Christmas

~ One of the many beaches down the road from my aunt and uncles place where Christmas was this year.
Check out their place.... in case you need a a getaway. :)
www.tidesong.co.nz

Tessa and Israel

Israel

~ Israel Manga - Christmas 2008

Israel

Introducing.....

I can't believe it's been 3 weeks now......

Israel Manga Cameron was born November 24th, 2008 weighing 10lbs 7.5oz.

Tessa went into Labour around 6am that morning and Israel was born at 2:34.

Tamati opened his bible to Isaiah 44 that morning;

Israel the Chosen

1 "But now listen, O Jacob, my servant,
Israel, whom I have chosen.

2 This is what the LORD says—
he who made you, who formed you in the womb,
and who will help you:
Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant,
Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land,
and streams on the dry ground;
I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring,
and my blessing on your descendants.

4 They will spring up like grass in a meadow,
like poplar trees by flowing streams.

5 One will say, 'I belong to the LORD ';
another will call himself by the name of Jacob;
still another will write on his hand, 'The LORD's,'
and will take the name Israel.

They'd talked about the name Israel for one of their children before they were even married... this just cemented the name.

There have been some pretty outspoken opinions about the name. Mum's worried that he'll have all sorts of problems later in life when he goes to travel, or just being teased for the name.

It's funny how some people immediately think of the country - where as it didn't even cross my mind.

He seems to have a very placid personality, and so far has been pretty easy. Evita and Tawhai absolutely adore him.

I was incredibly humbled to be invited to be there for the birth. It was the longest and hardest one for Tessa, with the other two arriving in a couple of hours. It was quite difficult for me - the one who likes to be busy and able to help to have to sit back and pray through most of it. It was amazing though! And I do somehow feel a different bond to him now too.

I thought I had downloaded the photos on this computer - but can't find them, so watch this space!

Praying everyone is well and filled with awe at the season we're now in.

That you're finding time to reflect on the reason and the joy we should find in Jesus' birth.

Be super blessed!

xxx

High Tea....

men at work?

This was at this very cool little spot called "Water Works" on Road 309. Translated - middle of nowhere.

You get to play with lots of different things.... most things run by water. It's cool! And very pretty little area to wander.

a while.....

Life has been crazy busy, and there is so much to catch up on......

My friend Jilyjane from Christchurch came up to visit a couple of weeks ago. It was so nice to catch up with her! We went and stayed at a little township in the Coromandel and explored by day - which even included some lovely lazing in the sun at Hot Water Beach.

We had two days up there, which was perfect.

Now we're busy plotting where we can run away to next...... Australia is looking good. :)

Guy Fawkes

Seems like a truly bizarre thing to celebrate... someone trying to blow up Parliament in London.

Still..... while the weather was miserable on Wednesday 5th November, we'll be having a big bonfire this weekend with sparklers for the kids (myself included) this weekend.

Instead of celebrating Guy Fawkes we'll be celebrating my oldest brother's birthday, as well as just having the chance to hang out as a family.

Tessa is due in just over a week... so soon the family will have one more. Exciting times! I've even been asked if I would like to be there for the big moment. I'm not sure how my boss is going to react to that, but I would love to be around. :) Tessa is such a sweetie always thinking about including her family. Love her to bits. Such an absolute blessing!!!

Hope everyone else is finding time for their family....

Be blessed. xxx

mother dearest.....

~
I haven't really written anything about Mum lately. In fact, at all since the news of the cancer.

She had her surgery a couple of months ago now, and only has 4 more sessions of radiotherapy to go of her 5 1/2 weeks.

She's been doing awesomely well - Praise God!

There have been a few upsets - like a bone scan coming back with signs of osteoporosis which has led to a change in hormonal treatments, which was pretty major, as she'll be on this drug for the next 5 years. Other than that though - I think she's rather enjoyed learning about the machines and meeting all the different people.

All the staff at the hospital that she's in daily contact with are wonderful, and that in itself has been a huge blessing!
Really there is so much to be thankful for in this situation.

Of course no one ever wants to hear the news that they or a family member has cancer - but in amongst all of this there have really been pockets of grace for mum to land in.

My prayer is that it would draw her closer to God, and us as a family closer to one another. I think it's done that already though.

