Excuse Me, Sir . . .

"Excuse me, sir . . ." I heard the gentleman say, but I kept on walking. Put simply, I didn't want to be stopped. Yesterday we headed for the airport to finally head home. We got to the Qantas (believe it or not, there is no "u" after the "Q") desk to check in for our flight and the clerk warned us that if our carry on luggage was too heavy, then they would send us back downstairs to check it (apparently at an additional fee). "I suggest that you throw away anything that you don't want because it seems as though you might be a few kilos over weight." He then told us that they did random weighings of carry ons upstairs. "Great," we thought before heading upstairs. As Susan passed the clerk, the clerk said nothing. But then when Tyler went by the clerk, he was ordered to have his carry ons weighed. Being a good dad, I tried to bolt past Tyler in hopes of avoiding having my carry ons weighed (don't forget: he is a teenager now and he is taller than me). But the clerk instructed me, and then Amy too, to have our carry ons weighed. Somehow (hmmm?), we were under weight. We breathed a sigh of relief. But then when our carry ons were x-rayed, there was a new problem. Now if we only had two carry ons each, then I would not have felt so awkward, but when you have a few extra carry ons, then you stick out like a sore thumb. After a few minutes, however, the matter was resolved and we were free to go to the gates to board. Susan, Amy, and Tyler then boarded the plane without incident. But as I handed my ticket to the clerk and started walking down the corridor into the plane I heard, "Excuse me, sir . . . " I couldn't believe it, but I kept on walking in hopes that the man was not talking to me. "Excuse me, sir . . . " he politely said again, so I turned in his direction. "I'll have to do a random bag check on you, sir," he further stated. By the time he finished going through my four carry-ons (hey, we did have to add to our rock collection, you know), the plane was held up for a good ten minutes or so. Finally, after being personally searched, I was given the okay and proceeded down the corridor and into the plane. That is, until I reached the door of the plane. They then asked me my name and mandated that I produce my ticket again. Who knew that getting out of New Zealand would be so tough. We then left at around 8 p.m. on Sunday night, but arrived at 10 a.m. on Sunday morning. How that works, I still don't know, but it was a memorable Sunday to say the least. And who was waiting for us at the airport? Good ole' Randy. And before long, we had a McDonald's Iced Vanilla coffee in our hands and we were driving on the right-side of the road again! It's weird to be in America again, but it sure is nice. And we look forward to seeing you guys soon. Thank you, for all the encouraging emails.

Kiwi Blessings

As much as we enjoyed the North and South Islands of New Zealand--we drove over 2,000 miles in our 12 days there--they did not compare to the friendships that we made with some very special Kiwis. We spent two nights with Dave and Melissa in Wellington and three nights with Andre, Annette, Nicki, and Caleb in Auckland. We didn't get too much sleep on those evenings, but we laid the foundation for some awesome friendships. We were totally blessed by their hospitality and friendship.

One Last Time

About two weeks ago, our tent's zipper got snagged and we were barely able to zip up the tent for the night. Thereafter, each night we carefully zipped up the tent only one time: when everyone was ready for bed. And we only unzipped it one time: when everyone was ready to get out of bed. Put simply, the tent was on its last leg. On our last night in the tent--in the very middle of the night--it began to rain. Since we place our tent on a tarp, we knew that the tarp had to be completely tucked under the tent, otherwise, the rain would begin to pool under the tent and began to seep through. So when I woke up and heard the rain, I knew that I needed to quickly tuck the tarp under the tent. But we faced a predicament: what if we couldn't zip up the tent again? As such, we opted to allow the water to pool under the tent. And, sure enough, before long, it started to come through the tent and onto our mats. Thankfully, it never got our sleeping bags wet. In the morning, we unzipped the tent and the zipper completely broke. It never ceases to amaze me how God watches over us in such seemingly, trivial matters. Don't forget to thank Him when you realize that He has been good to you.

What Kind of Kids Are We Raising?

As we pulled into our campground last night, I was beat. We had spent the bulk of the day driving and it was nearly 10 p.m. In this part of the world, people actually go to bed when it gets dark, so when you pull into a campground after dark, then you have to be super quiet. At any rate, as we pulled into the campground we saw something on the ground. It was rather small and, at first, we didn't know what it was. We thought that it might be a kiwi, but then we noticed that it was something else. Something we didn't even know that they had in New Zealand. It was a hedgehog! No sooner did we figure out what it was and Amy and Tyler jumped out of the car and started running through the previously quiet campground toward the hedgehog. The hedgehog noticed them running in its direction, so it started to run in the opposite direction. Before we knew it, Amy took off her sweatshirt (quicker than a cowboy could lasso a calf) and through it on top of the hedgehog. She then started to pick it up, but apparently thought better of it. Tyler, without blinking, immediately picked up his latest prize and quickly ran it over for a picture. "What kind of kids are we raising?" I jokingly said to Susan. Yes, it is safe to say that the late Steve Irvin had an impact upon Amy and Tyler. But someone far more impactful than the Crocodile Hunter has grasped their hearts.

