Song of the Stars: A Christmas Story

Posted on October 20, 2011 by sarahcondie

My new Christmas book for this year is utterly delightful –  Song of the Stars: A Christmas Story written by Sally Lloyd-Jones and beautifully illustrated by Alison Jay.  This is creation’s response to the birth of Jesus – it starts with the rustling leaves and moves  to the woodland creatures, the fish in the sea…”its time! It’s time!” We then come to the lion roaring “The Mighty King! The Prince of Peace!” followed by the stars and the angels who burst into glorious singing.

I have just finished working through Hosea with Bible study and can’t help comparing the lion in this story to the lion in Hosea chapter 11.  “When he roars, his children will come trembling from the west.” (v 10) The birth of Jesus is the culmination of God the Father showing His people how much He loves his children – by sending his own son into the world.  When He comes, his people do not see, nor do they hear the response of all creation to his arrival.  All of creation recognise that something significant is about to take place while the people he comes to rescue are oblivious apart from his mother who sings quietly in her heart “Our Rescuer”.

It reads like a Psalm or song and draws the reader in to the excitement and anticipation of all creation.  The illustrations are too beautiful to keep closed inside a book – I want to  have it lying open.  Sally’s telling of this event is evocative and understated – the creatures tell the story – we capture their emotion and are drawn in to respond ourselves.

It is available from Amazon.  If you buy it now, you will have it ready to read and enjoy for the month of December – I am looking forward to putting it on the table in our lounge room for all to savour and enjoy.

I have written  another blog post about other Christmas books you could collect to use at Christmas.  However, this new one by Sally is a gem.

Posted in Children's Books, Christmas | Leave a comment

A little bit of quilting – finally

Posted on October 14, 2011 by sarahcondie


Oranges and Limes – a quilt for a friend.  Every square is different – I started with a shape and added strips until it reached the size I wanted.  I spent a wet, cold week in July making the squares for this quilt – I spread the fabric out over the table at my Mother’s and played.

I mostly hand quilt using an embroidery thread.  I know how to free motion machine quilt, but have been too scared to experiment on an actual quilt.  I decided this was the quilt to play with  – I figured that by the end, I would have developed a new skill.  I love doodling and much to my surprise, I discovered that I can doodle quilt – it is fun, random and looks good too!  This will be hard to give away!

I  have not done much creating with fabric this year – too many other things have filled my time.  The other quilt that I completed a while back is for me – a little indulgence.  It has been sitting on my rocking chair for about three months and I have used it to snuggle under while watching DVDs or TV. I just took a photo of it then and both my boys looked at it in amazement – as if they had never seen it before.  They wanted to know who it was for and why they hadn’t seen it before – well, they sit next to the rocking chair every day, so I can’t answer that question – perhaps they are not good at noticing things like this unless pointed out.  I love the pastel coloured fabrics – they are soft and pretty.  I used up left over bits to create the back – I played with giant triangles – it was like doing geometry all over again – in fact, I like the back more than the front.  I was inspired by a friend from my past who is a very very talented and gifted quilter and gardener to use this pattern.  If you enjoy quilts and gardens, you will love her blog and her work.  Here is my quilt:




Posted in Quilts | 3 Comments

Pereira Maintains

Posted on October 12, 2011 by sarahcondie

I have just finished reading Pereira Maintains by Antonio Tabucchi.  It is a remarkable book to read – slow moving, understated – it takes the reader to Lisbon in Portugal in the summer of 1938.   I felt the heat, I sat at this cafe and ate omelettes with herbs and I got to know Pereira intimately.  He is grieving for his wife and talks to her framed photo daily.  He is a journalist in charge of the cultural section of a weekly paper and spends much time translating french novels which are published in his column.  Reading this book is a bit like listening to music – there is a rhythm and lyricism that lulls the reader into the world which becomes real.  On almost every page is the phrase “Periera maintains” – the voice of the author – it is not Periera, but then again, it is his story, told from his perspective.

Periera meets a younger man Monteiro Rossi who has written about death.  Periera thinks he would be suitable to write obituaries for his section of the paper about writers who have not yet died.  We discover that Rossi is about the age of the son that Peiera never had – an insight perhaps into one of the many unspoken parts of his life – his grief, his regrets, his disappointments.  In many ways, he is a middle-aged man of “traditional build” waiting to die.  However it is this encounter and ensuing relationship with Rossi that turns Periera’s life upside down.