It's breast cancer awareness month, and tomorrow I'm joining mum and some of her friends on a walk around the lake..... all of us in PINK! (eick!), including the dog. :-)
I'll have to try and get some photos of the frills.


But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.
2 Corinthians 12:9

Pretty in Pink

The Birthday Girl at the zoo a couple of weekends ago.

Evita just turned 2!!

whakatane....

Taken from half way up the hill... there's a cute lookout over the township. Was a stunning day to be down there checking in on everyone.

at the beach.....

"engine malfunction"

~

I've had my lovely new car now for 3 months. It's done just over 14,000km's and last Friday as I was leaving the office my dashboard suddenly lit up with those very scary words...

!ENGINE MALFUNCTION!

I sat in my car and rang the service department to find out what to do. They were closing, but the car manual was telling me that I needed to stop immediately.

The wise man at the other end of the phone told me that if the car didn't cut the engine, then it wasn't too serious. Hmmmmm.

I stoped at the garage and topped up the brake fluid, which was showing it was low for some strange reason. No light had ever come up for that. More strange, after doing that, the engine malfunction light turned off. Yipeeeee!

The weekend was going to be filled with fun tasks. I was wanting to really get into the outside room - plasting, gap filling, painting. It was going to be all go.... but as I was driving into town

!Engine Malfuntion!

appeared once more.

Good thing I didn't need to go anywhere, and could just get busy around the house.

The car went straight into the garage where they plugged in the computer and were completely overwhelmed with faults.

Cue me driving off in something else.... which is fine for the day. I get a call in the afternoon asking me to come and pick up my car. When I get there I'm handed the keys and told in the most reassuring way:
"We don't think we've fixed it, but you need to keep driving it to see what happens next. The part we think we need to replace is over $3,000 and Ford needs us to make sure that's the right part."

grrrrrrrr.

It was ok for 2 days, but on Thursday I had meetings in Rotorua and Tauranga, which meant some driving around the country side - probably about 450km. The whole day the car felt like a tractor. At one stage I thought I needed a wheel alignment, and then it would have moments where it would only get to 40k's, and if I was lucky enough to get over that it would only go to 80. More "ENGINE MALFUNCTION!"

FUN TIMES!!!

I was on the phone with the guys back in Hamilton and they wanted to know if I could get there immediately. No chance... I was miles away.... hmmmmm.... so I had to take it to another garage over in Tauranga to make sure it was ok for me to drive. Great! The guys there didn't seem to have a clue.
I got home in my car after 7 that night, and once again the car went straight to the garage in the morning.

And there it will sit until it is ALL FIXED.

I got very grumpy with them. Who would want to spend that kind of money and land a car that spends so much time having people looking at it, which is fine - but they can't figure out what the problem is!

I was supposed to be down in New Plymouth this weekend to watch a friend play in a big final football match today, and was going to catch up with Darling Danica and Neil who I haven't seen in a while.

Thankfully, I took next Friday off for a snow trip I had been organising with the radion station - a concert and night down at the mountains... but the band we'd organised had alot of their gear stollen - so that's been cancelled. Most gutted, but means I can have a lazy trip down to New Plymouth on Friday. Kieran has already decided it will be a lazy Saturday around the bbq, and then we'll cause some chaos playing cranium all night.

Everytime I'm down there all we seem to do is laugh... and about now.... nothing sounds better!

The garage knows.... they have till Thursday to fix the car, or get me a new one.
Demanding, huh!

TC

I've been working on the farm website..... albeit an incredibly slow process. Poor mum keeps asking me if I'm done yet - and I have to humbly admit that no, I haven't had time.

It's frustrating.

In case you want to check it out - Tui Morgans

Thought I would just post this photo of our beautiful boy, Theme Song..... who's paddock name is TC. I had to stop and question why we called him TC - shouldn't it logically be TS?
Turns out it stands for Theme Song Cameron. hehehehe.

Since when did we give our horses our last name? Most of them have the farm prefix Tui in front of their names - not TC, he's been given our last name. Had to laugh about that one.