Chased by a Sea Lion!

This trip has seen a lot of first for us. This was never so true as the other night when we were walking along the beach at dusk with some people who were from, of all places, Lincoln, Nebraska. (Isn’t the world a small place?) We just had spent some time with these folks while viewing penguins from a viewing station located just above the ocean in a town called Donedin (it’s pronounced "done eatin") and we were making the long trek across the beach back to the parking lot. As we were walking, we looked out into the waves and noticed that a sea lion was swimming parallel to us. It seemed as though he were following us. Just then Susan (who had been slightly behind us) caught up to us, and told us that the sea lion just had chased her and the other part of our group. Initially, I was a bit skeptical, but then the sea lion started swimming to shore. And then the sea lion started hopping along the sand toward us. (Believe it or not, they’re kind of fast in the sand–particularly when they are running at you.) So we started to run. "I told you," said Susan. Perhaps I’ve been to Sea World one too many times, but it seemed as though the sea lion was playing with us, for after we ran away, he then rolled on his back and sort of pretended to play dead. So we stopped again, and, sure enough, he chased us again. When we got away from him, he then rolled on his back and laid in the sand again. And then he chased us again . . . and again . . . and again all the way across the entire beach. Yes, we got away. And, no, we didn’t lose any fingers or toes, but it sure was fun to be chased by sea lion. I only wish I knew if he was playing or not.

Forecast: Showers

Five! Four! Three! Two! Yes, yes, we are counting down the days. No, not necessarily until we arrive back in America, but until the day that we get to shower in our own shower again. You see, we've grown just a tad bit tired of campground showers. In fact, today, Tyler said that he would gladly have taken a shower in the campground's facilities . . . 18 years ago. Yes, the old concrete slab had seen its better days quite some time ago (then again, maybe not). But you gotta do what you gotta do. Speaking of which, if you never have been camping before and have not had the privilege of taking a shower in a campground shower, then let me give you a few pointers. First, if you do not own a pair of flip flops, then make sure that you buy a good pair (or two . . . or three (just in case!)). If necessary, take out a line of credit on your house to buy some flip flops. Trust me, you won’t regret it and your lender will understand. And it may even be a tax write-off. And whatever you do, don’t call them thongs anymore. The meaning of that word has drastically changed in the past few years. Next, if you wear glasses, then do not bring them with you to the shower. No, the concern is not that you’ll loose your glasses, rather, the concern is that you’ll actually be able to see clearly what is in the shower. Third, if while showering you accidentally touch the wall, then rinse and repeat (and use chlorine bleach). If that doesn’t get the germs off, then amputation is always an alternative. (Don’t worry, young children have no idea what amputation means. They think that its that thing that takes you to the hospital. Come to think of it, if you touch the shower wall more than once, then just call an ambulance. The 911 operators will understand.) Fourth, if you happen to drop your bar of soap while in the shower, then leave immediately–the five second rule does not apply to bars of soap dropped in campground showers! Fifth, always make sure that the campground has hot showers. Some campgrounds try to pull a fast one and tell you that they have cold showers. A cold shower is nothing more than a garden hose hooked up to an ice chest (that’s an Esky, for my Aussie friends). So if you would not willingly have an ice chest dumped over your head (winning the Super Bowl is the only known exception to the rule), then don’t fall for the cold shower talk. Sixth, if you actually survive the shower, but drop your toothbrush on the ground on the way out of the stall, then kick it near the trash can and leave immediately. Whatever you do, do not touch the trash can, for it is the dirtiest item on the face of the planet--even dirtier than the shower you just got out of!! Last, but surely not least, if you have a convertible and can find a local car wash, then just go through it instead; it’s a lot safer and you'll be glad you avoided the campground shower altogether.

