Food For Thought - Love

Being back in Hawkes Bay for the last few days, forcing myself to relax and not much more have given me a chance to think about a lot of things in life and to value and appreciate my life in Matamata with my friends and family. 

While catching up with a friend/spiritual mentor this afternoon, I was challenged by a few things she had said. 

One particular piece of "Food for Thought" that came up during our discussion was related to the topic of love. Through this conversation, I was reminded of the idea to constantly be praying for love for our friends and family, in all times, in all situations, in all circumstances - praying for love from ourselves, from others and from our Heavenly Father to pour down on those people. 

The truth is that God/Jesus always shows his love for us as human beings, he always cares for us and he always wants the best for us. There are times in our lives when we most certainly deserve not like the love and care God provides for us yet he freely gives it to us. There are times in life when things may not go the way we want them to and we think people in our lives deserve things accept love from us. 

We are created in God's image and therefore we are like him - we are encouraged to be like Christ, which means showing love and care for those who often may not deserve it (in our own opinion) yet they still need it. 

I guess the message in all of this is, Christ shows love for us when we don't think he could or should - we should pay it forward and do the same for other. It is certainly not an easy task and is much easier said than done but a little love in this world today can make a major difference in someone's life. 

Statement of Completion

As I write this post, I sit here in the lounge of my parents house in the sunny Hawkes Bay and think back over the year that 2012 has been - what a journey. I also think about the last three years and how much I have grown and learnt in this time - moving out of home certainly can teach you a lot about yourself, your family, your dreams and aspirations and your life. 

Three years ago, I was in Nelson with my family having just completed and graduated from a six month course at Wellington Nannies College. I had spent six months living with a family of five (three children and parents) and had been looking after three children under 5, for two - three days a week, as well as working with another family 2 days a week and studying one day. I had no idea where my future was heading, what I was going to be doing, where I was going to be living, who my friends would be etc.

Fast forward three years and I sit here as a married lady, in a house I did not grow up in (but fully feels like home) with a Statement of Completion from the University of Waikato, addressed to me in recognition of achieving and completing my Bachelor of Teaching. 

A Statement of Completion? Does that mean I have really done it? Does that mean all of my hard work will have paid off and I will finally be able to walk across the stage, receive my degree and be a 'real teacher'? It most certainly does and the fact that I have received a statement of completion also means that this three years of my life is the end of a chapter. It has been a fantastic chapter in which I have come to appreciate and value so much of what I have in my life and a chapter in my life where I have been blessed to have the love and support of family, friends, colleagues. 

I am sure this is the chapter in my life where I have made the most mistakes, where I have failed the most, where I have made the worst attempts at tasks, where I have felt like giving up and dropping out, and where I have procrastinated the most. However, looking at this 'Statement of Completion' right next to me and thinking about how much my life has progressed during this time, I am also sure this is the chapter in my life where I have had the most positive choices, where I have had the most success, where I have made the most amazing attempts at tasks, where I have carried on when I have felt like giving up and where I have....learnt how to use facebook and other internet websites?!?!?

This Statement of Completion is not just a piece of paper that tells me I have passed and can apply to graduate, it is a piece of paper that is symbolic of the last three years of my life, the journey I have been on, the ups and downs I have faced, the people I have experienced life with, the opportunities I have had and the education I have received. It is a piece of paper that is symbolic of the ending of a chapter in my life, the starting  of a new chapter in my life, the beginning of a career, the crossing of the finish line and the endless amounts of memories created during this time.

What is it that you are going through in your life that you would love a 'Statement of Completion' for? Where is the finish line for you and are you close to crossing that finish line? 

Walking across the stage, dressed in a cap, gown and hood and receiving my degree from Jim  Bolger (or whoever actually passes us the degrees , is the one thought that has kept me going this whole time - it is one of the dreams I have wanted to accomplish and one of the dreams that I now will officially accomplish on April 17th, 2013 at 2:00pm. 

What are your dreams in life and what is helping you on your way to accomplishing those dreams? 

