Home again...

...just can't wait to get back home again

Glad to be here in SLO
Although surprisingly missing Australia
Sooooooo thankful for family and friends
Love riding my bike
Look forward to getting a job
And then intentionally being career minded
My time in Oz was enriching
I wish I could share my experience with everyone
I guess we all have our own journeys in life
What a blessing to encourage each other along the way
God is so personal
I love His love
Nothing compares

surprise

February 28, 2009

So, I said goodbye to Mollymook and headed to Albury/Wodonga to check out Eagles Wings. Words cannot express my week... although I felt relief today after vomiting in the toilet bowl. It was a LONG 5 days and now I'm back where I started 5 months ago in Narre Warren, Melbourne.

When I got to Eagles Wings, I thought I would observe and check out the program for the first 2 weeks and then decide from there what to do. However, the most difficult part was not necessarily the intense program, or that I felt more like a student than staff, since I lived on site and ate all my meals with them. It wasn't even the 30 minute drive from town and no access to internet that bothered me most. I'd have to say, how do I put this?... that some of their Christian views rubbed me the wrong way. I felt like they were trying to force me to believe things a certain way that I did not agree with. It caught me off guard and was very hard for me to deal with. Let's just say, I was glad to get out of there. I would love to share more if you have any questions. At the moment, I am totally wiped out. I do have to mention that it was a good eye opener and I'm glad I got to meet the girls in the program. They were beautiful girls trying to get their life back on track and it was encouraging to witness.

I arrived to Melbourne by train yesterday. I totally wish I had a photo to capture a moment for you... but picture this: I wake up at 5:15am, take a bus at 6:20 to a train at 9. Smooth so far. Then I arrive to Melbourne around 10:30 and have to take another train out to Narre Warren. I have way too much crap with me - my huge bag on my back, a large rolling piece of luggage, and then I've got 3 bags I'm carrying on my shoulders. So I thought that I got on the right train, but then somehow discovered I was going in the wrong direction. So, not 1, not 2, not 3... but 4 guys who work for the train helped me with my luggage to get onto the right train. It was so embarrassing walking with them all as they carried my luggage. One turned to me and said, "Do you feel like a celebrity?" And I just laughed and said, "No, but I wish I could take a picture of this." Anyway, an hour-and-a-half detour and I finally made my way to Narre Warren.

I woke up today with the worst headache... I swear it was like a migraine! Anyway, I didn't feel better until I threw up in the afternoon. I think it was the stress of this last week and trying to decide whether or not to come home. At this point, I don't really see why I would try to stay in Australia when I'm missing home so much. Coming here has been an interesting experience. I didn't quite know what to expect and that's okay. I've learned a lot. But mostly, I can't wait to see you all and look forward to catching up. I will arrive to SLO on Wednesday.

love,
julie

fire info and moving again

Victoria's worst bushfires on record. All of Australia is trying to come together and support these families. The disaster killed 181 people according the last official count and it is estimated that more than 1800 homes have been destroyed.
I know we are such visual people, so here is a "Victoria Fire Tribute" from youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5C5HalvzIrc
and some info from the news:
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/indepth/0,,5018723,00.html

Regarding my plans...
I met a lady at church a few weeks ago who runs the "Eagles Wings Foundation" in Victoria (founded in 2003). She offered me the opportunity to come check out the program and see if I want to get involved on staff. So in about a week I'm planning to head over to Wodonga (near Albury) in Victoria.
Some stuff about it:
Christian program
for woman ages 16 and up
9-12 month residential recovery program
for woman who are struggling with a life-controlling problem such as addiction, severe depression, an eating disorder or any form of long-term emotional turmoil

whatever happens, i'm just glad to be moving on from Mollymook and checking out other options. thanks for your encouragement, thoughts and prayers.

love,
julie

learning... always learning something

let's just say... I'm glad I waited until after my run to write this email. ;)
i hope you are enjoying Feb and that you do something fun for V-day... show people in your life that you love them.
as for me, i'll be spending my V-day with a group of wild teenagers playing games and wearing red and pink. the past couple sats, i've been helping with the youth group kids. last week we played at the beach and then came back to the house for a BBQ. then yesterday, we ran around the streets doing a scavenger hunt in camo gear w/ our faces painted black. afterward we hung out at Maccas (McDonalds) for dessert.

i only worked a couple nights at the pub 2 weeks ago and then last week somehow got roped into scrubbing the walls for 2 1/2 hours. i sure hope i get paid for working there. every once-in-a-while i work a shift at a restaurant as well. so my days don't consist of too much besides wanting to leave this place. i surf even though it's flat and i have to paddle like mad on a long board just to catch a little creepy crawler. however, they swear to me that the waves get really good here. i go to coffee shops and run some evenings. i hang with the family and am so thankful they get internet. they have a sweet orange cat named Joe and two dogs... big-grinning Ted the American Staff and Patches the three-legged, loudest-barking Cattle dog.

