It was a routine traffic stop. At least by Australian standards. Traffic was funneled to a single lane and police officers conducted random breathalyzer tests. I knew these happened and I had no reason to worry, but still I felt uneasy. The American in me couldn’t shake the thought, “they can’t just do this without…
Culture Clash
It is easy to forget sometimes— how cultures can clash. We have our routines and get by just fine for the most part without thinking that the way we live is the result of us being shaped by a particular set of rules in a particular place. Until we encounter another perspective. When I…
ANZAC Day
On April 25 Australians observe Anzac Day, a day of remembrance for the soldiers who served and died in the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (Anzacs). It marks the day when the forces landed in Gallipoli during WWI, a significant event (as well as the 8 months of heavy fighting which followed) in the…
Seasons Turn
The schedule for our YAGM program follows the US academic calendar, or perhaps more broadly, the academic calendar of the Northern Hemisphere. It makes for an interesting dynamic around this time of year. Autumn is coming on strong here in Australia. The leaves are changing and falling from the trees. Night comes earlier. It is increasingly…
Reconciliation Week
We are nearing the end of Reconciliation Week in Australia (27 May to 3 June). In many parts of Australia it is entirely possible that this week comes and goes without much recognition. But for Aboriginal people it marks significant events in Australia’s history. For one, this year is the 50th anniversary of the 1967 referendum,…
Discoveries
One of the realities of living somewhere that is similar enough to my home country is that the differences can still catch me by surprise. That’s right, passengers often sit in the front seat of a cab. “How you going?”… “Yeah, good” When tracking a conversation: “Yeah, nah” sometimes means “I follow, but don’t agree”…
It Is Well
As I, Kim, finished up my last day working for the Evangelical Covenant Church we sang together the classic hymn It Is Well With My Soul. My heart swelled as I cherished final moments with dear colleagues and sustained excitement for our up coming move to Australia. It was indeed, well with my soul. Two…
A Complicated History
Among the buildings at Hermannsburg are a few remnants of the old mission life— a tannery, school room, chapel, cistern and some old machinery. A few mounted pictures and display boards document the decades of the mission’s heyday. Looking at these one is able to piece together fairly well what life on the mission looked…
even so 