The finish line is in sight

Written before Dec 7th 2012 -  Preparing for my final week of practicum.... 

It has indeed been a long three years of study, working towards my Bachelor of Teaching however the best part about all of it is that the finish line is in sight and now I am able to prepare to celebrate the major accomplishment with family and friends.

This week I finish my final week of my final ever teaching practicum and my gosh, it is starting to feel amazing. I have one (hopefully) more evaluative visit from a lecturer to check that everything can be signed off and then it is all complete and I will be jumping for joy. 

I will be sad to say goodbye once again to a large number of people who have influenced my life and teaching career over the last 5-6 weeks but am looking forward to what lies ahead. 

I can finally say that the finish line is in sight and my future is looking bold and bright now that I almost have a degree.  Less than 5 days to go and it will all be OVER!!!

Christmas this year....

I find it hard to believe that as I sit here and type this, it is the middle/end of December and I am wondering the usual thing of where on earth 2012 has gone. Is it really Christmas week or am I in a dream? As much as I would love to be dreaming right now, unfortunately reality is knocking on the door. 

The Christmas period this year involves the usual crazy time of travelling here, there and everywhere, spending time with family and friends and relaxing as much as possible before Nat starts work again on December 27th. 

Family are so precious and valuable and the family we are born with (and the family we marry into) are the only true family we will ever have. Even though you may not always enjoy being with family or appreciate the comments and thoughts of some family members, it is vital to value the time you have with those family members. 

It is so easy during the Christmas period to get caught up in all the drama and commercialism of the season. I do not like to admit it but I know that often my mind cna be elsewhere at times like this and I do not really pay attention to what family members are saying to me while I spend time with them. I also get fairly easily annoyed with family members when their "true colours" shine as I am sure we have all experienced at some point in time and often say things which I later would rather I could take them back. 

Although Christmas for us this year will involve a whole lot of travelling backwards and forwards between cities and regions, and we know in advance we will be tired and hot, exhausted and more, my goal is to value and attempt to appreciate the time that I will be spending with my family and friends. 

Life is an amazing gift we have been given but the strange thing about life is that we do not know what tomorrow holds - we never know what we will happen on a road trip on Christmas Day or Boxing Day, nor do we know if there will be people with guns who will just walk into an elementary school and shoot people just before Christmas. We do not know when our last day could be or when we could possibly see our family again - hence this Christmas, as I have already said, my goal is to enjoy, appreciate and be present with the time that I spend with my family and friends. 

Enjoy Christmas and stay posted to see the journey our lives take near the end of 2012 and continuing in 2013, God willing. 

Love and blessings to all,

Kathryn (and Nathaniel)

The Power of Encouragement...

There are many things in life we face on a daily basis - things that become part of our daily routine or things that are surprising to us yet we continue to face small obstacles. 

Currently I am facing the mammoth task of applying for Teaching Positions for 2013 - when I say mammoth task, I most certainly do mean this a massive task. Its a task that to be honest I am well and truly over doing and one that I would quite happily not continue to do however I know that I need a teaching job for the coming year. 

When we are constantly having to do such repetitive tasks (which in this case provide us with rejection, rejection and more rejection), the task can seem insufficient and unworthy of all the time and effort put into it. 

This afternoon I was meant to be doing these letters and CV's yet again and all I was doing instead was watching High School Musical on TV and asking my husband if there was any work around the house that needed to be done instead - basically I do not want to do letters. 

Nat and I had a conversation about teaching jobs, and so much more (including the rewards I would receive and the positive results of continuing these applications) and I then decided to curl up in bed with my laptop and get some work done. 

I am now writing this as I listen to K-Love Radio Station online and am currently thriving with the job application process thanks to the encouragement I am receiving. I keep hearing on the radio station "Positive, encouraging K-Love" and I must say that this is true, it is most certainly a radio station that is both positive and encouraging. 