I am working at being more proactive in figuring out my next step. Even though I don't want to come home just yet, I don't want things to keep going the way they are. I've been looking into TESOL programs and teaching English abroad. I'm only thinking of this because I miss studying Spanish and know that I want to become more fluent. Maybe go for my Masters and then who knows...

so... fill me in w/ how you are. i enjoy hearing from you.

love,
julie

the Mollymook

"Where God leads you, he will sustain you."
Well, did God lead me to Australia? I believe he did. I've been trying to work and settle somewhere and that has not been easy with the financial crisis going on. Some days I get really anxious and struggle to know what I'm doing, but it's amazing how God can comfort me when I bring my worries to him. Obviously they don't go away, but it helps me put things into perspective. And he brings me peace.
The busyness of working was short lived. Now, I am basically on-call to work at a couple restaurants and waiting for things to open up at another. So I am left looking for work again. I just picked up some work this afternoon at a local pub, so maybe that will help. Thankfully I am staying with a family (The Spooners - Was, Rosie, Emily (19), Jake (17), and Chelsea (14)) because I wouldn't be able to afford regular rent anywhere at the moment. I met a girl on Sunday who might be moving to Sydney to work and go to school, so I was considering moving in with her and trying to find work up there. Although, the thought of moving again is somewhat overwhelming.
It was nice to talk with my mom a few days ago. She understands that things are difficult because I have so much time on my hands and I just want to be productive. So I appreciated a listening ear for me to vent my frustrations.
I am praying for God's direction at the moment and trying not to lose hope. Surely, he calls us to walk by faith, one day at a time and trust him. I feel like I am going through a time of hardship, but still trying to maintain hope in the fundamentals of what I believe. God is constantly encouraging me through his Word. This one stood out to me today:
"For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again."
2 Corinthians 1:8b-10

Please be praying for me. That I would know what to do...
to stay where I am and keep looking for work (maybe this pub thing will work out)
go somewhere else and look for work
or return home

I need to wait here in Mollymook at least another week or two for the rest of my luggage to arrive from the farm. I don't feel ready to return home yet, maybe because I still haven't experienced what I came here for... a place to settle and get into a routine: job, community, surf, and more travel. We'll see. I can only hope that this experience will make me a stronger person and that someday I will have a little more direction in life (i.e. career).

love,
julie

p.s. Here are some other verses that I've really been encouraged by lately: Matthew 6:33-34; James 1:2-5; Isaiah 64:8; Jeremiah 17:7-10; Psalm 9:9-10; 1 Corinthians 15:56-58; I Cor 16:13-14. Please feel free to share verses you've been learning from as well.

holidays at the beach

hey guys... I'm back
it's weird not having internet for a couple of weeks
anyway, I want to fill you in on what's been going on. I had a nice time with the Withers and their family and friends. They really made me feel like part of the family. I spent Christmas on a farm in Junee (near Wagga Wagga) with great food and Christmas cakes. I slept in the upstairs office/bedroom for a couple of nights and then we left for Mollymook the day after Christmas. I set up camp just outside the house, since the 10 beds in the house were full. It was nice besides the occasional rain and wind and hot mornings when I wanted to sleep in. Many days I would wake up and just throw on my bathing suit and run into the ocean. It was wonderful to be at the beach and enjoy the holidays with people, however, I was really craving work and was feeling a bit aimless. Every day we would spend at the beach or hanging at the house and at nights we ate amazing meals and drank lots of wine or beer. On New Year's Eve we had more people over than usual (about 20, instead of the regular 10-15). We danced for hours, swatted at a homemade pinyata for way too long, and enjoyed some fun with sparklers. The house was always full of young girls from 9 to 17 years old... who mostly kept to spending time with each other. But I had fun helping one of the girls celebrate her 17th b-day. I decorated some cakes and put up streamers for us all to enjoy.

And here comes the exciting part... although I had planned to return to the farm, it turns out I am going to stay at the beach instead! I know, I was all ready to pick fruit in the 100 degree weather, but get this... a family that I met at the Christian Surfers girls camp a couple months ago lives here in Mollymook. They actually live right across the street from the Withers holiday house. So it was inevitable that I would run into them! I went to church and met a few locals, then considered the idea of staying. So I went looking for work and now I have 3 jobs at different restaurants in town! Pretty crazy! I am blown away by how God works! How all these little things are falling into place! Especially since I had no idea it would work out this way. So the Withers returned to the farm yesterday and I am staying with the Spooners. They cleared out a room for me, although I'm not sure if it's only meant to be tempory until I find another place or what.

Such a blessing to be working too much, instead of not at all! I'm still not sure how to balance all three yet. So we'll see. I'm glad to be back by the beach and involved in another Christian community again. But it really makes me miss the good churches back home!! Well, I better stop before this email gets too long. There is sooo much to say! If you have more questions or want to hear more stories, just ask. And here is a facebook link to a few more pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=71086&l=71f0e&id=547256432

I hope you have all been enjoying your holidays. Let me know what's been going on.

Love ya,
Jules