Kimberley, Western Australia Part Three Gantheaume Point

There are so many things you can do in Broome. Broome isn’t a really big city. It still has a wild west feel to it. Yes, I am meaning like the American Wild West to some extent. There is a pristine feel to it. This town was once a boom town with the pearling industry. You can learn about it at the museum in the town and even explore the pearling boats on display. It has character. There is even an open air theatre which plays movies on Carnarvon St. You can walk around easily or take a cab but we still had our rental.

While in Broome Adam and I stayed at the Roebuck Bay Hotel. It has share accommodation as well as rooms with en suite which is the option that Adam and I took. We love our private bathroom. We explored the area by foot as well as by rental.

Gantheaume Point was breathtaking. I can’t get over the contrast in colours that I saw. There were displays at Gantheaume Point which explained about the history of the point at the car park. There is a path that leads out to the lighthouse and you can explore as much or as little as you like.

Lighthouse at Gantheaume Point

My fave shot with the bird perched on the sandstone.

Even looking back now at the trip we took, I can’t get over how beautiful as well as contrasting the colours were. There was also dinosaur fossil to see but I never did get my timing right.

 My next blog will be on the deep water jetty. Hope you enjoyed what I shared!

Service

There are times in life when you feel as if you are a failure. An absolute total epic failure. I know there have been quite a few of those moments in my own life. It’s in these moments that I think what am I suppose to do?

Instead of looking at these moments as failures, maybe I should look at these moments as opportunities. I know at times I may really succeed with things that I strive for but I will more than likely fail but in that failure there maybe a chance to be helpful to someone else. I will learn from my mistake or speak of my failure which might guide someone from making the same mistake that I have made.

Instead of beating myself up, maybe I should look back on what happened and reflect on the strength that I gained through my failure. In a way, I am doing myself a service by sharing my story with others. I don’t think it’s an ego thing. I am trying to help others in their journey too.

Kimberley, Western Australia Part Two Windjana Gorge/Tunnel Creek

The following day after we visited the prison tree in Derby Adam and I journeyed again on the Gibbs River Road in the Land Criuser to visit Windjana Gorge. Adam is happy for me to decide where we are going. The night before in our motel room I read to him the sights to be seen in the area from the brochures I had collected. Since I am the only driver in our party, we didn’t want to journey too far on the Gibbs River Road because I would have to drive us back to Derby. The Gibbs River Road could take you all the way to Kununurra but Adam and I didn’t have time to do the entire journey there. Windjana Gorge and Tunnel Creek can be driven to off of the Gibbs Rivers Road by taking Leopold Downs Road.

Millions of years ago this area was part of the seafloor. You can see evidence of the fossils in some of the rocks. It was spectacular walking through a gap in the wall to get inside. It looked so tiny but you can walk through it easily. As I looked around, I noticed vegetation growing on the walls of the Gorge.

Kimberley, Western Australia Part One Boab Trees

Not everyone can afford to fly to see different places in the world. I always thought I was going to be one of those people. I never dreamed that I was going to leave the United States and explore other parts of the world. When I was in the fifth grade, we did a study on Australia. I used to imagine that I would go to a sheep station and help run it but I knew that was just a child’s fantasy.

This trip that I am going to be talking about in this blog was inspired by a book Adam and I read together called “Tears Of The Moon” by Di Morrissey. I have mentioned this previously in the blog “Under the Milky Way”. We flew direct from Sydney to Broome, but I wanted us to stay in Derby first before we explored Broome. Adam reserved a 4×4 automatic Land Cruiser for us to run around in because he knew from all the things we read that this would be the best vehicle for us to travel in. I was confident driving in Australia by then but it was all new territory and I hadn’t driven a manual in years. We even brought our Tom-Tom with us so I wouldn’t have to be looking at maps. The drive from Broome to Derby was 2 hours (220 km) if I recall correctly. We had arrived in the evening and the rental was ready for us though Adam really had to push for the automatic. We put in our destination and we were off on our great adventure.

On the drive out of Broome, I am seeing these trees. I know we will go visit the Boab prison tree as well as the longest cattle trough that is near Derby. I just can’t get over these trees that seem to haunt me. It’s not like they are scary or that I am hearing voices but I feel very drawn to these trees. They look as if they are upside down. Words can’t really seem to do justice for this feeling that I have towards boab trees. At the end of this blog I will put a link that will give you a better idea of these magnificent trees.

