The End of a Great Weekend...

Each Sunday evening Kieran packs his things and we bring him to the bus so he can make his way to the boarding house.  This week we went a little early and spent a bit of time at the beach. 

Evan was having a friend sleepover and they wanted to do some skim boarding at the beach.

Jonathan is also from Canada.  Evan and Jonathan have been best buds since the beginning.

 

One of the things I will miss about Brunei is the sunsets.  The sun sets within a matter of minutes, but if you were to rush away you'd miss the best part.  Several minutes after the sun disappears over the horizon is when the splendor appears.  The colors change right before your eyes and makes me so appreciate the gift of sight.    It was a great ending to a great weekend!

It's My Party...

 

This past weekend was my birthday.  As a child the anticipation of my birthday would make me count the hours until my big day.  The novelty of getting older wore off a long time ago.  In fact, I had to actually calculate how old/young I was this year.  This year it was just me and my boys ringing in my birthday.  We had a lazy morning.  I had contemplated a pajama day, but in the end we did venture out of the house.  The boys and I went to an Italian restaurant in town followed by a foot massage.  I had many phone calls, suprise visits and lovely gifts that left me feeling so loved.  My boys made me 2 beautiful homemade cards and bought me some earrings and a silver ring from Cambodia. So I am now officially another year older and hopefully another year wiser.   

Another Farewell...

 

Well now I am really backtracking.  This post came about a month late.  But it adds to our recent theme of farewells.  Shortly after we found out we were moving back to Canada we began looking for a home for Evan's pet turtles.  The top left is a red ear slider.  He was one of our original turtles and we watched him grow.  He survived our initial learning experience of taking care of turtles, others weren't as resilient as he was.  Later on we met who we've come to call "The turtle lady."  She had 3 Malayan Box turtles that needed homes, so they moved in.  They have been really neat to watch.  Although it was sad to see them go, it was also a relief.  As with most pets, the novelty soon wears off!

First of Many Farewells...

This past week was the start of many farewells.  In our church Kieran is involved in the teenagers group.  This Sunday in honor of him they had a farewell for him at the bowling alley.  Like I have said before, our church has become family to me. It is great to see he too has connected with friends and also the leaders.  

We spent a couple of hours there enjoying everyone's company.  It takes a bit of organizing to get a large group together, but it was so fun.  Thank you for making us feel loved.... Especially my boy!

 

This Morning...

 

OK... For my first confession, this was meant to be post about what I saw this morning.  But my bad blogging habits have made me a few days late.  With that in mind...
This morning after I dropped Evan off at school I headed for a walk on the beach.  I must admit, this use to be a weekly event for me, but lately laziness seems to have crept in.  So after parking, putting my earphones in, and kicking off my flip flops, I took to the sand.  The beach is a beautiful spot and it is seldom busy.  As you can see it was just me and some fishermen. I usually walk a little over an hour.  I walk to a certain spot, sit for awhile and contemplate life.  This morning however, life was all around me.  In the top photo is a Horseshoe Crab.  The Horseshoe Crab is estimated to have been on the earth for 300 million years.  They primarily live in and around shallow ocean waters on soft sandy or muddy bottoms. I think they are uncommon as I have only seen one other in my 2 years here.  This one seemed to be stranded on the shore.  I bravely attempted a rescue with my stick in hand.  He swam away happily.
We also see many jellyfish on the shores from time to time.  Mainly during monsoon season when the seas are rough.  This one looked different from the ones I normally see and warranted a photo.
This is one of the places I will miss and think of when I'm back home in Canada.  I love the warmth, and the sand between my toes.  As always... It is always rewarding when I make the effort to take in the world around me.  

New Beginnings

 

Well like I was telling you I said goodbye to more than just Evan this morning.  Rob accepted a new job a little over a month ago.  While it was "official" then, today was the day he started his new job.  This new job is quite an achievement for my husband.  It has been years in the making as he gained experience in his career.  So although his outfit looks a little loud for the eyes, he wears it proudly.  Rob now officially is a Shell Petroleum employee.  With this has come many changes.  The main change is our location.  At the end of June we will be moving back to our home in Canada.  This move comes with mixed emotions.  I've loved our time here and the opportunities we've had.  I've made some amazing friends who at just the thought of saying goodbye brings me to tears.  But with every ending is a beginning.  We have missed the comforts of home and the familiarity of the known. The things I've missed are things I once took for granted.  Like opening my window and feeling the spring breeze, brushing my teeth with cold water, having a grocery store that has beautiful fresh produce, blackberry picking, seeing a sky full of stars, feeling the cold at Christmas, wandering aimlessly through stores, and sitting with a cup of coffee with my good friends. So as much as I will miss Brunei, I am just as eager to walk on familiar soil.  Just like on our way over, our belongings will once again make the voyage by sea.  The boys and I will be flying and will be stopping over in Hong Kong for a few days before we set sail on BC Ferries.  All is well...

Class Trip to Kuching, Malaysia

This morning was a bustle of excitement.  For both of the boys in my house.  It was a morning of hugs and farewells.  At the crack of dawn I dropped Rob off at the boat for his first day offshore.  More on that to come.  As for Evan and most of his friends the day they were counting down had finally arrived.  At his school there is one big trip that they look forward to, Kuching.  He is not just heading across town to take in the sights, but he is flying for a couple of hours to another country.  I must admit, if I think long and hard of the what ifs I want to hold tightly to my 10 year olds hand. But deep down, I know he will have a fabulous time.  He will be away for 4 days in all.   

