Farewell Middle East?

I have twice before (here and here) blogged about my favourite band at the moment, The Middle East. I am now devastated to report they have announced they are quitting.

see change?

'Sea Change' was a popular Aussie TV series a few years back, in which a city lawyer quit her job and opted for the supposedly more laid-back life of a small coastal town. The term 'sea change" became common usage to describe the increasing number of people who decided to leave the rat race and the wealth it provided and give greater emphasis in their life to more personal values.

In an interesting set of articles, last Saturday's Sydney Morning Herald told the stories of a bunch of influential politicians who have found life more fulfilling away from the corridors of power.

connecting lives

We all know that Africa is a troubled continent, often a legacy of European colonialism - poverty, AIDS, civil war and genocide are some of the worst problems. But most of us don't know what it is like to live with poverty.

Yet there is another side. Africans often seem to be such happy people. And there is hope for those in the grip of poverty.

gordon trickett - an ordinary life?

Gordon Trickett died last month. No, I wouldn't have noticed it either had I not read his obituary in the Sydney Morning Herald. But he deserves to be remembered.

forgiveness

It is natural to want to strike back when attacked and hurt, whether by violent words or by violent actions. But christianity has always taught the importance for forgiveness and many non-christians are finding it an important part of their lives as they struggle to recover from the effects of deep hurts.

japanese prisoners and reconciliation

I visited Cowra in the NSW midwest recently. During World War 2, Cowra was the location of a camp for internees and prisoners of war, including more than a thousand Japanese prisoners. In the early morning of 5th August 1944, more than 500 of the Japanese prisoners stormed the perimeter fences

drug addicts, triad gangs, and one of my heroes

The Walled City of Kowloon in Hong Kong was an accident of history. No-one was sure who had jurisdiction over this area as it was on the border between China and Hong Kong, which until a decade ago was administered by Britain. So police and the authorities turned a blind eye to what was happening - except when bribes were on offer.

Over a decade or two, multi-story illegal building on a large scale led to a 3 dimensional rabbit warren of darkness and squalor, with limited and unauthorised water supply, electricity and sewerage. Gangs, crime, drugs, prostitution and protection rackets grew and thrived.