The tree above is the prison tree that is outside Derby, WA. There are many boabs in the Kimberley Region of Western Australia. No boab is alike. It is true. It is at this moment that I get an inkling of the way aborigines feel about their land. I am definitely not Aborigine. My bloodline is American. My father was full-blooded Cajun and my mom was half-Italian and Irish American but I feel a connection to this land which by all rights I shouldn’t but I do and it’s all because of the boab tree. Maybe I have fallen too in love with the story Di Morrissey wrote yet she didn’t really go in detail about the prison tree. To this day, I still see pictures of Australian boabs and my heart fills with wonder. My mind goes around the lines of what have you witnessed beautiful tree in all the years you have grown. They estimate the boab prison tree to be at least 1500 years old.

I wanted Adam to feel the size of the prison tree but a fence blocked the way because of all the graffiti people had put on the tree. It is very sad for me to see this. We discovered another prison tree on an adventure to Tunnel Creek along the Gibbs River Road. I kept telling him about the huge termite mounds and he got to feel one close to the Derby prison tree. Look at the smile on his face! Adam is 5’9″ to give you an idea of the size of this mound!

We both enjoyed ourselves on that day. I got really introspective. I wish I could do justice to the feeling that I have about the Kimberley region of Western Australia. I think after you see more of what we experienced you too might be filled with awe. The diversity that we are blessed with just amazes me!

If you want to learn more about boab trees, here is the link I told you about: http://www.outback-australia-travel-secrets.com/boab_tree.html

Connecting to others and the ways we use them (connections)

I just saw this post on a friend’s Facebook page and had to share it because this is one way I thought I could evangelize about the goodness I have found in the Lord. I am Christian and Roman Catholic but sometimes, I do not follow every single teaching the Holy Church preaches. It doesn’t make me a bad person.

I truly believe that God has given us free will to worship Him as we are called to do. For me, the closest connection I feel with God is through Mass. Sometimes though, you can find the most amazing people and make connections to them which also brings you closer to God.

I am an avid gamer. I play a game called World Of Warcraft and have met some really wonderful people through this game. I know of one priest who says that being involved with gaming is a distraction from God but I don’t follow that line of thinking because sometimes I learn more or draw people closer to God. Some may say that’s a stretch but I really feel this way.

Also, I am on Facebook daily to stay in touch with my family. I have found my soul sister who was my roomie in college through Facebook which I would have never had done. I play games on Facebook too and found wonderful people who love sharing too. I had joined twitter to use as a tool for evangelization yet I find I am on Facebook the most.

One of the reasons I started blogging was through a round about way from Facebook as well. I had met this fellow who had seen a picture of me in front of my nephew’s corvette and wrote to me. (I had used the pic as my public profile picture) He was very complementary to me saying how charming I looked. We began writing back and forth. I was straight forward about being married. Somehow he wasn’t getting the fact in but I enjoyed writing to him. Around Christmas he stopped writing to me. I guess the fact finally sunk in that I was happily married. He was a very lovely man. He had such a love of God and I just wanted to be a friend but he was seeking something from me that I couldn’t give him to his satisfaction. I miss talking with him but when he wrote to me it was all about his undying love for me. I had to constantly say that I was already married. Friendship was the only thing I could offer. The poem that I put up on WordPress was for him but I don’t think he will ever get to see it. I am not going to start writing to him again because I hate the idea of tormenting a person.

God has given me a love of sharing. I saw a post my niece, Cassie Olson, did through blogspot. I thought to myself, instead of writing to this guy, I can start my own blog which is what I did. I discovered WordPress too but find WordPress much easier to use so I stopped blogging on blogspot. I pretty much just blog here now. I am finding lots of new blogs to read which inspire me and am making great friends.

I realize this post is a bit rambly but think these thoughts had to be shared. I will leave you with one of my favorite songs from church that spoke volumes to me. I am dedicating this to three special WordPress bloggers as well:  dreamingforbetter, Eyes Wide Open, and Megan메간 this song is for you! Enjoy and be blessed!