He's now standing at a stud in Australia, and being shown over there. While Mum and Dad were over there they had to check in on all the horses there. Unfortunately while they were staying with the people who have TC he got colic, and had to be 'rushed' off to the vet clinic, a mere 4 hour drive. He had an operation, and has finally made it back to the farm now. Recovery has been kind of slow, but he's doing much better now.

The joys of horses.... meanwhile, back on the ranch Jessie is home from his weeks away being beautified for the Stallion Parade. I'll have to upload some photos of him next, and Misha.

Show season is nearly here - so the madness begins!

down and muddy

~
Mum and Dad jumped on a plane very early this morning...... and will now be somewhere in sunny Australia. They should be making their way to a beautiful beach where they can both get some much needed rest and relaxation.

Meanwhile.... I've been left with the farm. Actually, maybe we should call it the "lakes".

We've had so much rain in the last month that there are lakes where I've never seen them before. The ducks seem to be making themselves at home, swimming around the paddocks. It's quite lovely - except for the mud that's also everywhere.

There was lots of jumping to try and reach gates without standing knee deep in water, and while riding the quad bike around - the mud was just flying everywhere.

The sun has been shining for the afternoon, and I'm hoping it will stick around for a little while... warming up not only me - but the ground so the grass will start to grow again. :)

All in all - I know it's going to be a long couple of weeks with work and the farm, but I'm already relishing in being back there. I love the sounds, the smells, and the lack of street lights! The stars are so much brighter, and the mooing of cows and neighing of horses a symphony to the sound of cars. Mum and Dad may not be able to get rid of me when they get back. Maybe we could do a house swap? hehehe.

"I've told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I'm no longer calling you servants because servants don't understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I've named you friends because I've let you in on everything I've heard from the Father."
John 15:11

CHANGE

~
Today is the start of the change

As Gandhi said:
Be the change that you want to see in the world.

Here in New Zealand we have what is called:
100 Days, 100 Dollars.

It's a chance to not only raise funds to help out some kids in Nairobi, Africa but also raise awareness. And it starts TODAY!

Yes - education is everything. Not only for these kids - but for us to grasp the reality that faces these children every day.

I can't even begin to imagine what it would be like to live in a tin shack. To have to scrounge for scraps to eat. And to not just have the opportunity to pick up a book and read of everything that is out there.

I'm the person who gets grumpy because I get stuck in traffic. It doesn't matter that I'm stuck in my lovely new car, which has a tank full of gas, a stereo which allows me to listen to beautiful music. All of this I've been fortunate enough to purchase because I have a job.
A job that I was able to get because I was provided with an education. One that allowed me to learn about the world, the places that I want to see, the people that I would love to meet, and provided me with the skills that I use every day in my job.

I take all of this for granted.... while on the other side of the world there are kids who smile, and laugh when they have so little.

Reality check.

So.....

What am I willing to do?

How am I going to change?

~ Be the change that you want to see in the world. ~

Be encouraged!

big smoke....

Travels.....

travels....

Stunning day for it.......

the monkeys.....

Evita and Tawhai reading bedtime stories

grace, mercy, love.....

~
But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 10That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

2 Corinthians 12:9,10

It's been a hard day. I wish I had read this before I tried to stumble through the day in a bit of a blur, and in mostly a grump.
I don't like being grumpy with people - and normally I can't stay mad at anyone for more than 5 mins, but my boss really managed to push all my buttons yesterday.

I felt so unappreciated, belittled and silly.

Unfortunately I carried that around with me for much of the day. It wasn't helped by the fact that I've felt like an elephant has been sitting on my chest all day, and so just breathing has been a struggle.

The coughing fit that woke me at 2:45am and carried on until after 5am probably didn't help the mode. The drinking of too much cough mixture in absolute desperation, which turns out to be a laxative also didn't help. (But now makes me giggle... what a trade off!!)

Through it all, I sit back now and read those words in 2 Corinthians.

Hi grace is enough for me.... and He's more powerful, more able, more mighty in my weakness, I just need to hand it over, and allow Him to move in all my circumstances. ALL OF THEM!

Not get all picky and only hand him some of the things I'm dealing with.... He knows them all anyway - but being a gracious, loving Father, He sits back and patiently waits for us to ask. For me to humble myself and place my problems at the foot of the cross trusting that He cares enough to pick them up.