This afternoon I have received encouragement in the form of music, through the words of my husband, through the thought of having a job at the end of this process, through the mouth watering taste of chocolate in my mouth once I get some applications done, through the words of friends on Facebook, through reading a typed letter from a friend and through many other aspects of communication. 

At the start of this blog post I mentioned those things in life we face on a daily basis - the things that become part of our daily routine, the things that sometimes we would rather not do. Although we may not want to do those things, through the Power of Sincere Encouragement, those sorts of tasks seem much more achievable and realistic - whether the encouragement is a goal we have set, words of support from others or even the sweet taste of chocolate in our mouths at the end of the process. 

The power of encouragement (whatever the shape or form it takes), is incredible and has a massive impact on how we carry out those tasks we know we need to do. 

11 months and still counting...

Today I woke up and realised I have been married to the love of my life, my amazingly caring, honouring, supportive, mentoring husband for a whole 11 months. 

When I realised this, I also noticed how quickly the last 11 months have gone by - how fast they have come and gone and yet at the same time, how much has happened during the past 11 months. 

As I look back over the past 11 months, I realise how thankful, lucky, privileged, honoured and blessed I am - both for being able to marry and spend these past 11 months with the love of my life and also because of the people God has placed in my life before I was married and also during this time. 

Before December 3rd last year (and even on that day) I had people say to me the first year of marriage is often the hardest and most tiring - establishing routines, combining lives together, getting used to living with another person, planning your future, acknowledging the role and support of another person being constantly in your life and so much more. During this year I have had people say to focus on your marriage because the first year is the year most couples throw it in and give up on the commitment they made to each other. 

Looking back at my life at that point in time, I realise I was so naive, innocent and in some ways did not even realise what I was getting myself into - I thought marriage would be exactly as it is in fairy tales  I thought from the wedding day onwards, I would be a princess and my life would be perfect. Clearly I had watched too many fairy tales and not enough reality tv shows or drama movies with newlyweds :)

There are times over the past 11 months when life certainly has been a fairytale, there are other times when life has been a challenge and sometimes I have wondered if getting married so young was such a wise choice. There have been times I look back and know I made exactly the right choice for that moment in time in my life and there have been other times I have wondered if things would ever get any easier. 

The last 11 months have been a roller-coaster of a journey and have caused both Nat and I to not be on the same page at certain moments on our journey together. Through it all, we have stuck by each other, been strong and have on most occasions presented a united front to what has come our way. 
I am pleased to say we will definitely make it to our first year anniversary and we will not be another statistic of those young couples who get married early on and do not progress far in their marriage. 

Marriage is great, marriage is challenging, marriage is hard, marriage is exciting, marriage is scary, marriage is a job, marriage is a lifestyle - marriage is what you make of it!

Stay strong in your marriage and be true to yourselves. 

Happy 11 monthiversary Nat and I look forward to many more months and years ahead together. 

Love you always and forever,
xoxoxox

All in God's timing...

As humans it is natural for us to go through life expecting things to happen at certain times (just to suit ourselves and our current situations) and then we end up getting disappointed when things do not end up going the way we want them to - we get annoyed, disappointed, angry, stressed, jealous of others and so the list goes on and on. 

The thing I have come to realise so much over the last few years of my life is that everything in our lives happens at the perfect time - the perfect moment in time.... not our own timing but all in God's timing. 

What we desire and dream for our own individual lives, what we have individually worked towards (at the same time as others) may not give us the results we need when we think we need them but it will give us the results we need we God knows we need them. 

As humans we are quick to jump to conclusions and give up on our dreams and desires when things do not work out the way we want them to when we want them to - it seems much easier than sticking it out and waiting for the real 'right time' to achieve what we have been waiting for. 

Just because things have not worked out the way I have wanted them to this year with my studies and things have not happened in the right times that I have expected and thought I have needed them to happen, does not mean for one second that I need to give up on my dream of being a teacher. Things are now working out perfectly and I am having the most amazing experience on practicum - this time I have no doubt I will pass and it will all be in God's timing. 

