The Blue Wren

We were on a road trip through Australia, somewhere between Sydney and Melbourne. As with all road trips you pass through numerous small towns, most of them not attracting enough attention for stopping and exploring that is unless you need an urgent toilet break.
That was in a nutshell how we approached this. We would go through all the travel brochures – pick a few towns where we would like to spend a few hours and then make the important decision of where we will spend the evening. The rest of the town were reserved for pit stop breaks. With this philosophy we hit the road.


As we drove into one of our pit stop towns we were fortunate enough to find public facilities by the edge of the road. We jumped at the opportunity. After around 3-4 hours in a hot car you are relieved to stretch your legs, even without being in need of other forms of relief.


Mario and I was on our way back to the car, to tackle the rest of the road ahead, when we were approached by an elderly couple. They were clearly on a bush expedition, dressed for the bush, binoculars around the neck and bird books in hand. The lady noticed a handbag, with a little bird I bought while we were visiting friends in Newcastle. I did not know which bird was on the bag, but was drawn to it.


She immediately asked if I knew what bird it was. When she found out that I did not know she was very proud to tell me that it is a blue wren and that they have just spotted some of them as you take this small wooden path towards the river (we did not even know that there was a river behind the ablution facilities). She encouraged us to go and have a look.


Off we went and there they were – exactly where the lady said we would find them. Two things happened that day: I got to know that the bird on my handbag was a blue wren and I got to see the bird in real life. A pit stop turned into an unforgettable experience.


Our lives are full of potential blue wren moments. But why do we miss them so often? Mainly because we are so scared to expose ourselves, show who we really are. We are not prepared to wear the handbags revealing our true identity. The result – people walk past us, not knowing who we really are. The moment we expose our true character we are vulnerable, but with that risk comes the adventure of turning ordinary moments into moments of exploration, moments where we get to know ourselves so much better and at the same time gather unforgettable memories.


Find the blue wrens in your life. Display them, you will be surprised at the possibilities of what could happen…

Van verwagting na afwagting...

Vir die afgelope 9 maande kyk ons familie met verwagting uit na ‘n nuwe lewetjie wat deel van ons bestaansraamwerk gaan word.
Deel van die verwagtingsproses was voorbereiding. Ons het saam gedroom oor sy koms, gepraat daaroor, gelag daaroor. Gebid vir sy gesondheid, sy groei, sy toekoms… Soms moes die kop nog so bietjie skoon kom, dit is asof die realiteit van wat wag nog nie heeltemal nesgemaak het nie.


Na die proses verstaan ek heeltemal hoekom ‘n vrou vir 9 maande ‘n moet wag vir die nuwe wese om hulle lewe te betree. Die verwagtingsproses is ‘n ware voorbereiding van liggaam, gees en siel.


Die verwagting word verder ondersteun deur die veranderinge wat mens se liggaam ondergaan. Na hierdie ervaring glo ek dat hormone sekerlik die mees kragtigste substance op aarde is. Jy is oorgelewer aan die werking van hormone. Elke dag beleef mens ‘n nuwe ervaring – daar is die mislikheid van die eerste trimester, dan die energie en ervaring van lewe daarna en dan kom jy by die derde trimester… By hierdie stadium het mens eenvoudig net verby enige potensiaal gegroei. Geen klere pas meer nie, geen bewegings word meer grasieus uitgevoer nie. Aan die einde van die dag voel jy eintlik nogal trots op jouself, jy het vandag ‘n marathon voltooi – al het jy net opgestaan, aangetrek, by die werk gesit en terug gery. ‘n Mens het al vergeet hoe jou voete gelyk het onder al die swelling.


Dit is in hierdie laaste paar weke wat verwagting skielik homself in afwagting omskep. Die voorbereiding is klaar gedoen. Meer voorbereid (wat nogsteeds nie veel beteken nie) kan jy nie wees nie.


Al wat mens nou net kan doen is om die tyd af te wag. Aftwagting het ‘n ander implikasie. Jy is nou reg, jy tel die dae. Saam met afwagting kom altyd ‘n graad van ongeduld, soos ‘n kind wat die slapies aftel tot by Kersfees.


Ons geskenkpakkie is ook nou so te sê reg om oopgemaak te word – miskien kort die pakkie net ‘n strikkie om.


Ons kyk uit met verwagting vir die afwagting om tot ‘n einde te kom.

