Compassion Day

Today is Compassion Day.

I love love love Compassion.

Compassion works throughout the world to free children from poverty.

I love Compassion so much that I joined the CAN – Compassion Advocate Network.

“The Child Advocate Network is a passionate, dynamic and creative Christian advocacy movement, seeking justice and life for children throughout the world.”

In working with the CAN, I have agreed to advocate for all children in Australia and internationally.

We can make a difference even if it’s just one child at a time, one life at a time, one human at a time.

When you look at your own circumstances today, do you see room to include another child?

Basic sponsorship starts at just $44 per month, or you may have enough to manage sponsorship plus at $56.

Let me introduce you to Gilbert Akanyijuka.

Gilbert is 5 years old and lives in Uganda with his parents and sister. They rely on crops to survive. His parents sometimes earn a little money peasant farming but they struggle to provide the day to day needs. Gilbert likes to play ping pong, soccer and enjoys singing.

I have Gilbert sitting here on my desk waiting for a sponsor.
(leave a comment or email if you would like to sponsor him.)

Or if you’d rather choose a child, you can head to the Compassion web site.

Being that today is Compassion Day in Australia you can also contact any Christian radio station and sponsor a child through them.

Compassion also has a Leadership Program (to take sponsored children through university), Complementary Interventions Program (water, sanitary, HIV etc), and Child Survival Program (pregnant women & babies)

If you don’t have room in your life to partner with Compassion on a monthly basis, Compassion will also accept once off donations.

Go ahead! Make my day this Compassion Day. Sponsor a child or donate to Compassion.

Play!

I have been a little unwell of late - nothing much more than the common cold
I completely lost my voice for a day and then it was barely there.

So my kids had an unschooling day and had free play

Dancing on the bed..

Wrestling on the bed..

Playing on the bed…

I thought this would be fun to post after I read over on Childhood 101 about we play.

Tomorrow I hope to have my voice back a little more - it'll be back to the books for the older three while miss 2 continues to play.

Check out my comp that's on this week

Quick Tip Tuesday #10

Parenting – the more I learn, the more I realise there’s nothing quick about parenting. Consistency and communication to have a solid relationship takes time and effort.

My quick tip… make the time – kids need parents to be involved in their lives.

Celebrate with me!

I love to celebrate and what’s more fun than a give-a-way?

I feel I have been a little absent from the blog-o-sphere, scheduling in time to read your blogs just once a week.

What have I been doing? Well thanks for asking… I’ve been working on my WIP and studying. While I’ve been out, I clicked over to 100 followers (the lovely Cate Bolt being the 100th – thanks Cate). This actually happened at about the same time my Face Book page celebrated 100.


Thank you Thank you Thank you

I am so humbled that you would follow my blog.


Prizes

1st prize – Glamourous glitzy exquisite jewellery from Fifth Avenue Collection

2nd prize –Personality Plus by Florence Littauer and Get a Life by Brian Houston… straight from my book shelf (oh yes they are from my shelf which does mean they are pre loved. But books are fabulous however they come!)

3rd prize… 'Nzuri Beads' Please go and check these out over at my friend Kay's, Heart and Soul blog - she is raising money for a very special trip she'll be taking this year



Conditions…

You get one entry for each of these

- Leave a comment on this post

- Tweet with a link to this give-a-way mentioning @michelledevans and comment below that you’ve done so

- Mention me on your blog and comment here with the link

Please leave 1 separate comment for each entry.



Easy!


This comp will be open from today ANZAC day until the end of the month – 30th April 2010

Bus Crash

Friday Flash Fiction

This was written for a writing course around 4 years ago... hope you enjoy.


Juliana hummed a melody she had recently played at her first professional concert. Stored safely below with the luggage was her cherished violin. Regular practise was expected. The drone of the bus sent her into a trancelike state. How hard she’d worked, how kind her grandparents had been and how exciting the next chapter of her life would be. Playing in the Queensland Symphony Orchestra was now just a couple of weeks away.