So many people I have gone through university with seem to be getting teaching jobs for next year already and here I am sitting here and thinking am I not good enough? I'm wondering where god is in all of this and then I suddenly realise after talking to a good friend today that to be honest it is perfectly fine I don't have a job yet - Yes granted I would love to know I have a secure job for next year but at the same time, clearly it has just not been the  right time or the right place with the jobs I have applied for so far - for goodness sake I am still on practicum and still have another five weeks of experience to go before I feel I will be ready for my own class.

When will I have the chance to go for the right job? When will I finally get an interview for a teaching job? I'm not sure how long or how far away it will be but one thing that I am sure of is that it will all be in God's timing. 

It may not be tomorrow, it may not be next week, it may not even be before the end of the year, then again it might be but when it does happen it will be perfect because I know it will be all in God's timing. When the job offer comes, I will be overwhelmed, will be excited, happy, feel secure, feel scared for what lies ahead and also most grateful and appreciative for what I would have learned throughout the application process and how much I would have grown in my faith and my relationship with God as well as with my husband. 

Congrats to those who already have secured teaching jobs for 2013 and to those of you who are in a similar boat to myself, just remember its all in God's timing!! 

Keep watching for All in God's timing future updates and that all amazingly perfect teaching job notification. 

Final 1st week of practicum

This week I started my fourth and final practicum of my teaching degree! What a week it has been but it most certainly has been one of the best first weeks of practicum I have ever experienced - so many highs throughout a slightly disruptive week but at the same time I have already learnt so much, feel much more confident in my teaching ability and also am beginning to feel more equipped and ready for what lies ahead in my teaching career.

Matamata Primary School is certainly an amazing place to do a teaching practicum and after the vast range of experiences I have had throughout my teaching degree, I am highly valuing the place and position I am in right now - this particular experience is one I know I will look back on and note it was a defining point in my career... certainly a positive defining point.

The staff are so welcoming,friendly and helpful - willing to share so much knowledge and expertise with you as a student teacher. The students are honest and truthful yet just as amazing as the staff and really and truly have pride in their school which gives the school a real strong positive feeling. Just the whole school has so much to offer and share with others yet this is also done in a real relaxed and down to earth kind of way.

It is a school that offers so much and really involves the community in what they are doing as well as being active participants in what the community is doing and from a future teacher perspective, this is one school I would love to work and teach in, one school community that I could really see myself being a part of.

On my first day of practicum, I taught PE with the students - let me just say it was slightly scary for day 1 but it was a real learning experience.

I have already been given so much responsibility, been a part of the school life and really just been thrown in the deep end which could have been in a way that I either ended up sinking or swimming. Through the positive support and mentoring through this first week I can say I have definitely been more of a swimmer this time round rather than a sinker and hope and pray things continue to help me swim over the next five weeks.

I am extremely appreciative of what I have already been offered and been exposed to in this first week and with much delight and excitement, I very much look forward to how the next five weeks will unfold before my eyes.

Time to get off and get some sleep/pack for camp/enjoy the week that was and look forward to what is to come :)

Mrs Feldon over and out!

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

Yes, you guessed it... this is most certainly a post about the amazing, fantastical, memorable, magical, super dooper, mind blowing, electrifying, impressive, startling (continue use of synonyms here) story of............... 

MARY POPPINS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow, what an incredible thing to witness and be a part of - the story became so alive that I forgot I was part of the audience rather than being part of the cast.

For as long as I can remember, the stage show/musical of Mary Poppins has been one of the only shows/musicals I have wanted to go to and be a part of - even before I knew there was actually a cast touring the world performing this piece of work from my childhood. I don't know how many people I had told this to but I know I must have driven my husband insane over the last 4 years of knowing him, telling him over and over it is the one and only musical/stage show I have wanted to see. 

