Tales of an Ordinary Life

It has been a many a year since I last wrote here, so why start to write again? Well life is busy and there is not much time in those days that I take to reflect. This is something I want to change. My life is not amazing, spectacular or Instagram worthy but it full of ordinariness. So what is an ordinary life, well it is messy, complicated, challenging and unique. My life can not be copied but it can be relatable. I am a nearly fifty woman, working full time, with teenage children, trying to do everything but not feeling like I succeed at anything. I look at the lives at others and wish for a fraction of those lives but then realise that they may be thinking about my life like that. I would like to use this forum to reflect on these musings, reflect on being a mother to teenagers, living with a partner that has a chronic illness, my attempts to find a work/life balance and working with young children. So if no-one reads this then that is ok with me. This is for me, for my musings

Semester is 4 weeks in and the assignments are starting to come due. This week my head has been stuck in the mirky world of Ethics. Ethics is something we don't really think about in every day life but it something that does affect the way we make decisions and choices. Do we choose to do something because the end result will be of benefit to the majority or we will not do something even though it may be the best to do for the majority but it ends up hurting up one person. I was surprised to see that most of us make these decisions all the time, yet how often do we weigh up the consequences of our decisions? It has challenged be to think about what I choose when I make decisions in my life. If you want a light hearted view of the world of Kantian Ethics watch this

This time of year in Brisbane produces the most spectacular days and sunsets. Technically it is winter time and the nights are cool but the days warm up to a lovely 22 - 23 C. This gorgeous shot was taken at New Farm park just after the kids had a great afternoon playing and as we were packing up to go the sky lit up with this beautiful palette of colour.

My second semester is in full swing, assignment due dates are marked on the calendar, groups for group assignments are formed and the panic of where will I end up for prac has set in. Yet I would not trade this choice to study for anything, yes it is hard and draining but it is something worthwhile. With maturity on my side I can see the importance of every single thing helping me to become a better teacher. Instead of the lure of partying and drinking to drag me away from study, it is three beautiful children who call to me on a fine Sunday afternoon "what are we going to do today? Can we go somewhere?" that helps me to lift my hands off the keys of the computer and my head out of a text. Yet they remind me of the importance of why I am studying teaching and why it is important to do more than just get a "pass". They are the future generation who need to be guided, shown how to look at the digital world through a much more discerning lens. That is the role of a tea

I have just started back at uni for 2013. One of my subjects is Society, environment and health and one that I am going to enjoy immensely. Why? Because the subject is right up my alley - teaching children how to begin living sustainable lives and how to become responsible global citizens. As part of this subject I have to do an online test that measures my ecological footprint. After doing my calculation, I saw the need 2.1 planets to sustain my current lifestyle. I was quite disappointed to get this result as I actively try to live a sustainable life. Over the next 8 weeks one of the challenges is to take steps to minimise my ecological footprint. One area that was highlighted as contributing to my footprint was my consumption of red meat. That is something I can try to do as well as minimising how much I drive the car. You can have a go at trying the test  here . Image from:  http://www.wrsc.org/attach_image/your-ecological-footprint

Last night I met together with my beautiful sisters from my home group. It was the first time we had managed to get-together since the start of the year ( I know it is nearly the start of March). We spent the evening catching up with what has been happening in each others lives and just reconnecting again. We decided we would like spend the next few months looking at Ann Voskamp's amazing book 'one thousand gifts'. Also we are sharing with each other the blessings that God bestows upon us every day of lives. They may be small and some days they may be hard to find but this is a time for us to develop that heart of gratitude. If you feel like some further inspiration head on over to Ann's  blog .  gratitude #2 Early morning Coffee gratitude #3 Studying and learning about the environment at the same time