What a Day May Bring

When we woke up the other morning, it was raining and cold. Our plan was to simply hop into the car and make a quick stop at a place called Pancake Rocks. But then we noticed a sign for a hike along the beach, so we did that one first. On the hike we saw some dolphins leaping in the air (I thought they only did that at SeaWorld). With the rain lifting, we decided to do another hike. This time, we hiked along a beautiful river. The river was so beautiful that we decided to go kayaking up it. Before long, Susan was negotiating a great deal on the kayak rental: four kayaks for $25 for one hour. Not bad, huh! We then kayaked our way through the river and had a wonderful time that we will never forget. When we were done, it was almost 4:30 p.m. While we planned to be at our next campsite by that time, we had no regrets what the day had brought.

Feed My Lambs

As we pulled down an alley on the waterfront of the old historic town of Oamaru, New Zealand, we saw a wool warehouse. Inside was a man sorting the wool into various piles. It looked like it would make for a great picture, so we swung around to the front entrance of the warehouse and I dragged Tyler along as a prop. Once inside the small warehouse, I again saw the gentleman, so I thought that I would ask him a few questions about his trade. He told me that he sorted the different grades of wool into 60 different piles and that his role in the whole process was only a minor bit. Before long, I asked him a question: "I’m not sure if you are aware of the biblical account or not about Jesus telling Peter to feed his lambs and his sheep, but what is the difference between lambs and sheep?" "Lambs are nine months old and younger; sheep are older than nine months old," replied the man. Suddenly, I had a newfound appreciation for Jesus’ telling Peter first to feed his lambs, then to tend his sheep, and finally to feed his sheep. We chatted for a few more minutes before I exchanged Tyler for Amy as my new prop. We went on our way, no longer confused about the difference between a lamb and a sheep. And then Tyler made sure that we would never forget by saying, "Now it makes sense: ‘Mary had a little lamb, little lamb, not Mary had a little sheep, little sheep!"

A Friend of a Friend of a Friend

Leaving Australia was different. It was hard to believe that we were actually leaving and heading for New Zealand. Quite frankly, it kind of feels like we live in Australia now. At any rate, as we boarded the plane for Auckland, New Zealand, the only thing that we knew was that a friend of a friend of a friend was willing to store some of our bags for us until we finished traveling through New Zealand. When we landed in Auckland, which is on the north island (there are actually two islands--this was news to me!), it was about 80 degrees and a bit muggy. It was 4 p.m. After we went through customs and immigration, ate at McDonald's, and got our rental car, it was around 7 p.m. And then it started to rain. Thankfully, however, the family that was going to watch our bags for us, offered to let us stay at their house for a couple days. You talk about a God send! It was perfect. Better yet, our new hosts are absolutely wonderful people. We stayed up late talking before heading to bed. This is going to be an amazing visit.

One Last Trip Downtown

We made our last trip to downtown Sydney today. We leave for New Zealand tomorrow morning, so we wanted to just go see some of the sights one last time and pick up a couple refrigerator magnets, coffee mugs, etc. (you know, all that junk that you buy for some reason when you visit a foreign town). As I was sitting down on a bench looking at the Sydney Opera House, the old Phil Keaggy song came to mind: "Cherish the moment, cherish the thought. You may have never been this way before, and you may never be this way again." As much as we have enjoyed Australia, we are also well aware of the fact that we may never pass this way again. God truly has done wondrous works in and through us during this trip and should He call us to Australia, then we would happily come. But until then, we're going to enjoy our last few hours in Australia.

Surfing--Finally!

Believe it or not, yesterday was the first time that Tyler and I were able to go surfing in Australia. When we first planned our trip, we imagined that we would get a place near the ocean and seek to have an impact among the beach crowd. While we were way off on the location, we still wanted to get into the water on at least one occasion, and, while we tried on a few other times to get down to the beach to surf, one thing or another would set us back. Thankfully, the surfboard rental place was open and we both got up for several rides in spite of some serious rip currents.

Saying Our Goodbyes

Well, believe it or not, our time in Australia is winding down, so we have begun to go see some of our new friends to say our "goodbyes." We were in Newcastle the past couple days and got to go to a home bible study to spend some time with the people that we first met when we arrived in Australia. It is hard to believe that our three months in Australia are coming to an end. We will be in Sydney for the next few days and will be able to say "goodbye" to several more friends before flying to New Zealand for 12 more days before heading home. The other side to that coin, of course, is that we'll be able to say some "hellos" soon.

Hola, Mate!

Do kangaroos eat cookies? Do kangaroos like Mexican food? I'm sure that these are some of the questions that are running through your mind. So let me give you a few answers. First things first, kangaroos never eat cookies in Australia. Why? Because cookies are not called cookies in Australia. Instead they are called biscuits. Who knows what they call biscuits--perhaps they call them cookies. Oh, well, that's beside the point at this juncture. We found out first hand that kangaroos absolutely love cookies (oops! I mean biscuits.) when we saw some young kids feeding them cookies in our campground. Now, about that Mexican food, Amy and Tyler found some tortillas on the ground at a campground that we stayed at and decided to give the roos a sample of some Mexican food. Simply put, the tortillas were a hit with the roos!