And if I believe that He does know the number of hairs on my head, that he knew me and knitted me in my mothers womb, that He sent His one and only Son to die for me....

After all that - how could I not believe that He cares about the little details of my day?

How?

a day, a week, a year.....

~
Kind of reminds me of the theme song from Rent.......

If you knew it was coming to an end - what would you do?
How would your priorities change? Would they? Or are you living the life that you want to be living at this very moment?

My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer on Wednesday.
She's 10 years younger than my grandmother was when she was diagnosed. Granny died just over a year later.

I did freak out when I found out, and the memories have not been particularly sweet.

Now though..... we're incredibly relieved that it was breast cancer and not her melanoma spreading - which would have meant that it could have spread everywhere and there would be little they could do.

She will hopefully have her surgery this week, recover from that and go through 6 weeks of Radiation therapy.
Prognosis is good, and mum is doing awesomely well.

Between here and there, a whole lot of praying and a whole lot of walking in Faith.

"Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not yet seen...."


So.... my question really is.... are you living the life you want to live?
Are you being all you are meant to be?
What is God telling you to do right now?

I'd have to answer yes and no.

I'm still here, and I'm glad that I have the answers now for why the doors have been repeatedly slammed this year every time I've made moves to leave.

I have a long way to go....

lead me to the cross....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdq9Q8wJdjc&feature=related

One of Brookes great songs..... thought some of you might enjoy it.

Savior I come
Quiet my soul remember
Redemptions hill
Where Your blood was spilled
For my ransom
Everything I once held dear
I count it all as lost

Lead me to the cross
Where Your love poured out
Bring me to my knees
Lord I lay me down
Rid me of myself
I belong to You
Lead me, lead me to the cross

You were as I
Tempted and trialled
You are
The word became flesh
Bore my sin and death
Now you're risen

To your heart
To your heart
Lead me to your heart
Lead me to your heart

at last!

~

Soooooo... here some of the photos from the big day which was over two months ago.

Danica and Neil came up for Fieldays and brought with them lots of photos for me to check out. Unfortunately I didn't get any on the disc that they left me with just photos of them, and I didn't get any on my camera. I'll have to ask very nicely for some more of the photos. There were some very cute ones of them together without the hangers on. :)

It was lovely to sit back and relive the day...... some of the photos were hilarious - all of us just in hysterics.

It really was a beautiful and fun day!

before

girls with neil

me...

group on beach

flowers on beach

girls on the beach

the bridal party

Before..... with flowers

mid week

The stunning scene on my way to Coromandel a few weeks ago.

I really have been having the most amazing trips lately - stunning days. Alas, I've also been leaving my camera behind which is a little silly.

On Tuesday I drove home following the sunset the whole way.... over the hills, through the bush, the light dancing before me. I just love the way every sunset is different, and how it is constantly changing. Just when you think nothing could be more beautiful, the light changes and you get something just as incredible.

How can people refuse to believe in God when we are constantly being showered with such beauty.

puzzling......
~

yikes!!!

It's June......

Not only is it June, but it's the 6th of June.

Where did the rest of May go, and how did we get here to Friday the 6th?

It will soon be only 6 months till Christmas. I am constantly miffed at the speed with which time travels. It blows my sox off.

It's been a bit of a crazy few weeks - which I guess would help to explain how time has flown. We had Queen's Birthday weekend last weekend - which meant a lovely Monday off. I spent Saturday with my Dad playing in the garden getting it all tidied and things ready for a bonfire that night.

We had a huge fire blazing down the hill, and now I can say that I have quite a large backyard, which has oodles of scope for great things to be done. A bunch of friends came round for a pot luck dinner, and we munched on loads of marshmallows. It was great!

Tawhai and Evita came too, and were in awe of the flames, though thankfully figured out the keep at a distance thing pretty quickly. I had some sparklers for them to hold onto, which did much to keep them entertained. I wish I'd managed to get a photo of them - but was just too busy enjoying them.

I did get some photos of the fire - so hopefully I'll find a moment to get them up on here over the weekend.

There are also photos of a bunch of us caving. We had an absolute blast out there in the dark, crawling through cramped stoney streams. FUN!