Which possum do you prefer? North American or Aussie?

The only marsupial in North America is the Virginia opossum. When I was a child I thought they were ugly. Australia’s native animals majority are marsupials. When I moved to Australia, I lived in an inner western Sydney suburb called Homebush. I was quite surprised to see something scurrying across the powerlines. I thought they were so cute. I couldn’t ask Adam what they were but I ended up asking Sr. Margaret one night when she dropped me off after choir practice what the creature was. She told me a ring tail possum.

Both of these extraordinary creatures are wonderful but I know which one I prefer. Which do you like? If you can’t decide that’s fine too. I am just curious what you think!

Oh and shout out and thanks to Shauny G for the help getting my WordPress to work the way I wanted!!! Absolutely brillant mate!!! TA!

Struggling With Doubt

Life is a journey. Where it takes you depends all on your outlook and adaptability. Let me take you on a little journey that I am struggling with and that is doubt. I believe in God but that doesn’t mean that I don’t doubt at times. I believe that there is such a thing as free will. God loves us so much that He wants us to love Him back but He wants us to do it willingly. He loves us unconditionally and wants us to love Him back the same way.

I was raised Roman Catholic. I try to do the right thing. I strive to do better but I fail more often than succeed. I have gone to bible studies. I have attended spiritual conferences and formation seminars. I strive to let the light of God shine through me but lately I have felt like a failure. I feel unworthy yet I want to do something that I feel so strongly about which I think God is calling me to do but I keep backsliding.
There is nothing wrong with doubt. When I was doing training for my certificate three in scripture teaching for the Diocese of Parramatta I learned that it is only natural.

If we fail to question, [then] our faith cannot leaven our everyday life and we do not meet God in the ordinary events. Gerard Hughes God Where Are You?p. 73.

There was a lot of soul-searching in that course but I have to confess, everyday I do soul-searching. I don’t mind at all because I like to think if I am not searching, trying to change and be open to the person I am suppose to be; I am not evolving into the person God wants me to be.

Then I wonder if I am rushing things trying to do things as I want and not as God wants. I keep telling myself that I have to do things and remember that if it’s meant to be, it will be in God’s time. It’s this see-saw that keeps me in the back slide.

I need to persevere and remember that adage I made up in that course when I had to fill in the line which said Faith is like…
Faith is like an ocean tide with its highs and lows but it is always there.

Where there is faith; there is also doubt. It is with hope that I also walk by.

By the end of the course I came to this conclusion. God is love. Where there is love, there is God. The calling that God has for me is still growing inside me. I just need to find others who hear this calling to help me along this journey.

Tag Your It

I WAS TAGGED BY lOOKING FOR REASONING TO A COMPLICATE WORLD . !

Answer the questions given to you in the tagger’s post Create eleven new questions and tag new people to answer them. Go to their blog/twitter and let them know they have been tagged.

2A. POST A PHOTO OF YOURSELF.

2B. POST ELEVEN RANDOM FACTS ABOUT YOU.

1. I am the youngest of 8, 2 boys and 6 girls.

2. I am 5’6″

3. I am listening to the rain yet again.

4. I love Pandora radio.

5. I have 2 dogs and one of them my husband tolerates.

6. I use to be scared of flying. I still am to some extent but it doesn’t stop me.

7. I never thought I would leave the United States.

8. I have a tendency to break my own rules.

9. I am shy ( I put up a good facade that I am not though)

10. I always think I am bothering people.

11. I go with the flow because when I make firm plans they have a tendency to go pear shaped!

3. ANSWER THE QUESTIONS GIVEN TO YOU IN THE TAGGER’S POST.

1. How old are you?44

2. Do you shit regular?yes

3. Would you eat a Spider for £1/$1 no

4. What is your favourite singer songwriter why must we always limit faves???? I have to many but if it had to be one it would be Sting followed by Ben Lee

5. What kind of car do you drive, if you don’t drive. what would you like to drive. I drive a Jeep Cherokee 65th anniversary edition.