I'm Just Waiting For My Friend

One of the things that has intrigued me about this trip is the people that we encounter. On Friday, we were driving through the Snowy Mountains, which are also known as the Australian Alps. Believe it or not, it was down to 41 degrees, from a high of 49 degrees. Got you! You're thinking Fahrenheit again, weren't you? Yes, it was nearly 120 degrees Fahrenheit as we went into the Snowy Mountains. In case you are wondering, there was no snow. Just in case. I know that some of you were actually wondering. Anyway, we stopped in a park to eat our delicious pizza from Eagle Boys. Doesn't that sound tasty?!!! After finishing our pizza, I noticed a guy about 30 years old just sitting in the middle of the park. He was doing absolutely nothing. So I went over to him and asked him a question about a tragic event that had occurred the day before in Melbourne. I then asked him whether he was from this part of Australia. "No, I'm just waiting for my friend. He said that he would be here about 40 minutes ago." After a few minutes of talking, I asked him a spiritual question. Immediately, he got up to leave. But then he said, "I was baptized three years ago." We then talked for a couple more minutes before we parted ways. Did God have him waiting in the park for a reason? I don't know, but he went home with something to think about.

American Food? Where!!!!!

A four-leaf clover, a tax refund, a guy spinning on his head eating pop rocks: some things in life are hard to believe. So when we heard that there was a store in Melbourne that actually sold food from America, we were a bit skeptical. You see, while they have a lot of products here that are similar to American items, you simply just miss your favorite foods. Can you imagine going 3 ½ months without a Hershey bar? Craving Mexican food? Forget it. How about a can of Dr. Pepper? Keep dreaming. But then we got the address to U.S.A. Foods, and off we went. We had only 60 minutes to make it to the store, which was on the other side of town. Thankfully, we made it. And there it was: Pop Tarts, A&W Root Beer, Lucky Charms, A-1 Steak Sauce, Tootsie Rolls. It was enough to make a grown man cry. Don’t worry, I didn’t. But the bill did. American food ain’t cheap in Australia. To give you an example, a box of Lucky Charms was $12.99. And it didn’t even come with a prize! Oh, well, it will be the best bowl of cereal that we will ever have for dinner (whose waiting for breakfast!).

Penguin Parade

Penguins? In Australia? Yes, they actually have penguins in Australia. What don’t they have here? I think that Noah must have crashed in Australia and lost a few of the animals. Anyway, last night we went to see the Penguin Parade. The penguins are raising their young at this time, so the penguins fish all day at sea and come ashore at dusk to feed their babies. After watching all the penguins come home, we got to walk a boardwalk near their dens to hear them calling one another. It was a beautiful sight to see. Obviously, the two little penguins (that's their real name) didn't take up too much room on the ark.

Tennis, Anyone?

Believe it or not, up until a few years ago, I always wondered why they played the Australian Open in the middle of winter. Well, after sitting through 110 degree heat at the Rod Laver Tennis Center in Melbourne yesterday, I now fully realize that the Australian Open is played in the summer. We had a great time in spite of the heat.

Stop!!!!!!!

As we were driving down a dirt road in the country, Susan suddenly yelled, "Stop!!! There is an echidna!" I know, I know, you're thinking: "What's an echidna?" An echidna is a small animal that is similar to a hedgehog. It is one of the animals that the kids and Susan wanted to see while we were in Australia. Before I knew it, Susan and Tyler (and then Amy) leaped out of the car, jumped a fence (in a single bound!), and sprinted through a cow pie-infested field toward the echidna. Before long, Susan picked up the echidna (with the help of Tyler's sweatshirt) and was posing for a picture. Aussies tell us that echidnas are rare, and this is the first one that we have seen. I hope you enjoy his picture.

Hottest Week in 100 Years!

The forecast this week for Melbourne is that it may be the hottest week that they have had in 100 years. Now, those are not the kind of records that we like to be around for, but at least our campground has a pool. Besides, we only have two weeks left in Australia, so we are willing to endure any weather, for we really don't care to get back to the "normal" rountine anymore. Hopefully, something different will be coming down the pike when we get back to America.

How Many?