This is a fascinating time in the history of the world – Germany was poised to invade and take over the rest of the world, Spain was in the midst of a revolution, the political parties of Portugal were behind Germany and Franco and anyone who spoke up against this did so at their own peril.  There is much fear in Portugal that summer.

You could read this book in one sitting – I read it over many nights lingering over the words and descriptions and finished it reluctantly.  I remained in Lisbon on finishing the final page and my mind tried to complete the story – the author has enticingly left the reader hanging – and I am able to fill in the blanks and imagine “what happened next”.  This is the mark of a good book in my estimation – it allows the reader to participate in the story – and I did.  It has been translated from Italian and is still beautifully written.  A masterpiece.

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A girl!….

Posted on October 7, 2011 by sarahcondie

I became an aunt again a week ago – Sienna Ruth.  This is two of her excited cousins welcoming her home.  Sienna has been born into a huge extended family with fifteen cousins, and oodles of aunts and uncles and grandparents.  And this is just on the Condie side. Then she has an older brother and sister.  Welcome to the world Sienna!

I spent five days with this family to look after Jaden and Talia while their Mum went to hospital.  What a humbling and exhausting experience.  Their boundless energy made me feel decidedly old and flabby.

It reminded me that parents need many skills to keep up with their busy children. Skills in negotiating, to avoid major international incidents – those tantrums over the pink cup, the Ipad, the use of the toilet,  a singing voice happy to make oneself look completely ridiculous as you sing while pushing them on a swing – again and again – “please Auntie Sarah” as they roar with laughter.  It helps to be filled with patience, gentleness and kindness as these will be severely tested – and when you fail, the ability to say “sorry” and scoop them up in your arms for one cuddle, two cuddles, three cuddles until you feel all run out of cuddles.  I laughed often – at them and with them.  I collapsed into bed at night completely exhausted, hoping they would sleep in, that I would sleep in, wishing that daylight saving was not starting, and wondering if the rain would go away so we could play outside.  Parents of small people are awesome people – much is required and much is demanded. They are the unsung heroes in my estimation.

While Sienna was being born at the hospital we had a picnic by the lake in the wind.  We found a bridge with gushing water rushing underneath and waves crashing onto the grassy edge.  We spent minutes and minutes standing there, shouting and watching the energy of the water and wind.  Then they would run into the wind – excellent for letting off steam.  Then we went home and jumped and jumped on the trampoline until we had run out of jump and flopped exhausted in front of the Wiggles.  If only I had the energy levels necessary to keep up with these two.  I did it once, but my baby is 18 and about to sit his HSC.  Where did that time go.  But more importantly, where did my energy go?

The arrival of a new baby is a time of survival and creativity and a time for much rejoicing at new life and new relationships.  Welcome to our family Sienna Ruth!  Already you are loved and cherished.

Posted in Bringing Baby Home, My Life, Parenting | 1 Comment

A secret garden or two

Posted on September 21, 2011 by sarahcondie

Ever since I read The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett I have wanted to have my own secret garden.  Fortunately, my beloved is a keen gardener and has green fingers and thumbs and has created many gardens for me.  We have mostly lived in the inner city so they have been small but beautiful and filled with little surprises, nooks and crannies.  For the last twelve years we have shared our garden with three other families – it is spacious and green and a complete surprise to anyone who discovers it.  After all, it is the inner city so a large garden is unexpected.

The sounds of children playing has filled this garden for years.  A flowering plum tree has been climbed and played in often – in fact it has watched many children come and go.  Sadly, it has died a slow and mournful death.  The year I was unwell (2006) and spent much time sitting in this garden, it fought bravely.  In the space of three months we had three springs – it covered its dying branches with blossoms.  I felt that it expressed the confusion and muddle-headed thinking of my brain – something was not quite right!

Finally, no more blossom and it simply died.  No one wanted to cut this tree down.  Too many memories – its gnarled branches gave character to our garden.  My young neighbour Tally has given our tree new life.  I love her creativity:

I can look outside my kitchen window and I smile at this newly clothed tree.  It took Tally hours and numerous balls of wool.  How many secret gardens have a tree as unique as this?

Another secret garden is not secret all all.  It is in the Botanic Gardens in Sydney.  I walked there yesterday with a friend Jenny.  We try and meet up and walk and talk during our lunch hour.  Our walk yesterday took us to this glorious nook of the gardens that is splendid in spring.  Despite the wind, it was quiet and sheltered – sweet smelling and stupendous.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As we walked, Jenny talked about being mindful and enjoying special moments – in the midst of chaotic busyness.  Together we forgot about work and were drawn into the beauty of this garden.  We both wanted to praise God for the beauty that is evident in His creation and so thankful to be able to stop and enjoy it.