Well clearly I did not bore him as much as I thought (either that or he got so sick of the subtle hints) because as part of my birthday present from my husband earlier this year, I received a double pass to a performance of Mary Poppins in Auckland. These tickets actually ended up being for the day after my last day of uni classes so it ended up being a truly memorable way to celebrate. 

Without giving too much away, it was supercalifragilisticexpialidocious and was by far the best thing I have ever seen onstage - I would actually watch it a hundred times over (if I could and had the money to afford it). Watching this show brought back so many memories of my childhood and what I loved about it was pretty much all aspects of the movie were included yet the storyline was totally different and based on the collection of books P.L Travers had written.

I had wanted to see this for such a long time as I have always been curious how all the special effects are catered for and portrayed in the show - would it still be as great? How would they climb the staircase of chimney smoke? How could Mary do her flying? Her bag - does she still have an endless supply of items in her bag? What about the chalk drawings and the horse races and the penguins? The tea party with Uncle Albert on the ceiling? Ahhh, just question after question and to be honest they go on and on - if only you could see inside my brain with all these questions. So many questions have been spinning round my head for a number of years and finally on October 19th, 2012 these questions were answered.

If you want to be taken back to your childhood and blown away by the magic of the stage, the magic of the story of Mary Poppins, be so captivated in the performance you forget there is a live orchestra, be sitting there thinking Mary is looking and talking directly at you and so much more, then flip, what the heck are you waiting for? Go get your tickets and be part of the magic of Mary Poppins because its something you will want to see. 

Don't go with any expectations but rather just let the moments and experience blow your mind as you sit back, relax and enjoy the show! 

YOU'LL LOVE IT!

What have I learnt?

Now that everything is back up to date (in one simple and hopefully easy to read blog), its time for the thinking and inspirational blogs to begin again....

If the journey I have been on this year has taught me anything, it is most certainly the following three things:

1. Love, love, love
2. Have faith in yourself and what you are going through,
3. When you face trials in your life, don't give up but instead make the most of each situation

This year has been one of challenge, education, dreaming, expectation, thinking, realising, failure, learning, opportunities, reminiscing, admitting  building up, falling down, getting back up again, remembering, experience, change, difficulties, creating memories, making traditions, moving on, marking the path for our future and so much more.

In our very last lecture of the semester (and more excitingly, our degree), I felt like I was back in High School and being spoken to by a whole lot of teachers and school leaders from the last few years... 

"thank you for being here.... congratulations ... you have made it this far.... good luck for the future....we've equipped you, now go out there... make the most of it...you're almost there... you will make fantastic teachers..."

One of our lecturers read out a snip-it of a text to us. At first to be honest I just thought,here we go again but to be honest, one of the most powerful sentences he read out in that snip-it will literally stick with me forever....

"Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want..."

(Dan Stanford)

This year has certainly not been easy and at times I have felt like giving up - I wanted to give up on my teaching career because of experiences from this year, at times I've wondered how life would be if I wasn't married, I have wondered how and why I am where I am today, I have wanted to turn back time, I have wanted to fast forward on so many occasions and not face what I have needed to....

As soon as our lecturer read out this particular sentence and quote from Dan Stanford, I felt my eyes well up and turned to look at one of my best friends - Rachel Macintosh, who I had talked to on many occasions this year when things were not going so smoothly. My eyes welled up (just as I feel they are about to now) as I realised how true this quote/statement is. This year has been a far from easy year and I've made so many mistakes and there are so many times like I said where I have wanted to turn back or fast forward time but if I had the ability to have done one or both of those options, I would have missed out on so many experiences from this year. 

My practicum experience in May and June was hard and so many mornings I woke up and just wanted to give up - not even go to school. I went to call university and drop out of teaching, I asked to change schools but for some reason it didn't happen, I questioned my previous experiences and whether I had deserved to pass or not, I fully thought I would not graduate with my teaching degree because of everything happening, I had a major meltdown, I cried in the staff room or classrooms at lunchtime but every weekday for eight weeks I went to school and stuck it out. I admit it was not always my best effort but I did it. Things did not go my way - the way I wanted them to but I most certainly got the experiences I required for my future teaching career. 

