Early in March I attended a Tech class with a friend who had been asked to teach one of the classes. She had said would I like to join her just in case she needed help. I jumped at the chance as I’d love to know more about IT and be able to help others. We went in on a Tuesday afternoon after finding out there was someone else who was going to take the class. I wanted to see how it worked so was happy to sit in for a while. We didn’t stay long as we knew the subject being covered but for me to see what was being taught. I had asked the organiser if it might be possible to use the material to teach at ShareIn on a Friday at church. Unfortunately there was a copyright on the material but she later sent me an email with the contact number and website of a woman who had put the course together. She later called me and was excited about having someone in the northern suburbs wanting to teach the course. Then went on for some time about what I would need and eventually we realised it was not a good fit. Firstly she wanted to train ten people to take the course (some would drop out and others may not be able to commit for every class, including myself being away for winter), plus she wanted me to buy an iPad. (Hmmmm I have an iPhone but not an iPad as I don’t like them). I much prefer Microsoft and my Surface Pro. I wondered if I could perhaps put a few courses together myself which would suit the needs of the ShareIn participants and my timetable. Only time will tell but at the moment I’m just going around the craft tables asking if anyone wants some IT help. I’ve been able to help quite a few people and others who I’ve been unable to assist I’ve pointed in the right direction.
I had a bit of an eye scare this month. Previously in 2020 I went to an ophthalmologist who said I had torn my retina and if I ever saw flashing lights or more floaters in my eye to come back immediately. I hadn’t had any further problems but this month on a very dark and stormy day I kept seeing lightning out of the corner of my eye. It wasn’t actually lightning, it was my eye. It took me a week, with friends insisting I needed to get it checked out, until I booked an appointment with an optometrist who was recommended to me and who could fit me in urgently that week. Praise the Lord, Wendy who lives down on the coast road drove me in. I was very grateful as I couldn’t keep my eyes open after the drops as the sun was so glary! Praise the Lord no more tears and the previous one the Lord had healed as there was no sign of it. Later I read that the floaters and flashing are common symptoms of aging!
I’ve been updating my winter travel plans and activities after realising that going to Brisbane would be a bit out of the way for such a short visit. I contacted my dear friend Toyin in Sydney to see if I could stay a few nights with her on my return from Iluka visiting Kat. She was delighted to hear from me and later messaged me with a startling coincidence. On that exact date on which I contacted her, back in 2024 I had actually stayed with them and attended church. Now I don’t really believe in coincidences but in the Lord’s perfect timing and leadings, but what a lovely surprise to be back in touch after two years. Her boys have now left school and are at university; one has even written his own song. I’m so looking forward to catching up in May.
In the meantime I applied for a renewed passport which I could only get 10 not 5 years and was nearly $450! I pray I can make the most of it.
I’ve been busy again in the garden. All the grapes and tropical pears have now been picked and eaten. The early figs eaten and the late figs still being picked and eaten, if not blemished or eaten by the birds or rats. I dug up three banana pups to give to Kath for her daughter’s property and two larger ones plus another smaller one for the end of our community driveway parking area. I swapped these with one I had put there previously before last year’s winter trip away. This was one that I had hunted for as it was my favourite banana, the Sugar Banana. I didn’t want to share it with everyone in the complex. I wanted it for myself and to be able to share it with whom I chose, not for just anyone to pick and maybe me missing out. There are now four plants and two tubers which I also dug up when I was preparing a spot for the Sugar Banana. It had been quite difficult digging the largest plant out from my garden as it was growing right next to my paving and took ages to dig slowly under and around it before asking Kathy to help me hoist it out and carry it to the carpark. I then prepared the spot with compost and potting mix for the special Sugar Banana in my garden. I do pray that they will all like their new homes. I wanted to move the ones out of my garden as they didn’t do well. I had had a few bunches of bananas but the last two, the plants had died due to the leaves being battered by the winds. The spot where they are now is a lot more sheltered and sunnier during the winter. The Sugar Banana doesn’t grow as high so should do better in my garden, although it doesn’t get much sun at all in winter.
For some time I have been wanting a shoe cabinet, somewhere I can store all my shoes. Not that I have that many but I wanted them in a tidy spot near the front door. I knew exactly the kind I wanted but hadn’t found one anywhere. I had also told Kath who had one similar to what I was looking for. Amazingly she found that Kmart had just what I wanted and picked one up on her way home one day. Of course it was a flat-pack! I didn’t think it could be that difficult to construct so after laying all the pieces out and following the instructions I was annoyed the instructions really weren’t very precise. I went on line and found the Kmart YouTube video which also wasn’t very helpful as it didn’t even have the part I was unsure about. Praise the Lord I have a brain that thinks outside the box and persevered till I figured it out. It was then I called Kathy to help as I needed a second person to hold it together as I screwed on the side panels, I couldn’t have done it without her, although the woman in the video did it all on her own which I don’t think would not have been possible. During the process I realised my soft pallet hammer was missing. Did I lend it to someone who hasn’t returned it? I couldn’t find it anywhere but I’m praying it will eventually turn up. The shoe cabinet is perfect. Just what I needed. It was a good time to sort through my shoes, giving away those that no longer fit, cleaning out my wardrobe, which reminded me to get rid of more things.