Posted in Gardens, My Life | 2 Comments

Don’t fret but…

Posted on September 14, 2011 by sarahcondie

Don’t fret. Sounds easy if you just say it like that, but if you are like me, you would probably be eligible for an award for fret.  It is easy to fill the mind with anxious thoughts about anything at all – take me, then add my children, my sleep, my church, my work, my world – we will face another 9/11?  Before long I have a mind swirling with thoughts, questions, longings and I am stuck.  How do I not fret?  Is David the Psalmist for real?

The first words of his Psalm 37 is “do not fret”.   I am wired to fret  – I find myself doing it when I am not even trying  – it happens serendipitously and how I wish it wouldn’t.   So he repeats it twice – just in case you missed it – did you hear him?  What are we to do instead?

If you read the first 9 verses of this Psalm, David  provides us with some nuggets to fill our minds  as we empty it of fret.  We can trust in the Lord (v3,5), take delight in the Lord (v 4), commit our way to the Lord (v 5), be still before the Lord and wait patiently (v 7) and hope in the Lord (v 9).

Delighting is really the opposite to fret.  I spent a year recently thinking about what it means to delight in the Lord and it was life changing.  There is so much about God that is amazing, wondrous and good.  Reminding myself of what I know to be true about God leaves little room in my mind for fret.

If you think you are eligible for an award for fret, spend time immersing yourself in this Psalm read it, ponder it, think about it, ask questions about it, talk with your friends about it and use these words to pray – for yourself and others.

David makes the point that our fret leads only to evil – often anger (v 8).  The challenge is to be different.  There is something counter-cultural about David’s challenge to God’s people.  Life can be murky, difficult and hard.  We will all face times we wish would go away and vanish.  The challenge here is to be still and wait, be patient and continue to trust and delight.  I am not telling you this is easy.  It isn’t.  However, it is worthwhile.  Next time you feel that anxious thought entering your mind, you can tell it to stop, remember, don’t fret but….

Posted in My Life, Reflection | 3 Comments

Barneys Seven Churches Walk – round 2

Posted on September 12, 2011 by sarahcondie

This the fire that destroyed our church, it was a dramatic  event that has had a huge impact on my church family.  We are in the process of rebuilding and hope to move home early next year.

St Barnabas Broadway is in the inner city, a great spot – within walking distance of three universities and in one of the most populated parts of Sydney.  It is a strategic location and I hope that it will be a launching pad place for countless opportunities to share the good news of Jesus with our community. This has been my church home since 1991.  Keith worked on the staff for six years and we continued meeting there.  I have written another post about our church.  We have seen many people come to know Christ and grow in their knowledge and understanding of their faith and leave, well equipped – ready to serve the Lord somewhere else.  It is a church that God has used mightily and it is my prayer that this will continue.

We are taking part in a fund raising walk – the Barneys Seven Churches Walk on Saturday 17th September.  We will be walking 9 kilometres around the inner city, visiting other churches.  If you would like to support us as we attempt to raise funds to pay for the community spaces within the building, I would appreciate your support – $10 or $20 will all help.  You can pay online and it is tax deductable.  Just follow this link – and a very big thank you.

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Marriage is good for the kids!

Posted on September 8, 2011 by sarahcondie

My children will often quote back to me “the best gift you can give your children is a strong and healthy marriage” when I tell them that Keith and I need time together.  They might roll their eyes a little, but deep down, I suspect they know that one of the best things that we have given them is the strength of our marriage.  And it hasn’t always been easy.  This December we will celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary.

Marriage is a relationship that can be filled with joy and happiness one minute and then not the next – there can be hurt, disappointment, anger and the stuff of life that we simply need to deal with.  When this is ignored or avoided, it will trickle out in surprising and unexpected ways and guess what?  It is our children who notice and watch and it impacts them profoundly.

I was excited to read Patrick Parkinson’s report For Kid’s Sake that was released this week.  You can read this article written by him in the Sydney Morning Herald: Marriage the heart of a crucial commitment to children (8 September 2011).  Chapter 6 of Parkinson’s report focuses on strengthening family relationships.  One of his key recommendations is the development of education programs for parents that help them build strong marriages and with parenting.

