My Trip to OZ: September 2014

Almost everybody that I know has a set of rules that they live by, and I am no different. Here is a set of my own that I wrote over the years. Maybe you will find something that works for you, or maybe you will have one to share that I can add to my list?

1) Live on the edge just once. While you are there, take some time to take a good look around. Take notice of what exists over the cliff in order to avoid what you've just seen.

2) Our entire world arises in language. With that in mind, be mindful of the words you speak & know that if you don't, they can leave a lifetime of scars on you and those who love you.

3) Believe in a higher power. Call it what you want, and do whatever necessary to show your honor, but know that there is something greater than you in this universe, because there is.

4) Your stubbornness is likely the very source of your reality.

5) Hatred & anger may come easily, but love & forgiveness feels better in the end

6) Most men will dream of success & happiness, but only a few will set out to achieve it.

7) Your youth is a gift like no other that you'll ever receive. Enjoy it & make the most of it or when your older you'll wish you had

8) Believe in yourself regardless of whether or not you feel anyone else does. In the end, it's what you say about yourself that will create your own boundaries

9) Life is like a game. Sometimes you are thrown a foul & sometimes you score, but you will only win by getting on the field and playing.

10) Make time daily to take notice of the beauty of life and the environment around you. Find it in nature, the people around you, and see it in yourself. The experience will impact you for life.

11) Allow yourself to love, but most importantly allow yourself to experience being loved.

12) Admire your body because its the only one you'll ever own. There will be a time when you realize how great it used to be

13) Happiness is your creation, as is being unhappy. Choose powerfully & accept your choice

14) The number of people that you call friend is by your own design. There is no correct number, but choose wisely

15) No matter what your "plan" is, you can count on life throwing you a curve ball when you least expect it. This is a fact, and it is out of your control. How you deal with this curve ball is all your own making.

16) Live life healthy, but allow for some unhealthy living

17) Live & love each day as if tomorrow doesn't exist, because it may not

18) Your life is a like a story being written each day. Never forget that you are the author

19) The past need not define you. Who you are today will impact you, and the rest lies in the future that you are creating.

20) When you're younger, you'll wish you were older, and when your older you'll daydream of your youth. Somewhere in between you'll try to balance career, family, and self. Take time to slow down. The world is a beautiful place, but it requires you to take notice.

21) Study hard in science, but take time to pray.

22) Honor your mother & father. They did what they did, and they didn't do what they couldn't do or didn't know. When you are older you will realize just how much they did do, and often with very little appreciation from you.

23) Seek wisdom from those your senior and learn to play from the young. You won't remember the wisdom from your elders & you will forget how to play within seconds, but the opportunity you took to just stop for a moment will be worth your time.

24) If you can't forgive for others, forgive for yourself

25) It's important to search for answers in your life, but it is just as important to live life. What good are the answers if you've forgotten to live?

26) Be soft enough to cry and hard enough to stand up for what you believe in. When all is said & done, your greatest critic will be yourself.

27) The way people occur to you will impact the way you relate to them, which in turn will determine who they become for you in your life.

28) When you try to fix somebody, you take on ownership of their problems. Allow them to be who they are and take ownership of your friendship instead

29) It takes a lifetime to live your life, therefore it's best to let others live their own.

30) Everyday is a fresh day & an opportunity to re-write the script called "life".

31) Dream all you want but take note of the calendar.

32) Children are a gift from above to remind us how carefree life once was and how complicated we have made it.

33) We are put on this earth with others for a reason. You cannot stand alone and we all need help. Don't be too proud to ask or too selfish to give.

34) There are two sentences that when said either together or on their own will improve your life. Practice them & "be" them. The two sentences are "I am sorry" and "I love you".

35) God gave you the tools to survive & the rest is up to you. Success or failure? Choose... You define them both & you will be the one sentenced to abide by your definitions. There is nobody else to blame or to thank but you. Choose wisely, and in the end it is what it is!

36) Mom is always right

Someone recently asked me, What is the one thing you would ask for if you had one day to live? My answer…forgiveness. You can figure out for yourself how this ties in with the rest of my story.

As a child of about seven or eight years of age, I can remember disappearing to the neighboring street for hours in hopes of catching grasshoppers. More than one vacant lot existed back in those days and most were overgrown, which attracted both the hoppers and the flyers-nicknames I assigned to both. Their very names are a dead giveaway in terms of the obvious differences, but the flyers also happened to be quite a bit larger. Clearly the flyers were much more difficult to catch since they could leap into the air and fly several feet before landing. I will never forget their black and white wings and their grayish bodies. Catching a flyer was like finding a pot of gold!