Suddenly a loud sound shocked Juliana. Was that a gun? She quickly glanced around. The bus jumped, skidded, and tipped, landing on its side, smashing the windows on the loose gravel. Shaken and bruised Juliana stood on the side of the chair and felt physically sick. The sight of bloody and broken bodies was horrific.

‘Here let me help you, my name is Juan’, a young, tall man reached for Juliana’s hand.

‘What happened?’ Juliana asked.

‘I think a tyre may have blown. What’s your emergency number?’ Juan asked.

‘What?’ she was thinking of only her violin.

‘I’ve only been in Australia one week. How do we get an ambulance, you know?’ Juan asked.

‘It’s 000, but hang on, we’re remote here. What’s it from mobiles? It might be 112, or is it 122? Hey, could you give me a hand to get my luggage?’ asked Juliana.

Juan noticed Juliana was dazed but distracted.

‘Hey mate, you help the young lady and I’ll call emergency’, a middle aged man climbed over the seats toward them.

‘Thanks,’ Juliana found a half smile.

‘What’s so important in the luggage?’ Juan kicked out the back emergency window and lifted her through.

‘My violin, I just need to check if it’s OK’. Juliana pulled at the luggage compartment.

‘Do you have knowledge of first aid skills?’ Juan asked Juliana. ‘I really should get back inside, a lot of people seem to be in a lot of pain.’

‘Uhhrrrgh’ Juliana vomited onto the dusty road then continued to climb up to the luggage door. The door was jammed, she threw a glance at her newfound acquaintance wishing he’d either help her or go away.

‘Oh shame, come, sit down here in the shade. You right?’ Juan guided her.

‘No! You don’t understand, my violin is my life! You have to help me find it’. She shook his arm off her shoulder.

‘Just a minute, I think it’s you who doesn’t understand. We’ve been in an accident. You’re in shock, you need to sit down’.

Juliana’s teeth were clench as she hissed, ‘What I need is my violin’.  Her face pale and eyes narrowed.

‘Are you out of this world? There are injured people here and all you want is your stupid replaceable instrument.’ Juan glared past her, his face tense with frustration.

Juliana fell to her knees and cried. She had first aid training and knew she could help but felt paralysed by the need to hold her violin like a child would hold a teddy for comfort. Her whole body shook, sobbing uncontrollably. Juan wrapped his strong arms around her.

After a couple of minutes she lifted her head. Her cheeks streaked with mascara, nose red and dripping. She instantly felt foolish and felt the colour rising from her neck to her cheeks. The man holding her was strong and incredibly good looking. Feeling vulnerable she wriggled out of his arms and pulled at the luggage door again.

‘I know you don’t understand, but I really need your help to get into there. I just need to see my violin and then I’ll be OK’.

‘I think you should sit down. Your whole body is shaking with shock. I’ll have a look for your instrument’. Juan lifted the luggage door with little effort. He climbed in and found a violin case under a mountain of suitcases.

‘That’s it, thank you, thank you so much’, Juliana eagerly snatched her violin from him.

She climbed down to a shaded spot beside the bus and sat hugging the case until she realised Juan stood close by watching her. Juliana opened the case. Gently holding it, looking at it from every angle, the violin was in perfect condition. Again she hugged it and gentle tears rolled down her cheeks.

‘It obviously means a lot to you’. Juan had been watching from the luggage door.

‘More than I can tell you’. Juliana carefully placed her instrument in the case and closed the clasps.

‘Juan? Was that your name? There’s a bunch of people in there that need our help. What are you doing out here?’ Juliana walked around the bus until she found a safe entry point.

‘Ah… yeah, let’s get to it then.’ Juan looked from Juliana and back to the violin case and shook his head.

Face Book Page

And the winner is……






Jazz Martin-Ngati



Congratulations!!!



This was a competition over on my Face Book page because I reached 100 followers there.

Thank you all for you support and encouragement


The draw went a little like this…

Today of all days!

Over the past 5 years or so, I have had the odd vertigo spell. It doesn’t last long, thankfully the spinning stops within a minute. The worst part is the following 24 hours - I’m pretty much wiped out, drained of all energy, shaky and nauseous.

