staying on track

Last Friday I surprised my eight year old son and gave him the day off school. An excursion with Mum! It turned out to be an unexpectedly long excursion with a few extra twists and turns.

Jayden had been asking to go on a train on and off for ages, and over the Christmas holidays I had promised to take him on one. It didn't happen and school began with an unfulfilled promise. I made a note to take him on a train (before next Christmas!) and last week found myself with a spare day.

I packed an extra set of clothes and loved watching his face light up as we drove past the school and on to Grandma's place! We parked the car and then set off on our walk to the train (with a bag of goodies & kisses from Grandma).

I showed him the exact route I had taken to high school for five years. Ten minutes to the train station, then a half hour train trip into Southbank.

So much had changed at every turn. The train station had been completely renovated (you would expect this after twenty years!) but a lot of the scenery was the same as I remembered.

Jayden was thrilled going through the tunnels and I loved his wide eyed wonder as he pointed out different landmarks that caught his attention.

We passed Southbank onto Central Station, hopped off & hurried through the crowds to Post Office Square. The buskers were still busking in their same places, and gave Jayden a wave as he threw them his change. What a difference music makes to an old walkway.

We wandered slowly through the mall and through to a games arcade, then ate lunch while watching men and women on a stage getting their head shaved (and sprayed pink) for Leukemia.

After crossing the bridge bank to Southbank and enjoying the best New Zealand ice cream (spearmint!) we started to run for the train station. It was pouring!

"It's all worked out perfectly!" I assured Jayden as we boarded the train that arrived at the exact time as we did. How convenient!! I didn't even think about checking the FRONT of the train - something I should have known to do after five years of catching the train!

About 10 minutes passed as we zoomed through tunnels and over bridges. I was lost in thought thinking about my growing TO DO list to plow through when I got home, and Jayden had his eyes fixed on the world outside.

It wasn't until I heard "Murarrie, Murarrie Station" that my senses started to tingle. "Why are we in Murarrie?" I thought to myself. How odd! Then it dawned on me that I hadn't actually recognised ANY of the stations (or scenery) we had passed for a number of stations. I had literally 'zoned out' since we left Southbank. REALLY bad timing!

Jayden was oblivious to my quickening sense of dread as the reality of my mistake began to sink in. It was obvious we were NOT on the Beenleigh train, but on our way to Cleveland!!! We were SO far away from our station it wasn't funny AND I had just discovered that my mobile phone was flat.

Some excursion.

We got off at Hemmant and stood for a while in the middle of nowhere. It was about 2pm (as far as I could tell from the sun) and there was only one other person on the station.

Jayden thought the whole situation was very funny. "It's all worked out perfectly" he said in a high pitched voice trying to mimick me. After that all he cared about was the likelihood of a toilet. There was none at this station.

All I cared about was a train in the opposite direction!

I felt so silly taking my son on such a wild goose chase. After so many years getting it right how could I have stuffed up so badly???

I think I just got complacent. I was so sure of myself, and then when I was on the wrong track I didn't even realise. The scenery had changed dramatically and I couldn't even tell.

It makes you think about life, and where we are headed. You can be going in the wrong direction - changing direction slowly - and not even know it.

Until you're a long way away.

Then you end up stuck in a place you have never been before, with a sudden sense of urgency that all you want to be is home, back on track and travelling in the RIGHT direction!

We finally got a train back to Park Road. Then we had to wait while three trains passed by.

People got on. People got off. Jayden spun around. He played with a piece of metal he found on the ground. And some stones.

I asked a number of people the time, and triple checked the front of each train that passed us by. I wasn't going to get it wrong again!

Then we sat and talked, and just enjoyed being together.

We were in the middle of nowhere, with a train to catch (hopefully!) and time seemed to stand still for a while.

By the time we got home, we both thought the whole 'train mix up disaster' was actually very funny - and I realised that it had all been an adventure for Jayden.

I'm pretty sure we will always remember the day we went to the city, played arcade games, ran in the rain, and caught four trains!!!

Treasure in the dirt patch

I have a small patch of dirt in my backyard which I am planning to one day transform into a secret haven - a little patch of garden heaven - well that's the plan!

Right now you would probably not see past the thick mass of weeds, rocks and broken toys that have multiplied before my eyes - especially after the recent torrents of rain.

Yesterday I ventured out just before dinner and surveyed the menacing weeds which I am sure were not ten foot yesterday. It was really ugly, and looked impenetrable.

So while deep in thought about my dilemma of how to rid my garden of alien intruders, I automatically started pulling just a few small weeds, and after a few minutes of this found it was almost impossible to stop.

It was therapautic.

Finally I was getting my hands back in the dirt (and rocks) and seeing some changes in my garden.

I pulled and heaved and ripped and threw.

Ripping those massive weeds (small trees?) out wasn't as difficult as I thought because the root systems were so completely drenched. The satisfaction of destroying what had been subconsiously annoying me for weeks was worth the muscle straining, broken nails and mud splattered clothes.

I felt like I was becoming one with nature, ridding the world of one less ugly stem and making way hopefully for something beautiful.

About 10 minutes later, I really was on a roll pulling out gazillions of annoying weeds that had threatened to overtake the entire back yard. The kids were getting hungry, and the dog was watching me from a distance (thankfully the mud & flying weeds were keeping them all at bay) but I just couldn't stop.

Dinner and the masses would have to wait.

It wasn't until I had finally cleared the ground that I noticed one out of place 'non-weed'.

A beautiful long stem with a long yellow bud that was completely straight and facing heavenward.

A treasure in the muck and mud of my weed sodden patch of dirt.

A seed must have blown into my 'non-garden' and made it's home next to my ugly weed patch, to then grow it's precious shoot that may never have been seen by man if I hadn't impulsively, accidentally decided to de-weed!

A small blessing that literally bought the verse I read today back down to earth..

"For as surely as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring forth, so surely the Lord God will cause rightness and justice and praise to spring forth before all the nations through the self-fulfilling power of His Word." Is 61:11

The Message version inspires me to fill my secret garden with flowers & blooms...

"For as the earth bursts with spring wildflowers,
and as a garden cascades with blossoms,
So the Master, God, brings righteousness into full bloom
and puts praise on display before the nations."

The earth in my back yard bought forth its shoot all by itself. It's what the earth does. I love that! My garden guarantees to spring forth what is sown (when it's owner actually sows it!!!)

So God will bring forth what is right and just before men - before the nations - through the power of His Word.

It's what He does.

He will bring it before men through the promises that lie dormant like seeds waiting to be activated. They are treasures more beautiful than the wildflowers and blossoms that we see in our natural eye - reminders of what we have that is unseen.

Rightness, justice and praise - beautiful shoots springing out of the ground that may be surrounded by threatening weeds and rocks, but they will grow taller and stronger. And the weeds (of darkness, of pain, of evil) will be ripped out one by one.

And then their life giving beauty and glory which was hidden from man will be seen - and His word will be fulfilled.

So today the weeds are all gone, and my lone flower is standing tall and has literally burst open to display its wonder to the inhabitants of my backyard (me and the dog!!).

A very small but significant reminder to me of His promises, and His goodness.