Now I am in a much better and stronger place in my teaching career - have almost finished, have an incredible practicum ahead and am awaiting a fantastic teaching career knowing that I have had a vast range of practicum experiences that will equip me well for the future :) 

The last few months at a glance

Howdy doody everybody!

So since I am so slack at posting, I have now not posted since like April (or May) - I have got a few posts that need editing before I finally publish them but they can wait for now. 

I thought I would fill you all in on the adventures since my last post....

May
nothing too exciting that I can think of apart from....

• starting my final practicum of my Teaching Degree and working for church - we ended up having an amazing family fun night at the church for the kids/youth and their families and had a great turnout so was over the moon.

June
this was a long long time ago and so much has happened so I feel that I will probably leave something out but here goes anyway 

• celebrating a few friends 21st birthdays. 
• Struggling through practicum but went every day for 8 weeks only to find in the last two weeks that it would most certainly not be my final practicum and I would have to do another - lets not even go into details. 
• Having Bret and Heidi Maunder move back to Australia - flip this is one amazingly incredible couple and I love them to pieces (and really really miss them too)
• Finished practicum and planed to do assignments - yeah right 
• Oh and I almost forgot, Mum and Dad sold their house in Hastings :) 

July

Hehe, this was certainly a month of ups and downs, of adventure, trails and tribulations... what a journey it was in a few short weeks.  

• My 22nd birthday which was an amazing celebration spent with our 'Waikato Family' from Totara Springs and Matamata Bible Church
• Winter Teen's Camp at Totara Springs
• One of my Aunt's 50th Birthday's where we got to catch up with the whole family again for the first time since our wedding - it was a really special time :) 
• Family wedding on Nat's side of the family
• Car broke down and then decided to die on us - oh boy what an adventure that certainly was
• Started my final semester of my teaching degree
• Had some more professional driving lessons

August
to be honest right now as I am writing this post, I can not remember much that happened in August apart from....

• finding out my newest sister in law 
• mid semester break from university - was still struggling with assignments
• Went back to Hawkes Bay to visit the parents/friends/family and had a nice few days away from Waikato
• More driving lessons
• Continuing to have a blast with our kids ministries at church
• Celebrating more birthdays
• Celebrating friends having babies and finding out other friends are pregnant
• Was feeling absolutely exhausted and over university

September

hmmmm, what happened in my life in September? 

• Headed back to university for my last 6 WEEKS!! Ekk, it was such a nice feeling. 
• Started to apply for teaching jobs for next year - suddenly this whole idea of me being a teacher seemed so much more real.
• Continued on struggling with assignments and lack of motivation even thought there were only a few weeks left of uni
• Received my first rejection letter for a teaching job - if this has not seemed real before now then it certainly did now
• I found out where I was going to be placed for practicum and went in to meet my teacher a couple of times
• Finding out I am going on camp while on practicum 

October

Much more fresh and more recently in my mind than the other few months so forgive me but there could certainly be a lot to list from October - and its not even over yet.... whoops!

• The last few weeks of university
• Planning for life after university 
• Continuing to apply for teaching jobs - without any luck so far but I know the right job will come up soon
• Sending my husband off to teens camp and getting the house to myself for a few nights
• Road trips to Auckland to see Mary Poppins the Musical - ahhhhhhhhhhhh, it was like fantastically amazing
• My first time being in my new class for practicum and having an absolute blast
• Getting stressed over silly little assignments and craming at the last minute for a massive 30% test
• Celebrating the end of uni with friends
• Handing in my last assignment of my teaching degree
• Spending more time in my practicum class and being allowed to do the roll and bus duty on my first two days!!! WOW
• The end of my weekly commuting between Matamata and Hamilton. 
• Winning a photography voucher with those random competitions in the supermarket
• Realising it is now two years since I shaved my hair for CanTeen

Currently

• Pondering what the future has to hold and getting excited while sitting here realising I have not updated my blog in a long time and thinking I should do this, hence the reason for this post!