Last night I had one. It was the worst and longest one that I’ve had. I pray that this is the last one I ever have. I had cake mix ready to go into the pan but I could no longer stand, I had to go straight to bed. I was very thankful for my hubby who followed my instructions and the cake and cup cakes are baked.

Today has been full on our calendar for weeks. Today is my little girl’s 7th birthday. We had a church breakfast, our boy’s first game of AFL, 2 girls start new gymnastics, my sister visiting, and then the walk I’ve been promoting for the last month for Teen Challenge.

We missed the breakfast knowing we’d cut it too fine with footy starting. Hubby took Mr 9 to footy and I’m here with the girls.

I dragged myself out of bed to get breakfast for Miss 2, as much as I’d love to go back to bed I have one child asking for something every 10 to 15 minutes.

Jokingly on facebook I commented that I’d love a maid, but the truth is I wish I did have someone I could call on today. We are giving our girl a party tomorrow – at our house. It’s not tidy, I have cakes to ice and the washing baskets are overflowing.

I am planning to walk with my very pregnant friend this afternoon in the “Live Free Walk’ for Teen Challenge, so I guess the two of us will take the 5kms at a slow pace and my hubby will be contactable on mobile if either of us need to be picked up along the way. 5 kilometres didn’t seem too far yesterday but this morning it does sound like a long way.

Its days like today that I wonder how people live with chronic pain and constant illnesses.

PS It's now Saturday night, it was great to have my sister drop around, I went to the wrong place so I missed the start of the walk. I found that if I walked a slow pace I felt OK - if I stopped I started feeling nauseous and if I walked too fast it was no good. I got to the end and started feeling really sick so I back tracked which meant I would have walked the 5 kms even though I missed the start LOL. I decided it was better to keep walking to where my family was rather than to sit with everyone feeling sick until hubby arrived to pick me up. Praising God for helping me through today.

I do miss reading blogs!

So I’ve been focused on writing over the past two weeks. Which means I’m sure I’ve missed heaps of your blogs and that makes me little sad. I’m allowing myself one night a week to catch up on blog reading and the rest of the time I have allocated to writing or study.

I received an email recently that said ‘After careful consideration, I have decided to pass on your story.’ This statement had me baffled for three weeks but I didn’t want to reply and ask what the editor meant. So the only other thing I could think of to do, was to submit another story. The following day I received an email saying, ‘Congratulations, your story has been accepted.’ I guess they didn’t like the first one and actually meant ‘I’m passing on it’ not ‘passing it on.’

Have you ever received something in writing that could be taken a couple of ways?

I have re-ignited my passion for writing picture books. I thought it was a market that I wouldn’t be able to break in to so I gave up before I really started and focused on other genres. Over the last 2 weeks I’ve join in with the twitter chat #pblitchat It’s everything picture book and heaps of fun. I have had two publishers show interest in two different picture books I’ve written so perhaps I can break into the very competitive market.

Do you ever give up before you start? Do you think its insecurity or lack of confidence that makes you give up?

I know my new routine is worth while, even though I do miss reading all of your blogs. I now have 18 pieces of writing out there waiting in somebody’s in tray. So I wait…. And while I wait for a response I am working on a novel, a picture book, a kids series and I like to add in a little poetry writing in between.

What do you have to say no to, so that you can meet your writing or other life goals?

The Giants are Coming

 

Friday Flash Fiction
First published @ Soft Whispers



The giants are coming

Bashing down the door

Getting into my head

Pounding at my brain



The giants are coming

Smashing down the houses

Tearing apart the streets

Destruction all around


The giants are coming
Run for cover

Guard yourself

Flee for your life

Winning Story with Interview!

My story Sullen won the Pic 1k story in March. The winner each month is interviewed. You can read that interview HERE

Quick Tip Tuesday #9

Find a few meals that you can cook and freeze. Use the largest pot you have and make a double or triple batch. ( My faves are pasta bake, and curry with rice)
 Buy some throw aways (glad make foil trays with foil lined cardboard lids or other brands have the foil trays that you can cover with al foil.