After leaving the 12 apostles, but before we arrived at our new friends' home for the evening, we ventured off down a road to see a lighthouse. On the way, however, there was a car pulled over to the side of the road and the people were outside looking up into the gum trees (that's what they call eucalyptus trees). Before long, we saw that they were looking at a koala. And then we saw another one. And another one. After about two hours of looking, we had seen 78 koalas. Tyler hoped to reach 100, but we fell just a bit short. How close did we get? Close enough to touch one of them (we didn't--this time). But wait until you see the pictures!

Would You Guys Like to Spend the Night?

As Tyler and I were coming back to our tent, I noticed that the people camping next to us had an awesome set up for camping, but it appeared as though it would take quite some time to set up and break down, so I asked how long it took. As the guy and I started talking, we started talking about all kinds of things. And before long, he and his wife invited us to come have dinner with them and to spend the night at their place. They have five acres about an hour out of Melbourne. We immediately accepted their invitation and told them that we would see them later that night, for they were heading directly home and we were continuing down the Great Ocean Road. Later, we were treated to lamb and chicken; it was awesome. We had a great time of fellowship, a great night's sleep, and they even asked us if we would like to do some laundry. In the morning, our host taught me how to play cricket, which has some similarities to baseball. We didn't hit the road until almost 3 p.m. It was an absolutely blessed time.

12 Apostles?

Okay, quick: who are the 12 apostles? Let's see . . . there are Peter and John and James. And I doubt that you could forget Thomas. Then there is Judas. And . . .hey, I'm not going to give you all the answers. Why do I mention the 12 apostles? Because we got to drive by them the other day. No, not the grave sites of the 12 apostles, but the beautiful 12 apostles in the Southern Ocean. When we get to a campsite that has WiFi, then I'll post a picture of them.

Tour Down Under

As we came into Adelaide, we realized that we had come into town just as Lance Armstrong was about to make his cycling comeback at the Tour Down Under. Since watching the race is free of charge, we found a great spot to watch the race and waited for the riders to come by. If you have ever been to a cycling race before, then you know how fast they go by. Put simply, while we can say that we saw Lance Armstrong go by on at least four different occasions, we would be hard pressed to say which of the riders he was. Be that as it may, it was a great time.

Road Train

As I was driving down the road in the outback, I encountered a site that I never had seen before: a road train. What is a road train? It is an insane way for goods to travel across the outback by truck. So if you ever drive to Uluru, then make sure that you drink plenty of coffee, for the last thing that you would ever want to do is to cross the white line and meet up with a road train. By the way, road trains can be as long as 13 trailers long, although we only saw a road train with four trailers. Talk about a personal convoy!!

Melbourne?

Today I read an email from our friend, Gerard, in Tahiti. In short, he had received an email from a pastor in Melbourne who was asking him if he soon would be in Australia. Gerard sent him an email (and forwarded a copy to me) informing him that we are currently in Australia. Unbeknownst to Gerard, we will be heading for Melbourne in a day or two. Do you think that God knows your travel plans and goes before you? "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." Proverbs 3:6. Put simply, I think you know where our path will be going in Melbourne.

Coober Pedy (Part 2)

We made our way back to the campground in Cooper Pedy to say "hello" to the Grecian woman who had recently lost her daughter in a car accident. Thankfully, she was doing much better and had a smile on her face. Susan gave her a small gift and told her what a special person she was. In return, the woman gave Amy, Tyler, and Susan some opal from her opal mine, which is right behind her family's campground. The following morning, we met her grandson (13 months old) and spent some additional time with her. We then drove about 300 miles down the highway before running across her daughter's memorial. We stopped by, cleaned the site, and then left a small teddy bear (with angel wings) in her memory.

From Wal-Mart to Alice Springs

This past year, we found a great deal on some bibles for boys and girls at Wal-Mart while we were in Northern California. Yesterday, the majority of those bibles (along with toys and bottles of water) were handed out to young Aboriginal boys and girls in Alice Springs. It was a special day, particularly for three young boys who accepted Jesus Christ as their Saviour.

McDonald's

As we drove into Alice Springs, the Lord placed a thought on Susan's heart: to have dinner with a local family. Alice Springs has a large Aboriginal community, so we were by McDonald's and we saw two young women, so we invited them to McDonald's for dinner. They accepted our invitation and brought along their young cousin. During dinner, their aunt arrived and joined us for dinner. Their aunt happened to be the daughter of a pastor and a Christian. We had an absolutely enjoyable dinner with these women. We parted ways and exchanged email addresses. Has the Lord prompted you to do something recently? Have you obeyed Him? Let me assure you that to obey is better than sacrifice. That sounds familiar, doesn't it?