Two weeks ago Keith and I ran a day seminar for “prospective parents” called Bringing Baby Home.  We had twenty couples, most of whom will have a baby in the next three months.  The course covered the marriage relationship and developing parenting skills.  All the couples had attended an earlier course we had run on marriage, so some of the material was not new to them.  The course included input from us and then “couple time”.  They were our guinea pig group and I am sure there is much that can be tweaked. How I wish there had been such a course when we were expecting our first child twenty three years ago.

We based our day on John Gottman’s program which his research institute has developed.  We attended training last year to run the course.   However, it is very American.  The foundations of the course are not from the Bible, but from extensive research of couples over years and years. However, there is much that is wise and good in the program that is enormously helpful, practical and sensible.

Gottman’s research indicates that  couples who attend such a workshop one year after participating , have less “relationship meltdown”, “higher relationship quality”, less interpersonal hostility” and markedly less incidence of postpartum depression (22.5% compared to 66% in the control group). These are all good outcomes for our kids!

We would love to have the time and space to adapt his material and build it on biblical principles which is what we have done with our other marriage courses.  We would also love to train up others who could use this material locally.  I would value your prayers for this. As a Christian, I believe this is something good we can offer the community more broadly – strong healthy marriages will lead to strong and healthy families, which will lead to strong and vibrant churches which will lead to strong and healthy communities.

Posted in Bringing Baby Home, Marriage, Parenting | 3 Comments

A book nook

Posted on September 2, 2011 by sarahcondie

We still have a book nook in our home and my youngest child is 18.  It is still used and loved.  Last week when I was speaking at a conference “Engaging Children with Engaging Stories“, one of my suggestions about encouraging reading concerned book nooks.  Most of the delegates worked at churches with children and young people and I encouraged them to create a book nook at their church if they didn’t have one.

To have a safe, quiet place to sit and look at books either alone or with a friend – is a delightful way to fill time.  When our children were small, Keith and I often had to get to church early, and our children often sought out the book nook to fill in this time.  After church, this became a place where children would congregate, chat and look at books.  Beats computer games or DVDs any day.

My church used to have two book nooks, one in the creche and the other in an open area where older children could sit and read either before church, during church or after church.  The books it contained were used extensively with the children’s program called “Barniccles” for the 3-5 year olds.  Unfortunately, our church was destroyed by a fire five years ago and our book nooks were ruined.  Since then, we have been temporarily “camping out” at a different venue.  That was more than five years ago, but it looks like our new church will be ready in 2012.

I hope to ensure our new church includes a book nook – if not two.  What could I put in this book nook?  I have many ideas of what books I would like to see included, but I would love to hear from you as to what book you would include.  I would love to come up with a list of books to help those workers who attended the conference last week with tips of what they could include in their book nook.  It is over to you:

Posted in Children's Books | 5 Comments

How to Get Married by Me, the Bride

Posted on August 27, 2011 by sarahcondie

I have just had two two days at a Conference called “Engaging Children with Engaging Stories” run by Youthworks.  It was a wonderfully inspiring time. They key note speaker was Sally Lloyd-Jones who is a gifted story-teller.  Sally has written many books for children and also the Jesus Story Book Bible.  A thoroughly readable bible for children and adults.  I wish it had been written when my children had been little.  I have been reading it myself and enjoying it immensely.

Today I attended a Growing Faith Conference being run by Growing Faith.  It was a day for families to gather and be encouraged and challenged.  Sally was there and I attended her workshop on storytelling.  She had us enthralled with the power of a good story – we laughed and entered an imaginary world – it was fun and inspiring.  Again, how I wish I had attended this conference as a new mother – she gave us many tips for telling a story well and engaging children.  I was captivated.  Sally read us this story that she has written on How to Get Married by Me the Bride.  The words are clever and funny and the illustrator Sue Heap has done a magnificent job illustrating this entertaining book.  I bought a copy yesterday and my family loved it.  Susannah said it was the funniest book she had ever read.  The boys were similarly amused. They are at an age when this is a topic of some interest. My young neighbour Bella was in the garden with a friend this afternoon, so I accosted them and asked if they would like to read this book.  They sat down together and I watched as they pored over its pages, giggling together, looking at the illustrations and enjoying the antics of the baby, the bride and her friends.  They found a hidden monster, and appreciated the details and humour.

I had a lovely time with the girls in the garden as we then shared this story together and they told me what they had enjoyed.   They both said “this is a really great book” and it is.

My busy August is at an end. I am hopeful I can return to my quilts, the gym, my family, my friends…maybe even this blog? and maybe, just maybe some other writing?

Posted in Children's Books | 4 Comments