Reflections in Melbourne and Perth

Margie, Mark, Connor and myself and Ryan















The extended Family in Melbourne

The beautiful Victorian Baths in Melbourne.

Hello everyone I am now in Perth which is a lovely city. I am staying in St Joseph's Church in Subiaco which is a suburb of Perth. A strange thing happened at Perth's Airport. I was under the wrong impression that I was being met there. I waited half an hour and there was no sign of anybody meeting me. There was a man there with a St Francis cross on so I went over to him and asked if he was meeting a Fr Kevin. No he said I have just dropped somebody off. I told him my situation and he said that he belonged to a catholic order and would take me to St Joseph's. The night before I left however I had no idea what the address was or even the telephone number. Margy who I was staying with in Melbourne said it was a very bad move to go to an airport with no address or contact number, so she went onto the internet and got them both. I am so glad that she did otherwise I would have been in the mire knowing no one and not having a clue where to stay. But as the saying goes the Spirit moves in mysterious ways.

I have left New Zealand for over a week now and have had time to reflect on my time there. I have been shown many kindnesses and have been let into peoples lives and been accepted into their homes in New Zealand. I have been impressed with a lot of people there especially in the Church. Many people here have asked me to stay or would I consisder moving over here. First and foremost I think it would be a bit crass of me to ask my Bishop to let me leave his diocese after he has generously gave me time away. Another thing is my age if I was twentyfive years younger I may have consisder it but now it would be too much of an upheaval, having to make new friends and contacts and to live life a little different than what it is in England. I think I am too much a european as well. To be so far from all that cultral mix could be demanding. New Zealand is very beautiful but once you have seen it you have seen it. I have politely refused their invitation to stay there on a permanant basis but obviously return there in a few years to see uncle Arnett. I phoned him up the other day and he is doing fine. I think he is having a little rest after all the comings and goings of the last few weeks. A few of the parishioners are going to stay in touch with him and take him out for lunch have a chat with him. We will make a catholic out of him yet.

After leaving New Zealand I was met in Melbourne by Mark and his son Connor and whisked off to their place in Berwick an outer suburb of Melbourne. There I met Margie and the new baby Ryan who I Baptised the next. There I met the rest of the family who I had heard of from AuntNellie and seen their photographs. We had a good time at the baptism and the following party. On the Monday I went to stay with Ian in Richmond Melbourne for a few nights. Ian was working all day so I went an explored Melbourne. I felt that it had changed a lot since I last visited it in 1989 a lot of the lovel victorian buildings had gone and the ones that had remained seem to be over powered by the big new glass buildings that are sprouting up everywhere. I went and saw the cathedrals of the religion of sport, the MCG, the Rod Laver arena and the big footie stadiums that seem to be all over the place. The one thing you have to say about Melbourne is the amount of independant clothes shops there are. If you are a woman and you like shopping then this is the place for you but don't take your husband as it will bore him to death as it did to me. There are literally thousands of small fasion shops how on earth they survive I don't know. Mind you try and find a specialised food store and you will find it hard. It is so different than England, where you fall over bakeries and food stores everywhere you look.

(to be continued)