Cooking an extra large meal doesn’t take a whole lot of extra time. You'll find you have healthy meals in your freezer that you can whack into the oven on night you don’t feel like cooking. (And if you don’t feel like doing dishes – use throw a way plates as well!)


Better than take-a-way

Drift

Friday Flash Fiction (based on a true story)

There is that point in time. While you lay down to sleep. When you stop thinking. Its before dreaming but after wakefulness. It’s when amazing things happen. It’s … the drift.

 It’s when your mind is allowed to think nothing. It’s when you can allow the Holy Spirit to minister to your soul. It’s when God reminds you that what He has done is good. The drift is the time that you hear the voice of the spirit saying ‘It was all for you.’ As you lie there and drift you hear again ‘You have been washed clean.’ And there you are, drifting, somewhere in time between being awake and asleep.

It’s a slight moment, some would liken it to a blink of an eye. That is all the time that is needed to hear God tell you, ‘You are deeply loved.’ And you drift again and hear, ‘I scarified Jesus so you could live free.’ You are nearly brought back from the drift with the awesome sounds but you choose to relax and bask in His glory. ‘Your sins have been forgiven, forgotten, removed. You start new, you start whole. Live from a position of victory,’ and the drift is over and you surrender to sleep.

In the morning you wake up fresh and new knowing that God has restored you, as you vaguely remember the drift.

99 Things...

OK so heaps of my friends have done this - too many too list.. I'm just getting around to jump on the bandwagon....

Just copy and paste these 99 things onto your blog and bold the things you HAVE done... here are mine:


1. Started your own blog


 
2. Slept under the stars


 
3. Played in a band



4. Visited Hawaii



5. Watched a meteor shower

(does a commet count?)

6. Given more than you can afford to charity



7. Been to DisneyWorld



8. Climbed a mountain

9. Held a praying mantis 



10. Sang a solo



11. Bungee jumped



12. Visited Paris

13. Watched a lightning storm



14. Taught yourself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child



16. Had food poisoning



17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty

18. Grown your own vegetables



19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France



20. Slept on an overnight train



21. Had a pillow fight



22. Hitch hiked



23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill


24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping



27. Run a Marathon


28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice 


29. Seen a total eclipse



30. Watched a sunrise or sunset


31. Hit a home run

(on a small field in T ball lol)

32. Been on a cruise
(lunch time on a river )

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person



34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors ( all the local one hehe)

35. Seen an Amish community



36. Taught yourself a new language



37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David


41. Sung karaoke

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt



43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant



44. Visited Africa



45. Walked on a beach by moonlight



46. Been transported in an ambulance


47. Had your portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing



50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris



51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling



52. Kissed in the rain




53. Played in the mud


54. Gone to a drive-in theatre

(Ok so we went and then we left with out watching???)

55. Been in a movie



56. Visited the Great Wall of China



57. Started a business

58. Taken a martial arts class



59. Visited Russia



60. Served at a soup kitchen



61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies



62. Gone whale watching
(I got very sick)
63. Got flowers for no reason


64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma


65. Gone sky diving



66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp



67. Bounced a cheque (that was my job for a while bouncing other people's )



68. Flown in a helicopter


69. Saved a favorite childhood toy


70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial



71. Eaten caviar



72. Pieced a quilt



73. Stood in Times Square



74. Toured the Everglades



75. Been fired from a job

(is redundancy the same thing?? well almost)

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London



77. Broken a bone


78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle



79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person



80. Published a book

(a story in a book...)

81. Visited the Vatican


82. Bought a brand new car



83. Walked in Jerusalem


84. Had your picture in the newspaper


85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve



86. Visited the White House



87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating



88. Had chickenpox



89. Saved someone’s life



90. Sat on a jury



91. Met someone famous




92. Joined a book club



93. Got a tattoo


94. Had a baby



95. Seen the Alamo in person



96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake



97. Been involved in a law suit


98. Owned a cell phone




99. Been stung by a bee


How many have you done out of the 99?