We Live in Alice Springs . . .

About a week ago, we met a couple at a campground. We talked with them for about five minutes. Toward the end of our conversation, they asked where we were headed. "Uluru and then Alice Springs," we told them. "We live in Alice Springs," they responded. They then gave us their contact information and asked us to look them up for a "cuppa." A "cuppa" is Aussie slang for having a cup of tea or coffee. Six days later, we arrived in Alice Springs and had a "cuppa" with our new friends, who happen to be believers. Interesting, isn't it.

No Rules, Just Right!

As you know, we have been in the outback for several days now. I don't think that there are any real driving laws in the outback. In fact, I think that the only driving law is: No Rules, Just Right! (or maybe that's just "left.") Oh, wait a minute, that's actually Outback Steakhouse's motto. Oh, well, we decided to apply Outback's "law" today when we let Amy and Tyler get a feel for driving on the wrong side of the road. Yes, now even Amy and Tyler know what it is like to drive on that crazy side! Granted, they were on a dirt parking lot, but they got to drive the Aussie way nonetheless.

Uluru

After a great night’s sleep, we headed over to Uluru and quickly learned some dreadful news: it is only open for hiking until 8 a.m. No, that is not a typo. 8 a.m.! What time do they think that I get up? To make matters worse, they only open up the hiking trail if there is no wind, the temperature does not exceed 36 degrees (thankfully, that was Celcius), and a whole host of other reasons that would make any lawyer proud. In December, the trail only was open five times. "How many times do they think I’m coming out here?" is what I was thinking. But what I asked the ranger was: "When was the last time it was open?" "On New Year’s Day," he replied. Once in 12 days. Needless to say, we were a bit disappointed, for we wanted to hike Ayers Rock. As we hopped back into the car, the temperature read: 47 degrees. Now, granted, the car had been parked in the sun, so it may have been reading a little high, but there was no way that the following day was going to be less than 36 degrees.
The following morning, we got up at 5:37 a.m. We didn’t plan to get up at that time, but Tyler had forgotten to set his watch. Now, granted, I woke Tyler up in his dead sleep and asked him to set his watch, and it seemed like he did, but now we were a bit behind schedule. Susan and I both noticed that it was not windy at all. The prior morning it had been very windy. So we headed for the car and scrambled off to Ayers Rock.
As we were nearing Ayers Rock, we saw the most beautiful sight in the world. No, it was not a camel . . . or a kangaroo. Rather, it was hikers hiking up Ayers Rock! It was open!!! "Thank you, Lord," I whispered. I was so excited to see the trail open that I feared the ranger would come and close it. Why would I think that? Because the wind had picked up and it was getting stronger by the moment.
Susan, Amy, Tyler, and I quickly began our ascent of the mountain, but only Tyler and I intended to go for the top. After snapping a few photographs of our initial ascent, Susan and Amy headed back down the mountain. Tyler and I then began pulling our way up the mountainside. It was very reminiscent of the ascent of Half Dome that we had done for Susan’s 40th birthday, but it was a lot longer and just as steep. (Memo to Mom: just skip to the end now, so that you are not horrified.) The wind began to blow so hard, that Tyler and I just sat down on the side of the mountain and held onto the chain. 36 people have died trying to hike up Uluru, and we had no intention of being added to the list. Before long, we made the wise decision and headed down.
(Don’t skip to here, Mom.) After descending the mountain, I just had to go back up. I wanted to go a lot higher, so I grabbed my backpack and headed back up the mountain. Just in time, for it was 7:35 a.m., and they close the trail at 8 a.m. The wind had picked up even more, but, being alone, it was easier to hike. Up and up and up I went. And up and up and up went the wind speed. I occasionally just held onto the chain and sat down. As I got higher and higher I realized that there was virtually no one going up or coming down from there. In time, even I realized that unless I wanted to be number 37, I had better turn around. (Okay, Mom, you can start reading again.) So down I went. No, I did not make it to the top, but it was exhilarating nonetheless. Would I do it again? In a heartbeat, particularly if we had some hiking gear and Randy and Larry along for the trip.