Hope that everyone is well. I'm sorry I haven't been around to say HI, and thanks for the notes.
I appreciate them!!!

Have a most blessed, and peaceful weekend.

Tons of Aroha.

evita mary

~
Now..... I need to state here that I am firmly and utterly in love with Tawhai..... he'll always be my number one man! :)

However.... I may be a little besotted with Evita.

She's now speaking French. They have a good friend who spent 6 months over in France and speaks French very well who talks to Evita in French. She's just a super sponge right now, soaking up everything she hears. Anything you say to her, she repeats..... it's amazing to be around.

So.... she and I have mini conversations in French now. She even has this super cute accent. For a one and a half year old I'm floored, but also in the throws of getting together cd's of french and want to do some Maori too. Got to make the most of this sponge!

Yours, the nutty aunt.

cutey!

Evita and her new friend.

GG is so proud of her grand daughter, and the fact that she seems to absolutely love horses already, making all the right noises and becoming excited whenever she sees one.

I went and picked the two monkey's up to take them to see GG and Poppa at a foal show on Saturday. This one is our oldest foal and for his first outing he was so very well behaved - walking straight onto the horse float, and not minding any of the show goings on. There were even donkeys there braying away and he didn't batter an eyelid.

Evita walked straight up to him and gave him kisses. Alas, I kept missing the exact moment. My camera seems to have a few issues right now, which I've got to get sorted quick smart.





I love the way she was so trusting....

they just stood there watching the other horses in the ring for ages.

the story to go with the pictures....

~

Tessa and I decided to have a girls only day. We left the cheeky monkeys behind and headed off into the hills.

My aunt and uncle who live out in the middle of nowhere - check out their website
www.nikaucave.co.nz
have just built and opened a cafe on their farm.

They had originally thought of building it for one of my cousins weddings.... this particular cousin just celebrated their 3 year anniversary when the cafe opened.

Yes, it's been a rather long and drawn out process - but it's been worth the wait!

Another one of my cousins and her husband are now running the cafe and doing a FANTASTIC job!!

I'd tried to call before we left - but had no joy, which made our arrival a wonderful surprise. The look on Nicola's face was priceless. Nothing like getting such an excited welcome.

The afternoon was then lazed away. We ate and talked and soaked up the sunbeams.

There was an American couple who were staying in the "white house" for their wedding anniversary. Nicola and Richard were all excited because they had found some new friends. Kindred Spirits. The couple were about the same age, and had come over for a year to work and play. They were Christians and just super lovely to sit and talk to.

I've been invited to go and learn to climb at the climbing wall where they work - something I've always wanted to do, but never actually felt comfortable doing with all my incredibly sporty friends who climb.

It was the kind of day that left me feeling incredibly blessed to have such a great family - especially Tessa, who I'm quite sure I would go insane without!

It also left me rather thoughtful about what next.....


"You cannot always have happiness, but you can always give happiness"

Inside - all cosey

Cafe

outside - with view

entrance

View from Cafe

venting.......

~














I'm in the kitchen right now..... bubbling away on the stove is my wonderful preserving pan filled with granny smith apples, which are almost ready to be bottled.

I was standing over them stirring away when I suddenly said out loud:

"what am I doing this for? I'm going to end up with quite a few bottles of stewed apples and only me to eat them! This is the sort of thing someone who was married should do. Someone who has a large family and people to share it all with..... me....... I don't have that!"


And then, the question of why don't I?

This verse from Ecclesiastes 4 popped into my head:

8 There was a man all alone;
he had neither son nor brother.
There was no end to his toil,
yet his eyes were not content with his wealth.
"For whom am I toiling," he asked,
"and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?"
This too is meaningless—
a miserable business!

9 Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their work:

10 If one falls down,
his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls
and has no one to help him up!

11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?

12 Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

I know that I can do these things, and I can share these things - but it's not quite the same.

Selfish?

I don't know...... right now, just thoughts tumbling around in my head.

who will sing me lullabies.....

Who will sing me lullabies - Kate Rusby

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=No5FkAmTaJY


Lay me down gently, lay me down low,
I fear I am broken and won't mend, I know.
One thing I ask when the stars light the skies,
Who now will sing me lullabies,
Oh who now will sing me lullabies.