Another turning point, another fork stuck in the road

Life is NEVER EASY!! 


When life does get easy, we all know that it is not going to remain easy for too much longer and soon our lives will change in one way or another. 

Often in life it is so easy to become frustrated with our circumstances when things do not go the way we want them to. It seems easier to become annoyed and angry rather than excited and waiting in anticipation of what is to come. Why do we seem to do this? I guess it is the way that the human brain and body works and the way our past experiences link to what we are experiencing in the here and now. 






In my own life, there have been fully unexpected changes to my circumstances and they come at what I feel is the most inconvenient time - the time when everything seems to be going so well and you know that it is all almost too good to be true. It is too good to be true because then comes the change that we all know is going to happen sooner or later but at the same time, it is the change that we do not want to happen. 


When a change comes, we can choose to look at it three different ways :

1. be angry, annoyed and freaked out that our lives are drastically changing right before our eyes and we do not know how to get from point A to point B, not knowing what tomorrow will bring let alone the next hour or two. Feel like our lives are over and that we can not carry on - that life is just too much and we need to give up because there is nothing more that we can handle, nothing that can make all of this better
   
2. Realise that this is a chance for us to grow, be stretched, realise what is really important and vital in our lives and focus on who and what is important. In this mindset, we can acknowledge that things will not always go the way that we want them to but that things in our lives happen for a reason and clearly the circumstance we were in previously, was not the best circumstance and plan for our lives. We can admit that it is hard to be in this period of the unknown but at the same time, we can also realise that this could possibly be an exciting time in our lives and that there is so much more to our lives than we currently thought possible.
   
3. Give up all hope, realise that our lives are a waste of time and admit that nothing will ever get better and with a whole heap of other reasons added to a change in circumstance, people can sometimes end their lives, little realising people still love, care and support them. 

All the ways mentioned above can be difficult and easy at the same time but it is our mindset in these situation and times in our lives that helps determine how much we can handle and how we will get through to see the 'light at the end of the tunnel'.  

Like I just said though, it is hard when a change in circumstances happens and it is fully not what you expect but somehow, the life experiences we have already progressed through, allow us to get through yet another change in our lives. 

Whatever our circumstances, whatever gets thrown our way, whatever we go through in our lives, there are always people there to support, mentor, encourage and lift us up when we need to get back up. There are always those people who will be there no matter what happens, no matter where our lives end up, the ones who will literally only ever be a phonecall, email, or text away - the ones who will drop literally everything to come and be there for you, to support you and help you through. When our lives change, we need to remember that it is not a time to give up but a time to hold on tight to the ones you love and be ready for anything and everything that may come your way. 

Whenever life seems easy, remember it could only be a matter of time before a challenge is put in front of you and your circumstances change. Its not easy to face but you have a choice of how you approach this and how you move on to the next step in your life. 

There is bound to be another turning point and another fork stuck in the road. Which choice will you make and which direction will your life take? 

Friendship

This week I have become so much more aware of the value of friendship and I am so so thankful for the friends that God has blessed me with and placed in my life. Friends are always there for you, with true friends you can go weeks or even months without catching up and then the second you catch up with each other, it feels like you had never been apart. 

So for all those friends of mine out there, this is for you...

the never ending journey part 2

Where is all of this discussion about learning and never ending journeys coming from? 


Well I have just recently had an opportuntity come up for me and even just applying for this opportunity I seemed to learn so much - I have now manged to get the job that I applied for and now know that it will be a hard year of trying to complete my 3rd year of a Bachelor of Teaching, while also taking my new job on board. I was orignally very amped for my new job and quite keen indeed at the prospect of being a child/youth worker in my church in Matamata, in Waikato. The more I thought about this, the more I was excited but also the more nervous I became. 