 

So after many hugs and photo taking the kids were finally ready to board their bus to the airport.  I think secretly Evan will miss me, as he came back for several hugs before the final farewell.  His parting words were... "Mommy what will you do with Daddy, Kieran and I all gone from the house?"  I tried not to let my Grinchish grin show... Mmmm What to do with 4 days all to myself?  How will I manage??

Bali - Day Six

Well after a couple of days nursing my injuries in my hotel room, it was time to make the most of our last day in Bali. After our taxi driver picked us up we headed to Pura Besakih, also known as the Mother Temple. This is Bali's most important temple and has 23 separate but related temples within it. Upon arrival we had to purchase sarongs for all of us in order to enter the temple. I must admit... this was my favorite part. There were hundreds of beautiful batik fabrics to choose from. With such a huge selection narrowing it down to 4 took quite some time. The boys were good sports and allowed me to choose for them.

In the above photos is the main temple. It is here where you see a huge table of offerings and people praying. I'm not very knowledgable about Hinduism, but our guide was telling us this is where they worship the trinity.

As we climbed further up the steps toward the top end of the temple the view was fantastic. Our guide as seen posing with the boys toured us throughout the vast area.

As we reached the top of the temples we took in the view. The temple, as with most sights in Bali was absolutely beautiful. For me it held no religious significance, but for the people of Bali this is a sort of pilgrimage for them. I believe at least once a year they make their way to this place of worship perched in the mountains.

After leaving the temple we stopped en route for a photo op. Please excuse the miserable look on my face. With a mouthful of stitches I was unable to show my delight. From this spot you could see the ocean and the amazing rice paddy fields. For our last bit of fun in Bali we again headed to Ubud for some more shopping. I could have brought home a whole 20 ft container with all the things you could buy. The carved wood and baskets alone were amazing. But their was such amazing art and batik paintings also. I would love to come back as this truly was a trip of a lifetime and one that I can now cross off my bucket list!

Bali - Day Five

Today we woke up bright and early ready for an adventure. After speaking with our guides from our bike trip, they told us about a great place near our hotel for snorkelling. Apparently there was a Japanese wreck that was near the shore to see while snorkelling. So the night before we rented 2 scooters to take us on our journey to the dive sight.

Well, an adventure we had, but not the one planned. I took my scooter out for a bit of a "test drive" so I could get the feel of it. I must admit, I didn't feel confident on it. But I pressed on knowing what a day we had planned.

Hindsight - the ability to understand, after something has happened, what should have been done or what caused the event

Of course I know the definition of hindsight, but why do we so often ignore that voice in our head?

So as I made my way up the driveway from our hotel to the road with my pretty pink helmet sparkling in the sun... that still small voice was still ringing true.

There was a small lip that I had to ease my scooter over before I was officially "on the road" I'm still not sure if it was the small lip and I gave it too much gas, or the fact that I was now white knuckled with the throttle in what seemed like full speed ahead. But suddenly the bike was out of control and the inevitable happened. I hit a "parked pole" head on. So there I sat on the ground with the mangled bike at my side and my dear children rushing to pick me up.

I picked myself up and walked to the doctor praying that I still had my teeth. Funny how vanity still creeps in! So in broken English we managed to explain to the doctor what had happened. From there they started to stitch my mouth back together.

I can't tell you the fear that took over me. Had I broken my jaw or teeth? Was I going to be left with a huge scar on my face?

People talk about how life flashes before their eyes. One minute we were on our way for a fun filled day and seconds later mopping up blood on the side of the road.

I can only tell you I was lucky... or should I say blessed. As I sat in the stillness of my hotel room in the aftermath, I was overwhelmed with emotions.

There is a verse in the bible that immediately came to my mind.

Psalm 91:11 - For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.

There were so many pieces of that day that all melded together in thankfulness. I came away with a big cut on the inside of my mouth, when what could have happened makes me shudder.

While we were away enjoying our holiday I didn’t feel particularly close to God as I
have been. If fact, if I’m honest I was
quite distracted and didn’t give God all I should have. If I compared my actions to my earthly
relationships my relationship would have been lacking. However, in that split second when I crashed
head first into the pole, God was there.
He sheltered me and made the impact hit where the damage would be
minimal. He was close regardless to the
distance I had put between us. That
kind of love is what any girl dreams about, a prince who would come to their
rescue. A prince who would lay aside
everything in order to save the girl he loves.

So even though I am still nursing my injuries... I am thankful!

Bali - Day Four

After a busy few days we decided to have a quiet day enjoying the hotel where we were staying. For the morning we spent the day relaxing by the pool, and then in the afternoon we went to the little town that was near to us. We rented a scooter so we didn't have to rely on taxi's for the 10 minute journey to the town. The boys (who were not driving the scooter, just posing for a shot) loved riding on the back of the scooter. In Bali, there are hundreds of scooters on the road at any given time. It was fun to ride like the locals with the wind in our face. After dropping the boys off at the hotel, Rob and I went for a ride on our own. We drove to a beach called, White Sand Beach. It was a really beautiful stretch of beach. We stayed for a short while and then started back to the hotel. On the way, we stopped for gas. The line ups to get gas for the scooters are always lengthy. There is usually 20 people in line throughout the day. We finished the day having dinner in a local restaurant. It was a great day, one that recharged our batteries ready for the next adventure.