October 21, 2010

• Grateful Time in Melbourne

  My final entry about my trip back to Melbourne. This entry starts from 14th October 2010, on Thursday when I visited OCF Berwick. I’m so glad to see a brand new and bigger bunch in this campus. It is so different from the days when we first started with 3-5.. sometimes just ONE (yea, me). Gotta give it up to God and the past committee who has laboured diligently to make a difference in campus and to stand up for His ministry. Also very proud to say that OCF is the only club or society which is active on campus. All the other clubs either closed down or only meet once a year. Apparently, the Student Union is so impressed with OCF that even they don’t want to see it closed. God is awesome! Anyway, my prayer’s to the new committee for 2011 headed by Michelle and Irwin. Good on you for taking up responsibility, be it reluctantly or willingly. 

  

  OCF Berwick before the start of the week’s meeting

  After OCF we went for a dinner and Pastor Ken Teo, who was there with us right from the start, graciously gave me a ride home.. all the way from Berwick to Clayton. Thanks again Pastor Ken! I was in time to see a bunch of ex-OCFer finish off a transition program at my former home in 20 Bettina. Good catching up with some people I have not seen for a long time. The next day would prove to be more exciting. I rented a car and took a drive up to Yarra Valley headed towards Marysville. It was a simple and straightforward drive following the Maroondah Highway. 

  

  Quite a stunner of a drive. It’s probably the only major tourist route I have not tried throughout my entire stay in Melbourne. Many wineries, parks and scenic views. Unfortunately, that Friday also happened to be the 24 hour rain day. So that made it abit sucky. But overall, a VERY relaxing drive and definitely my favourite part of the entire trip. 

   

  Healesville Reservoir 

   

  Awesome wine and cheese along the Yarra Valley – the winner of the entire trip!

  There was a sobering moment while I was at Marysville. The entire town as well as several other rural Victorian towns were burned down on 7th February 2009, a day also known as Black Saturday which killed 173 people. Marysville was the biggest town hit. It was evident that the town was a bustling one just a year and a half ago. Now it seemed like an empty construction site waiting for buildings to be put up along its main road. Nearby suburbs with open fields, where hundreds of houses once stood. As I was driving along one of the off-roads I saw a burnt out tree stump, charcoal black, with bright flowers tied around it along with a personalised note. Truly tragic. I’ve been following this event on the news but never knew how big it was until I watch it on History Channel in Malaysia. 

   

  Marysville, Victoria
  Left: Where houses once stood. Right: The main street which once was bustling with activity, now looks like an empty construction site 

  Towards the late afternoon I headed to the city to meet up with Rachel at QV. Had dinner and drinks at Max Brenner before dropping her off her place and saying hi to Sash. Poor guy got bitten close to death. It’s okay now, doing tap dances on Rachel’s wooden home floor. 

   

  Hanging out with Rachel, Faith, Alison and… Jap-Malaysian friend at Max Brenner

  After a long day out, I spent most of the night preparing for camp the next day. Yes, for the fourth year in a row I found myself going back to Wilsons Promontory. All wasn’t smooth sailing. The weather didn’t let up. In fact, at night when we were in Rock Kung after OCF it hailed at least three times. The next morning, there was snow in Mount Dandenong and the entire Mount Hortham was snowboard worthy. Some of us wanted to bail out from the camp due to the terrible weather and some did. However, I have to salute Kong Chian’s perseverance and insistence to go ahead with it. So we set of, slightly later than planned from Clayton around 10am on Saturday for the Prom. 

  The weather seemed to have improved as we neared the Prom, nice and sunny. Upon reaching, the weather was erratic to say the least. It will be raining for half an hour and nice and sunny the next.. for most of the day. The only thing constant were the 60kmph winds that constant blew down out tents. Still, it was a good experience. 

  I decided to go AWOL after one night – the cold and winds were just unbearable. So I followed Chee Kai and Chien Aun home – they only planned to stay the night anyway due to some other commitments. The Singaporean dudes – Kang Wei, Kong Chian and Vib continued on defiantly to Sealers Cove and managed to catch snappers for their dinner. I am truly envious! 

   

    Left: The bridge at Tidal River. Right: The guys fishing on the same river

   

  Left: It was a luxurious steak for dinner for each one of us! Right: A true camping experience – all guys in one tent

   

  Left: The beautiful walk along Tidal River. Right: Chee Kai and I posing overlooking Squeaky Beach

  Coming home early did allow me to meet my aunts and cousins, so that’s pretty much what I did on Sunday night. The next day would be the more sobering task of buying souvenirs and packing up to go home. I did visit Monash Caulfield to inquire more about my course.. I’m still four units short of the Masters. I said final farewells as well as treating the Bettina’s to steak at Outback Jack’s in Knox. 

  

  

  The last day, I took the train together with Nic to the city where he got off at South Yarra while I moved on to Southern Cross via the City Loop. That gave me alot of time to think. I have to admit that during this trip, I was seriously tempted to rethink taking the Australian PR again. Life was good in Melbourne and coming back for a holiday here really was a preview of what life once was – picking up exactly where I left off. With the plane, despite an 8 hour flight (of which I slept 7 hours.. so really felt like 1 hour).. both worlds seem closer than ever. So what’s the big deal settling down in Australia instead? Would I get used to the “reality” of work here in the bustling city, cramming into the Metro trains and going shoulder to shoulder with fellow Melbournians, climbing corporate ladders and running a rat race in a country I’m unsure if it even welcomes me. 

  These thoughts all crossed my mind. I couldn’t help it. 

  I was facing towards the back of the train. The Comeng trains have the configuration where the seats face one another and I so happen to be pointed the other way. I felt that it was God’s way of showing me the dilemma I was in. The train was moving forward and I’m sitting in the train looking back facing things that has passed. The more I look (or think about it), the giddier it gets. I would only become disillusioned with what once was. In the end, the best position to be in is one that looks forward. Not quite knowing what’s ahead – but it is the only way to go. 

  Australia isn’t for me – yet. Looking ahead for me is this ministry and fighting the corruption which is tearing the organisation apart. 

  I really thank God for the refreshing break. Will miss Melbourne. 

  • 8:14 am
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