My preteen and teen years shared the same tone as my childhood. Some of my fondest memories include traversing a ridge of wooded hills that wrapped around a large portion of our neighborhood and eventually gave way to homes. The house I grew up in was about eight doors down from one side of that ridge. I can’t count the number of times that I wandered those wooded hills. Mostly I explored alone, but to be honest, until this very moment it never even occurred to me that I was nearly always solo. Each time I hiked through those woods I discovered something new and fascinating. I stumbled upon countless small water holes and each held an endless number of frogs and tadpoles! Fascinated, I sat along the steep banks and just watched them go about their frog business. Even on family vacations, it was just a given that I would be absent for several hours each day as I explored the natural beauty of our destination. Alone, but by choice, and not requiring any person to share the experience.

Somewhere along the way childhood slipped away and I grew into a young adult. Almost simultaneously, I forgot how fulfilling it was to just aimlessly meander about and still be comfortable with myself and my surroundings. The fascination with nature and animals that I remember were replaced with a need to fit in, or even to standout. Hanging out with the right people and spending a night out on the town took the place of catching grasshoppers and watching frogs in the middle of the woods. It became more important to be seen, appear attractive, and earn as much money as possible, in order to be seen and appear more attractive. (Yes, I meant to say it that way) Miracles of nature still occur and the serenity I once knew and enjoyed in those woods is still available, but I joined the ranks of the shallow and I soon found myself unable to see the magic around me.

This trip to OZ reopened my eyes and rekindled a feeling buried deep beneath a pile of adult nonsense. Although I will never get over missing the people in my life who matter most, I am relearning the magnificence of nature and actually looking forward to my long walks alone each weekend, which I spend exploring my new location. I literally head out for hours on end and just aimlessly walk through parks and nature trails. Along the way I catch glimpses of my childhood that bring a tear to my eye, but most of all I rediscovered a piece of me that has long been in hiding. I no longer feel the need to belong to anything, since I realize that I inherently belong just by virtue of being born into this world. Fitting in doesn't matter much to me either. I would much rather fit in more time. That is, time to take in all of the beauty thats surrounds me, which I somehow stopped doing many years ago. To that end, my remaining free time in OZ is earmarked for living again.

Lots of people ask me, What is it like in Melbourne? Well, there aren't enough hours in the day to write about how great this area is, but I will do my best to give a description as seen through my eyes.

The city is clean, and I mean super clean! Even with a population that hovers just over four-million people, the streets are safe and the litter is minimal. The city’s downtown, or Central Business District (CBD) as it is known, is easy to navigate and teeming with action. It would seem that each turn brings something new to offer in terms of cuisine, coffee houses, or craft beers. The CBD is famous for the many alleyways, and each offers its own uniqueness that keeps this guy wondering what to expect next. I am constantly amazed by the lack of police presence on the streets. Coming from America, it is just natural to see police patrolling neighborhoods as a deterrent to crime. Patrols aren't the norm here. In fact, unless you are at a train station or a major interchange, you will be hard-pressed to find the police. If you need them, you call them. Even still, there is a relatively low crime rate and a real sense of safety no matter where I have ventured.

Almost a quarter of Victoria’s population was born overseas, and Melbourne has a significant number of Asians, Greeks, Lebanese, and Italians. It is definitely a multi-cultural city and a great place to people watch. Speaking of which, my favorite place to people watch is on a tram. Melbourne has the world’s largest tram system and it connects virtually every piece of the city. If you cant find a tram to get you somewhere, there are trains, buses, and nearly as many cabs as New York City. Let’s just say that public transportation is easy and plentiful. If you enjoy the performing arts you will love Melbourne. The city is referred to as Australia’s cultural capital and there is plenty to see and to experience in the way of art, theater, etc. The cost of living here is high, ranking fourth highest in the world, but the city will satisfy even the most finicky of taste. Whether you are a city dweller or a nature lover, Melbourne has you covered. It is no wonder that Melbourne has been voted the most livable city in the world every years since 2011!

There are a few oddities associated with Australia though. English is the official language, but sometimes I struggle to understand the Ozzie version. I put together a short list of words (or phrases) that I have grown accustom to hearing since I arrived. There is no doubt that I missed a few, but you might get a chuckle out of my list and their accompanied meanings.

Each day spent in this country finds me reconnecting with another piece of myself that I somehow lost along the way. This journey has been one filled with emotions of every type, and I am glad to have traveled this road. I am blessed with this opportunity (THANK YOU ELECTRONIC ARTS!), and I am equally blessed to have shared it with the people who take time out of their days to read my ramblings.

HERE (requires passcode 2011) is the original version of my video that will take you along as I explore Melbourne. You will need a passcode, which is 2011. The song reminds me of someone that I hold close to my heart. Even though this person isn't with me, they are still present during all my journeys. If the link doesn't work, the secondary video is HERE. More than once I have written that I enjoy exploring alone, but what good is life’s experiences if you can’t share them with those that you love!

You will find a few recent pictures just below my list of funny words & meanings.

Until next time…

THE LIST

Arvo: afternoon

Bikkie: cookie

Bikie: a motorcyclist

Bities: insects that bite

Bogan: white trash/hillbilly

Bonzer: awesome

Bottle Shop: liquor Store

Brekkie: breakfast

Bush: a place without concrete/wooded area