Wie ek graag wil wees in 2012

Die jaar het alweer met ‘n spoed weggetrek. Meeste van ons kan amper nie meer die Nuwejaarfeesvieringe onthou nie.
Vandag by die gym het ek besef dat daar darem nog heelwat mense is wat by hulle voornemens om hierdie jaar fikser en gesonder te lewe bly. Dit duur gewoonlik vir so 3-4 weke en dan is die gym-getalle terug na normaal.


Ek is seker enige gesondheidsfoefie oortref alle verkoopsverwagtinge gedurende Januarie.


Na my gymbesoek vanoggend het ek nogal gewonder – wat wil ek bereik hierdie jaar. Ek het al uit vorige ervarings geleer dat ‘n mens dikwels ontmoedig word wanneer jou verwagtinge te groot is, maar tog is ons so dikwels geneig om ons eie vermoëns te onderskat.


So hierdie jaar wil ek soos Johann von Goethe dit stel net myself wees, want dit is hoe God weet ek op my beste sal funksioneer.


If God had wanted me otherwise, He would have created me otherwise. ~Johann von Goethe


Die verskil wat ek moet maak aan hierdie wêreld, maak nie saak hoe groot of hoe klein nie, begin in gehoorsaamheid aan God. En om gehoorsaam te wees, moet ek die spesifieke taak wat God vir my beplan het uitvoer.


Die oomblik wat ek iemand anders se lewe beny, wat ek probeer om soos iemand anders te leef kan ek nie meer gehoorsaam wees nie. My lewenstaak sal nooit ooreenstem met die van iemand anders nie.


So in 2012 wil ek net myself wees. Dit is genoeg.

Pregnancy series: In the oven!

I have always been a sensitive soul when it comes to temperature differences. My body tends to interpret the slightest chill of air as a cold wind. The end result is that I am grabbing a jersey while others are still wiping the sweat off their brow.


These are one of the things that change when you are pregnant. Now you have a constant fire inside, no need for any jersey for some extra heat.


The only problem is that you cannot take this little piece of heat production off, like a jersey, when it is getting hot outside. Any woman who has been pregnant in summer will now: you savour a cloudy day.


During December I was quite lucky – there were many cloudy days, but my luck could only last that long. January came with its own promise of sunny non-cloudy days. Ouch!


I would lie in a sweat bath at night, getting up to sprinkle myself from head to toe with water for some temporary relief.


It is amazing how much heat another growing human being can create. Unfortunately my husband had to suffer. There is no way I can allow another human being close to my side dumping more of their heat onto me, so as he was moving closer I was constantly moving away (that is until I reach the edge of the bed).


That is the background – you get home each day, boiling. With this in mind you can understand my relief when the heat was suddenly broken by an unexpected rainstorm. The earth cooled down. I embraced the fresh cool air and the promise of a sound night’s sleep.


Those 10 minutes of refreshment was indeed enough.


As I was standing by the window, breathing in the cool air I realised that, we are supposed to be an unexpected but welcomed rain storm on a blazing hot afternoon.


We need to be refreshing, cooling off warm emotions in this boiling world of uncertainty and insecurity.


Jesus himself said in John 7:38:


“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."

2012

“The first and best victory is to conquer self.”


Plato




Elke Nuwe Jaar bring verwagtinge, die geleentheid om te reflekteer en onontginde drome en ideale na te jaag.


Of jy nou aan nuwejaarsvoornemens glo of nie, die mens het tog elke nou en dan ‘n nuwe begin nodig. Die kans om dinge agter jou te sit en te reik na nuwe horisonne.


Gewoonlik maak ek in die stilligheid ‘n paar nuwejaarsvoornemens. Meestal vergeet ek al teen die tweede week daarvan, want die lewe dikteer homself en die vereistes wat hy stel bepaal meestal wat elke dag van ons vereis word.


Tog bly dit belangrik om met of sonder nuwejaarsideale altyd weer met ‘n bietjie meer dissipline na jouself te kyk. Daar is min plaasvervangers vir selfdissipline. Miskien is dit jou dieet, aktiwiteisvlakke, stiltetyd of tyd saam met geliefdes wat aandag nodig het.


Die geheim is sekerlik om altyd realisties te bly rondom veranderinge. Die mens is nou maar een maal ‘n lui en gemaklik wese. Sodra ons aan te veel verandering blootgestel word, skop ons, soos ‘n steeks donkie vas. Miskien is dit die euwel rondom nuwejaarsvoornemens – te veel, te vinning.


So, hierdie jaar gaan ek nie nuwejaarsvoornemens maak nie, veel eerder myself net so aan die begin van die jaar onder ‘n selfdissiplinêre verhoor plaas. Wie weet miskien, net miskien is daar so een of twee dingetjies wat ‘n mens verander kry.