In this big world I'm lonely, for I am but small,
Oh angels in heaven, don't you care for me at all?
You heard my heart breaking for it rang through the skies,
So why don't you sing me lullabies,
Oh why don't you sing me lullabies.

I lay here; I'm weeping for the stars they have come,
I lay here not sleeping; now the long night has begun.
The man in the moon, oh he can't help but cry,
For there's no one to sing me lullabies,
Oh there's no one to sing me lullabies.

So lay me down gently, oh lay me down low,
I fear I am broken and won't mend, I know .
One thing I ask when the stars light the skies,
Who now will sing me lullabies,
Oh who now will sing me lullabies.

Who will sing me to sleep
Who will sing me to sleep
Who will sing me to sleep
Who will sing me to sleep



Kate became one of my favourites years ago.... I think when I first moved back to New Zealand...

Anyway, I was listening to this song last night and thinking about how God wants to sing us lullabies. He wants to love us and comfort us. The idea that he would stand over me and sing me lullabies is such a gorgeous picture.....

sunset.... overlooking the waterfront

crazy... or just strange?

This guy is hanging out on the Museum building.... thought he was kinda cute.

Napier

back in the land of reality......

~
The weekend was super lovely!

We visited several vineyards to eat scrumptious food, and drink fabulous wine in incredible settings. It really was all about eating, drinking and laughing all weekend.

We wandered the town center in search of all things girly. :) And while we were all fairly restrained in purchasing - I had great fun looking at things.

I did manage to order something for mum, which we saw when we were last there a few years ago - not bad planning for September.

Oh - and other big news... my brother got engaged last week. They had originally thought about having the wedding in Rarotonga in August - but it sounds like it will be closer to home in Septmeber, which still doesn't leave them much time to plan a wedding.

I'll be back to post photos later....

Peace and Joy!

xxxx

running away.....

~
Since it's a long weekend, I'm running away to Napier for a girlie weekend.

My friend in Wellington mentioned it when I was down there, and since I went there with mum when I first moved here I've wanted to get back.

Napier is a town famous for it's art deco buildings. It's situated on the East Coast with the city skirting around the edge of the ocean and all around are vineyards.

I've rented a little cottage which is down a tree lined street and a short walk to downtown. It looks darling from the photos. I'll be staying there with a friend who is bring a friend of hers, and then the other girls are staying in a motel down by the beach.

So a total of 6 girls wandering the streets of Napier and checking out the scenery for a few days.

I can't wait!!

I've just charged the camera battery, so will be sure to post photos on my return.

Hope everyone else has a super lovely weekend.

xxx

Remember....

~

It's ANZAC day tomorrow..... which stands for Austrlian and New Zealand Army Corps. This group was part of the allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli peninsula to open the way to the Black Sea for the allied navies back in 1915. The plan was to capture Constantinople (now Istanbul), the capital of the Ottoman Empire and an ally of Germany. They landed at Gallipoli on 25 April, meeting fierce resistance from the Turkish defenders. What had been planned as a bold stroke to knock Turkey out of the war quickly became a stalemate, and the campaign dragged on for eight months. At the end of 1915 the allied forces were evacuated after both sides had suffered heavy casualties and endured great hardships. Over 7000 New Zealand soldiers were wounded at Gallipoli and 2721 were killed. The Australian army also suffered heavy casualties: 26,111 were injured and 8,141 were killed.

The first Anzac Day took place on 25 April 1916. As time went on, the ceremony of remembrance was extended to the soldiers of the Second World War. It now honours all New Zealanders and Australians who have served in a military campaign.

My Great Grandfather was one of those injured Gallipoli peninsula. Sadly he was blinded from British shrapnel during the attack. He later became involved in setting up different schools around the world to give soldiers skills to cope with their own blindness.

He wrote a book "Tales of a Trouper" which was published in 1920 about his experiences at Chunuk Bair on the Gallipoli peninsula.

From what I've read, and heard he sounds like he was incredibly stubborn and unlikely to quit anything he started. Perhaps the strong willed attitude runs in the family?

This poem, while written by a Canadian medical officer Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae during WWI always reminds me of the sacrifice and the lives that were given for our independence and freedom.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Peace.