6. Where is Dundee? Not really sure, did you mean dunny?? LOL

7. Do you smoke. not for years, very glad I gave up that habit

8. What is your favourite movie Dune especially the part when Sting steps out of the shower!

9. Would you help an old woman onto a bus? definitely, one day I hope some one would do the same for me

10. What makes you cry? lots of different things

11. If you were stuck on a desert island, who would you like to be stuck there with? Adam Morris, best partner I have ever had who makes me laugh and we’d perserve together even though I’d be the eyes of the operation.

4A. CREATE ELEVEN NEW QUESTIONS

1. What’s your favourite animal?

2. What’s your biggest peeve?

3. Do you know the way to San Jose?

4. How many states and terrorities are there in Australia? (Googling is cheating if you don’t know the answer) 😛

5. Where’s the one place you would never want to go?

6. Do you think marriage is necessary?

7. What sign where you born under in the Chinese New Year?

8. What cracks you up with laughter?

9. Do you think you have a short fuse when it comes to getting angry?

10. Are you the oldest in your family?

11. Are left or right handed?

4B. TAG NEW PEOPLE TO ANSWER THEM.

I am going to invite everyone who reads this and wants to respond to do so. It’s not a chain letter. No bad luck is going to happen if you don’t respond but it’s all good fun. I told you I break my own rules.  If it ain’t broke, hand it to me and it will be broke. Oh well, that’s fine too! Was fun to do!

kirstywursty

HarsH ReaLiTy

@awmorris

 

Defining a moment of individual kindness

Defining a moment of individual kindness.

Under The Milky Way

Music moves me a lot. As I listen I can sometimes go back in time to significant times of my life. Music will always do this to me and for me. The song “Under The Milky Way ” by The Church has to be one of my favorites. It takes me back to my Uni days at USL for that is what it was called. What has triggered me to think about this song is that I had just heard it on Pandora and all the old memories came flooding back. I still treasure this song to this day but I seem to look at it in a whole new way.

When I lived in the United States, I was looking at the stars of the northern hemisphere never dreaming that one day I might actually be seeing the stars in the southern hemisphere. When people now say to me, “when I look up at the stars I know you are looking at the same ones I am”. The skeptic in me doubts it. Actually they probably aren’t especially if they live in the USA or Europe because they are in the northern hemisphere.

Adam and I travelled to Broome, Western Australia once because we were inspired by Di Morrissey’s book entitled “Tears Of The Moon”. At certain times of the year you can view the moon rising over the mudflats which is called the Staircase to the Moon because that is exactly what this optical illusion looks like. I was gazing up at the stars trying to find the Southern Cross but I couldn’t. Adam told me to go to an eco-tour that a man was offering so that maybe I could understand why I couldn’t see the Southern Cross. I did exactly that and learned that I couldn’t see the southern cross because I was too far north. I could see a few stars that I hadn’t been able to see because I was closer to the equator which cut off my ability to see the southern cross. I could do a blog just on that trip alone but I am using this to demonstrate about perspective. I couldn’t see my favourite southern hemisphere constellation because I was too far north just as the people saying that they are seeing the same stars I see at night probably are not.

Even though I may not be seeing the exact stars that others see, I am part of the milky way. We all are in our own special way. It’s how we interact with others on their destinations that can alter the path they are on. Sometimes I think things will go one way but they end up going exactly opposite. It could be for the better or the worse. I can choose which way to deal with the things that happen to me. I can try to make some one smile or laugh. I can try to console or show empathy. I can let them know just how much they mean to me or I can just let go of all the negativity that I may find. I know at times I falter and don’t do what I strive to do. Overall I pray and hope that I treat others the way I would want to be treated. If I think I have wronged them, I will apologize.

When I use to listen to “Under The Milky Way,” it made me think of my first love who broke my heart. I do hope that he has found what he was looking for. I know I have in the most unexpected way. If things had worked out the way I wanted, I would have never seen the Southern Cross. I would have only seen the perspective of the milky way from the northern hemisphere.

I also see this song spiritually as well but I do this sometimes with most songs. I have a tendency to see God in most things. I will write more about my spiritual belief later because that is another subject for another blog which I want to ponder over more before sharing.

Now I listen to this song and always think of something new. At this moment in time, I am happy that I have been blessed to see the Milky Way from 3 different perspectives. I wonder what other opportunities will be revealed to me under the milky way.