To Uluru At Night

They say that you shouldn’t drive at nighttime around here, for you are likely to hit a kangaroo or a camel (yes, you read right: a camel!). Camels were introduced to Australia over one hundred years ago, and they have flourished. We are told that there are over 1 million camels in this part of Australia. Unfortunately, camels are occasionally hit at night, so when we had no choice but to drive at night, we slowed to 70 kph (relax, and realize that’s only about 38 mph). Okay, so when Susan wasn’t looking we might have inched up to 80 kph, but that’s still only about 45 mph. In short, we got caught in the middle of nowhere and had our choice: continue driving 120 kilometers to Uluru or sleep in a free campground with some questionable looking campers. Any sane individual would have made the exact same decision that I made . . . except for those guys who camped there that night. After driving for about two hours under the bright moon lit night, we arrived at Uluru Resort. Believe it or not, the campground is located within a resort. Pools, internet connections (how did you think I sent this one?), green grass, everything is at our disposal, for the price of camping! Not a bad deal.

Right Place, Right Time

As we headed out for Coober Pedy, which was one of Amy and Tyler’s dreams due to their love of opals, we had a long drive ahead of us. But today’s road was easy to remember: the Stuart Highway. Now, Australians really know how to make you feel welcome, but even I have to admit they went a little over the top on that one, but I can live with it. Anyway, we ended up at a campground run by some Greek immigrants. In addition to the campground, this family also has an onsite pizza café. Choosing between peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and Hawaiian pizza has never been so easy. We got our pizza around 10 p.m., and as we were eating, Susan suggested that we offer to help the owners with some of their work, for she said that the husband, who was in his early 60s, had mentioned that their kids were out of town on holiday (that’s what they call "vacation" over here), so he was tired. So when the owner’s wife came outside where we were eating, Susan struck up a conversation with her. Susan then asked if her children were on holiday. "That’s a tough question to answer," she replied, before pausing, "for my son is, but my daughter died almost two years ago in a car accident. It will be the anniversary of her death on the 16th." With that, the woman began to silently weep and tell us all about that fatal day. I asked her a few probing questions in hopes of allowing her the opportunity to "get it out." She promptly began telling us all about what happened to her daughter and about how it had impacted her life. We offered to pray for her, but she stated that she had lost faith as a result of the accident. "How could a loving God take my daughter away," she sobbed. She wasn’t irreverent in any respect, rather, she just had a deep feeling of hopelessness. We silently prayed for her and consoled her. Our trip will take us back her way again, so we intend to bring her flowers. Not surprisingly, we will be back on the very night of the anniversary of her daughter’s death.

Arizona Highways

We arrived at Port Augusta early Friday (January 9th), stopping around 2:30 p.m. If there had been any other campgrounds within a couple hundred miles, then we would have loved to continue driving, but there were none, so we stopped and pitched our tent. We then went around town, saw the sites (that didn’t take long), and then headed back to our campground. When we got back to our campground we soon saw a camper’s worst nightmare: somebody had placed their tent within two feet of ours. Fortunately, it was only a small tent for a single camper, but we were admittedly a bit bothered. Of course, we didn’t say anything to the guy who had scooted into our space, but some of us (the guilty parties will remain anonymous) wanted to. At any rate, in the morning, I got to talking with the guy, and I soon learned that he was a lover of America. He was especially fond of Arizona (and, no, it was not John McCain). In fact, he even went to his car and retrieved one of those Arizona Highways magazines. He also showed us pictures of various places that he had been in Arizona, including Monument Valley. He said that once he had gone to America, he saw no reason to explore Australia until he was done exploring America. Before long, we were showing him pictures of our recent trip to Alaska and we were discussing some future adventures for him. Before our conversation ended, we had breakfast together and we exchanged CDs. He gave us an Australian country singer’s CD and we gave him a copy of Sanctuary. We invited him to come to the bible study group that we have been attending on Saturday nights, which happens to be close to where he lives in Sydney, and invited him to come listen to me speak at CC Sydney the following day. We parted ways, ever so happy that we had not voiced our complaints about how close he had put his tent to ours. Come to think of it: who has God placed in your way recently? Could it be that He has done so for His purposes?

Put It In The Boot

While most Australians have never actually been to Uluru (a.k.a., Ayers Rock), that adventurous American Spirit seemed to beckon: go west, young man (yes, I know Tyler is the only young man in the car), go west. So like any good American would do, we headed to the grocery store first. With 72 more 20 ounce (okay, okay, I’ll use the metric: 600 ml) bottles of water in the boot (that’s what they call the trunk around here), we were ready to venture out into the 110 degree weather of the outback on our way to Uluru. (Just a quick aside: I now know why the Aussies use Celsius instead of Fahrenheit: 47 degrees in January sounds normal to Americans (their main tourists targets).) Wait a minute! With all that water in the boot, there was barely any room for us! For we rented an SUV, so there is no boot. Instead, everything is crammed into the back: sleeping bags (just in case the forecast was actually in Fahrenheit), pillows, Amy, water, spare water, Nerf football, Tyler, spare tire (I think it’s in there), food, ice chest, H2O, soda (one bare necessity any decent American cannot live without), and on and on the list goes. Meanwhile, up front, Susan and I are forced to navigate the outback in the air conditioned front seats listening to the new Jeremy Camp CD. Who said life’s not fair? Well, at least if you are in the front seat.

