Family Archives - INSPIRING MAX

Share Your World – 2014 Week 43

November 3, 2014November 3, 2014 inspiringmax

What is your favorite time of day?

I like sunset. Hopefully, I have finished work for the day and it is the transition between working and relaxing. In summer in Australia, many people attempt to predict the heat of the following day by the colour of the sunset—the redder the hotter. I am unsure of the truth behind this tradition.

What’s your favorite charitable cause and why?

My two favourite charities go back to my childhood.

Salvation Army—supports disadvantaged families. In May every year, the Salvation Army holds their Red Shield Appeal. As a teenager I was a regular volunteer, knocking on doors and collecting donations, which I loved.
Legacy—supports families of returned defence force men and women, in need after their death. The annual Legacy collection is the first Friday in September. My grandfather was in the first and second world wars, so Legacy has always been close to my heart. I have many memories of supporting this cause from school—selling pins in the local shopping centre.

How do you like to spend a rainy day?

My perfect rainy day would be spent in the countryside on an old comfortable lounge, in front of an open fire, reading a good book, sipping wine and looking out the window at the drizzling rain on the surrounding green landscape. The last time we had this experience was on the weekend of my husband’s 50th birthday a few years ago. It was so relaxing we never wanted to leave the lounges and didn’t—waiters bought our meals to us. It was heaven.

When writing by hand do you prefer to use a pencil or pen?

I always write with a pen. I find them smoother and more consistent to write with. If I am writing with a pencil I find that I need to print and this does not help the flow of my thoughts. The fact that I have written with a pen since attaining my pen license in the third grade, 45 years ago helps. I am comfortable with the pen although it must not be too thin—I prefer the chunky style as they fit into my hand better.

Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

Last Sunday I went out to purchase a new outfit for my work Christmas party. I didn’t have a lot of time, so I wanted to go to only one shop that had a 25% sale and buy something quickly—preferably purple. Success. I left the shop 20 minutes after arriving, with a new black skirt and purple flowing top that works with my body shape.

Going to Newcastle to visit my extended family and celebrate our joint birthdays. It will also be the last time I see most of them before 2015 as we will be in Canada for Christmas.

http://ceenphotography.com/2014/10/27/share-your-world-2014-week-43/

Without Fear

October 21, 2014 inspiringmax

At what age did you realize you were not immortal? How did you react to that discovery?

Immortality is a funny thing. I don’t think I ever thought I was immortal, however, when I was young fear was not something I considered before doing anything. I don’t see this as a bad thing either. Before being a teenager, I can clearly remember playing with snakes, jumping of the 10 metre diving platform without any care or training—just for fun and swinging on the swings so high that I nearly went the whole way around. It was a feeling of freedom.

Somewhere in my teenage years fear crept into my life—or maybe it was just an understanding that things can go wrong. This was confirmed in my senior years of high school when I was affected by two fatal car accidents. One involved other school students and the second, a personal family friend. They were all my age. Death suddenly became a reality—not something to focus on, but a reality. This same year, my beloved grandfather also suddenly died while on holidays—unfortunately I never got to tell him that I became a nurse.

Yes, there are a lot of things that can happen—good and bad. But, if you focus on the bad you will never get to experience the good. It is for this reason that I decided years ago to always focus on the positive. Even in difficult situations there is always a silver lining—something to be learnt from it. This is how we grow through pushing ourselves out of our comfort zone. Afterall, there are only two guarantees in life—death and taxes. And while my personal goal is to live to be 100 with a great quality of life, if I don’t get to achieve this goal, I want to look back on my life and say with confidence—fear didn’t stop me giving it a go.

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/finite-creatures/

Thrill A Minute

June 2, 2014March 26, 2015 inspiringmax

Have you ever been white water rafting? My husband and I went on the Tongariro River, New Zealand, to celebrate my 50th birthday. It was amazing. We were feeling brave, so we tackled the No.3 rapids—higher up the river.

I loved:

The exhilaration
Unpredictability
The rivers natural beauty
Silence—except our screams of course
Unknown challenge—would we fall out as we rode the waves
The twists and turns

Our guide told us the river is different everyday. He can never take the rapids for granted. They change constantly and if he isn’t focusing on the rapids, everyone’s life could be in danger—heads and rocks don’t mix well.

The mighty Tongariro River

All eight passengers on our boat were from different countries, so during our quiet times on the river, we were able to learn more about the world.

If ever you get the chance to go white water rafting—take the risk. It will change how you think about life. You have absolutely no control over what happens and it is the best. Handing over trust to the boat’s guide allows you to enjoy the ride and take notice of your surroundings.