home to Aus is that I can eavesdrop on people again.

Loved every minute of it.