You Can't Do What?

While we were trying to rent an SUV for our road trip, our host told us that we needed to make sure that we could drive from state to state in it. While the restriction sounded odd to me, I quickly learned that most rental car agencies would not permit you to drive to the Northern Territory, which is the location of Ayers Rock. Feeling a bit frustrated, I began the long arduous task of comparing one agency's restrictions to the next and so on. Initially--before the wonderful news of the restriction--I had a great rate on an all-wheel SUV, and I hated the fact that I was going to lose it. But then I asked another rental agency, which permitted us to travel to the Northern Territory, if it could beat the other rate. "No way," replied the agent, "we wouldn't make any money." Before long, she was checking with her boss . . . and then his boss . . . and then I heard the announcement that I wanted to hear, "Sure, we can beat it." This was just two hours before we were to rent our SUV. And then when I went to pick it up, I learned that we were being given a 4-wheel drive, which normally cost three times as much as our rate, for the same price. God is truly good.

Happy Birthday, Amanda!

Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Amanda, Happy Birthday to you!!!!!!!!! Amanda, we may not be able to call you for your birthday, so we just wanted to wish you a Happy Birthday from the outback. Love, Uncle Stuart, Aunt Susan, Amy, and Tyler

Excuse Me, But Can You Tell Me How to Get . . .

Later today, we'll be back on the road for a few weeks before heading back to Newcastle and Sydney to say our "goodbyes," and then heading to New Zealand. Please, pray for safe travels, as we'll be heading to Uluru (a.k.a., Ayres Rock). (Yes, that's that big, red rock in the middle of nowhere.) We look forward to the divine appointments that God has in store for us. We have no clue if we'll have any internet access as we head deep into the outback, but we'll be fine. We were blessed with a 4-wheel drive SUV, so we've got plenty of room (a spare 15 liters of water) and should be able to get out of any mess that we get into. And when we return, I've been asked to teach at CC Sydney, so it should be a blessing.

It's Starting to Make Sense

Awhile back I was viewing a YouTube video of some guy spray painting something onto a canvas. As he wildly spray painted, I rushed to figure out what in the world he was painting. Perhaps you've seen that video. At any rate, as he kept spinning his painting around and quickly spray painting lines here and there, it seemed extremely random. But you knew that it was going to be something good, otherwise it never would have been forwarded to you in the first place, right? (Okay, so maybe that doesn't always turn out to be the case with things forwarded by email, but you get the idea.) Finally, when the painter finished, he finally turned the painting right side up and it was an amazing painting of . . . (I actually forget what it was, but if you remember, then please post it as a comment!) Whatever it was that guy painted, the point is that this trip is starting to make more sense to me. I'm starting to see what the true painter is doing. And even though in the days ahead it may appear to you as though things are spinning more than ever, I can assure you that in time, you, too, will be just as amazed as I was at that painting (whatever it was!). For God only does wondrous works.

5 a.m. Kickoff?!

If you thought you had to get up early to see your favorite college football games this morning, I had to get up at 5 a.m. (yes, you read right) to see the Huskers take on the Clemson Tigers in the Gator Bowl. While I was not able to watch the game on "regular" television, I was able to watch it live on a CBS online feed. Quite frankly, I still can't believe that I (and later Tyler, Amy, and Susan) got to watch the game. God is surely good. And, as you might know, the Huskers came out with a victory. And all the way on the other side of the globe, I was smiling all day long (with the help of a couple cups of coffee and a couple cans of Coke, that is).

And the Number One Song Is . . .

Earlier this year, I heard a new song on the radio that I immediately deemed to be our theme song for our trip to Australia. In short, the song encapsulated what I wanted for our trip. Tonight, that song, "Give Me Your Eyes" by Brandon Heath, was voted the number one song on Air1 radio. The lyrics to the chorus are: Give me your eyes for just one second Give me your eyes so I can see Everything that I keep missing Give me your love for humanity Give me your arms for the broken hearted The ones that are far beyond my reach Give me you heart for the ones forgotten Give me your eyes so I can see. If you would like to view Brandon's video, then click on the following link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OihvG607W-c. Enjoy.