For some reason when I applied for this job, I was not only nervous but felt as if I was inadequate for this job and like many times before when I had wanted to apply for things, felt that I would automatically fail so what would be the point in applying in the first place - I am sure this fully does not make sense but to put it simply, I thought that applying would be a waste of time as I was not good enough. 


I remember in the early stages of applying for this job, numerous nights lying next to my husband in bed and not being able to get to sleep because too much was on my mind. He would ask me what was wrong or what was going on and with the usual typical female response (that I am sure we have all used many times before), I said in a grumpy tone I am fine. Now being a male, he fully respected the fact that I did not want to talk about it and dropped the subject immediately. This would have been the end, had I not ended up thinking so much and basically crying myself to sleep (yet at the same time, I could not sleep). After a half hour of soaking his PJ's with my tears and then just snuggling in his arms for another 20-30 mins while talking quietly, I was reassured by my loving husband that I was certainly capable of doing this job and that God would not have placed it in my path if it was not a possibility. 


After much dileberation and many hours of consideration from both myself and others, prayer on both sides of the job opportunity and prayer in numerous forms from all around the world, I finally decided to accept the offer I was given.


I contacted my referees to let them share in the good news and celebrations with me and it was then that I was reminded of the never ending journey of learning. One of my referees was talking to me about a conversation he had had with the employers about me and how I would adapt to this job - whether I had the right skills for the job, the right attitude etc. He shared his answer to this question with me and to me, it was one of the best explanations and examples of learning that I have heard in a long time - Yes I did have the right attitude (the fact that I was willing to apply for this job in the first place was proof of that), and secondly at this point I had some of the skills required for the job but he mentioned that when I started training to be a teacher (at the start of 2010), I had hardly any of the skills required to become a teacher but this is what my degree is about, two years later, i'm almost ready to have my own class and I am fully equipped with skills for teaching. I have learnt these skills over time and like this new job that I have now accepted, these skills, I shall also learn over time. 


After talking with my referees, my husband, God and many others, I now realise and understand that it is okay I am going into this new journey without knowing everything that I need to know - this is okay because I will develop the skills I need as I learn and understand more about my job.


So for now, I can focus on getting to grips with studying fulltime and working part time and I look forward to this journey with so much excitement - I can not wait for the learning to begin.


Next time you think of learning - just remember that there is always something for us to learn and that learning is a never ending journey, no matter how many different journeys our lives take, learning will always be a key aspect.

the never ending journey part 1

I have come to the conclusion recently that life is a never ending journey or a journey of journeys. I am sure that fully does not make sense to whoever is reading this but this is what is currently inside my head so here I shall try to explain.


We set out on a journey in our lives, eg the beginning of our education but this does not begin with primary school, oh no it begins long before we even turn five when our parents, family and friends watch us grow, challenge us, teach us and stand in awe and gasp as the amazing things we are beginning to accomplish in our lives - particularly remarkable things at such a young age. 


Once we are five (in NZ, possibly older or younger in other countries), we start attending primary school - from this moment on, most of us tend to spend the next 13 years of our lives involved in education (in terms of Primary School, Intermediate and then High School/Secondary/College) and we learn so much that we feel our brains are about to explode. 


Once we come to the end of our imediate schooling years, it seems like the end of an era - the people we have got to know over the past 13 years are suddenly splitting up and all going their own individual ways (starting their own new journeys).  


At the end of these years, some of us think that we have had enough of education and go off to do something else where we no longer think we have to learn, while other people go off to university, polytech or college to pursue further educational ambitions. No matter what we do once we all leave high school, no matter how different our new paths are from our friends, we are all still continuing on the educational path of life - there is always something to learn and as I have been reminded so much since I have left high school, learning (just like life), is a never ending journey. Wherever we are in the world, whatever we are doing, whoever we are working with, no matter what our circumstance, there will always be something new for us to learn - it really is a never ending journey... it would certainly be much easier though if some people acknowledged the fact that they still need to learn things from others sometimes, rather than always thinking they know everything and that they should be the teachers. 


This is part one, part two is still in my brain and will come through onto the pages any moment now....