That same day I had organised a company to clean my solar panels, six years after they were installed. I was shown the before and after photos which showed me the glistening panels looking like new ones. They are now ready to generate power from every little ray of sunshine even over the winter months while I’m away.
I bet I’m not the only one who receives scams from unknown phone numbers. I noticed three missed calls on my old phone and called back using a blocked number. I was surprised to hear it was someone from Sydney asking if I was a nurse. I told her I used to work in Sydney as a mothercraft nurse but she said she was sure that she hadn’t used that service. I was hesitant to ask if she was Jewish and cautiously asked her if she had a son who had had a Brit Milah. Of course if she didn’t know what I was talking about I knew she wasn’t Jewish, but she was and realised that was when they had acquired my services. We had a lovely conversation, ending with me giving her my new mobile number with plans to meet up for a coffee when I came to Sydney. During our chat she talked about a Jewish legend pertaining to Abraham and how he had misunderstood God and instead of circumcising Isaac he had Ishmael circumcised. As a Biblical scholar I knew the Bible and was wondering how they came to that conclusion. I explained that God had given the Hebrews circumcision as a sign of the covenant with Him and both Isaac and Ismael had been circumcised. I later sent her where she could read about it in Genesis 17 from verse 10 onwards. It often surprises me how much I have retained since my Bible College days and how much more I know about the Torah which I’m surprised is not known by those I thought would read it like I read the Bible. Still there are many Christians who never read the Bible either so I shouldn’t be surprised.
During this time, the cyclone was coming down the WA coast. Praise the Lord it fizzled out north of Perth although we did receive a bucket load of rain which was a lovely relief for the garden. My rain water tank filled quickly with a heap of run off. A great time to see if my new hose took the excess away instead of filling buckets which I couldn’t empty while it was pouring with rain nor could I expect others to empty it while I’m away over winter.
Another job I had been wanting to do for some time was dig up all the bulbs from my neighbour’s back garden. I had put them in for Ann but since Greg moved in and wanted to pave the back area, I asked if I could dig them up. During his time away I suggested his daughters let me into the back yard when they were visiting. I dug up as many as I could find and also removed the drip irrigation I had also put in for the previous neighbour Ann. I was attached, through the fence, to the irrigation in my garden. Later when trying to dismantle the main irrigation pipe through the fence, I was struggling to detach the joiners. I boiled some water to soak the joins and mostly remembered to remove the pot of boiling water away from where I was working. But on one occasion I forgot to move it out of the way and with a bump of the pot, I badly scolded my left hand! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! I rushed inside, placing my hand under running water to take the heat out then wrapping it with an icepack wrapped in a tea towel. It took hours before the heat in my hand was bearable. That night I had to have a cold shower so as to avoid putting my hand under the hot water. The following day I had a few blisters on my knuckles, but by the end of the week things were looking good. Praise the Lord it wasn’t worse.
I have also been facing more challenges with a neighbour which I won’t write about here but ask that you pray fervently for me that the Lord will vindicate me.
Photos: 1. Mini hibiscus 2. Blood Moon 3rd March 2026 seen from our driveway 3. Flat pack 4. New shoe cabinet 5. Replanted banana patch
Prayer & Praise Points:
Praise the Lord for His continuing leading and guidance in all things. Praise the Lord doors are opening for me in Thailand for me to volunteer and on a yearly basis.
Please pray my plans fall into place for this coming winter away.
Pray also for my up and coming court appearance re the neighbour. I’m believing that this will be the last I hear about it and that my name will be vindicated.
Please continue to keep Gayle in your prayers for renewed strength, wisdom for the church and for good health. Pray also for her son Joshua who is still waiting for Indonesian citizenship.
Praise the Lord for my sister Kat, who has purchased her new home in Iluka, northern NSW, where God willing I hope to visit this May.
Continue to pray for world peace and countries dealing with major disasters, wars and the unbelievable hardships they cause. Pray for all those caught up in the suffering these events have caused. Pray that God’s peace may be known by all people especially for those who live with despair, that they will find hope in Christ Jesus.
Please keep my sisters, Tricia, Jen and Kat, in your prayers. Pray that they will come to know the love of Jesus.