BACK IN OZ

WELL INTO MY FIRST WEEK...the journey has been long and varied and I am now well and truly "down under", almost diametrically through the center of the earth from where I started, driving from Painted Post NY to Basalt CO, then flying to San Francisco (SFO) to enjoy time with friends there before departing.

MY GOOD FRIEND, Dr Francis Wright, went with me to SFO via BART (Bay Area Rapid Transport), virtually from one end of the Bay area to the other, helping me with my now quite heavy suitcases. How good to have friends who provide support at just the right times! The flight lasted about 14 hours leaving around 11 PM and arriving in Sydney 6:45 AM. I passed the time reading, dozing, talking with my young seat companion, a geology student at University of Washington State, or walking about the cabin getting in knee exercises. This also provided protection against the possibility of deep vein thrombosis (DVT), for old codgers like me a serious threat during long periods of seating.

Once in Sydney, I was very much in the arms of my family…my son Andrew and his two sons, my nephew Peter and his family, and my brother, Norton.

I seem to have stood up to my travels pretty well and enjoyed a walk around the block with my nephew, the surroundings ablaze with spring flowers and smitten with the loud sounds of the many birds, on what became increasingly a perfect Sydney spring day.

Thanks for the many good wishes you nave sent me by email. This is a serious time in my life…as Elizabeth (Peter’s wife) remarked, ‘Robert, you are virtually homeless for the time being!’ So then to the work of settling in and settling down. First on the agenda is the purchase of a car. Another of my nephews, Zintis, a qualified mechanic, is assisting me. We have already had a look at one; we make a smooth team. I engage the owner while Zintis goes about his careful inspection and evaluation.

My knee continues to improve and I am able to go down stairs symmetrically now. Getting in lots of walking.

Not much more of interest for the time being. Regards and good wished to you all.

LAST DAY IN THE USA

IT'S THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 16 and a very pleasant afternoon here in Walnut Creek, sunny California (although some rain may be possible over the weekend).

Around about 6 PM, my good friend Francis and I will take the BART out to SFO International Airport. My flight out to Sydney leaves around 10:30, so this will give me enough time for the check in procedures.

It was a long day getting here from Basalt, due to the long stopover at Denver. Up around 3 AM Pacific time and into bed about 10:30 PM. I felt very sad leaving Aspen, saying goodbye to my little family there after four great days seeing what a wonderful young woman my eldest granddaughter has become.

Staying with my friends, Mary and Francis Wright, has been very relaxing and restorative. I am very grateful to them for this pleasant, quiet and enriching time. As ever, we have had deep conversations and I have some new authors to follow through on. Two streams of luggage converged here, the stuff I had sent ahead via UPS and my stuff from Basalt. Lots of 'needle work' separating what I really need to take to Australia and what must be left behind to benefit the local Goodwill.

I am really down to two suitcases for checking (one containing my folding Bike Friday), a computer case, and one other carry-on bag...pretty amazing, really!

So this last blog posting in the USA on a very pleasant afternoon. A very long night and I will be in Sydney. Winnowing the stuff had me immersed in the business of discarding what really had to do with my life here and what I really need to begin anew in Australia. Truly, passing through the needle strips all but the necessities. I arrived in the US on 19 February 1995, making about 15 and one half years here, richer in many ways with experiences and new friends.

Next posting from Sydney. 'Adieu' and 'au revoir', to return in late January, moving into longer and warmer days as the Australian summer bears down.

KNEE #2 UPDATE & THE NEEDLE'S EYE

SEVEN WEEKS have come and gone. The surgeon is happy with progress, as is the physical therapist. I, lacking rationality when it comes to rehabilitation, think that things are going too slow but have learned from the last bout that it is unwise to push too hard. Even so, there have been some moments that caused concern, none of which count being now past. The first knee, surgery and rehabilitation and all, appears to have left me somewhat depleted and my fitness level had slipped by the time of the second procedure, leading to some small complications. What this means is that is wise indeed to have a good interval between the first and the second. Keep this in mind should you or someone you know is contemplating serious surgery.

Which brings me to the Needle's Eye.

Whatever your view of Jesus, his sayings (which are the core of Christian practice) can be very pertinent. In one of the gospels (John), he is depicted in deep conversation with a Jewish Rabbi who came secretly to confer with him. The Rabbi was concerned about how one can live a life that is pleasing to God. The Bible has a lot to say about this, none of which Jesus repeated. What he said was, "One must be born anew to enter the kingdom of God." In another gospel (Mathew) Jesus is reported saying that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

When you think about it, being born anew or threading a needle can be exceedingly constricting . You have to be or become small in certain ways to make it through.

Whatever biblical commentators make of these sayings (I recommend you Google them), I seem to be in an ever constricting process. Now in Colorado, visiting with my elder daughter and her daughter, I have filtered out a lot of "stuff" leaving Painted Post. I shall divest myself of more during this visit. By the time I reach San Francisco, I will be down to two regular suitcases and carry on bags.

While we are thinking along these lines, one might well ask, "Well then, what is this 'kingdom of God'? As one who tends either agnostic or else atheistic, I take this to mean the life that you really want to live but may feel held back from by reason of unsuitable beliefs, attitudes, habits, and the press of life. Jesus was not concerned with possessions. From his perspective, preoccupation with possessions and riches must have seemed somewhat absurd, particularly if these stood in the way of the life we would wish above all else to be able to live.

So it does one good from time to time to divest all but the essentials. This can happen if one is robbed, or a fire consumes all, or when one moves, as I am doing. Having been robbed three times, apart from annoyance and some grief for things lost, it did appear to me that there could be a positive side. Pioneers who trekked across continents or risked all across oceans learned this lesson.

To go on to the good life can mean leaving much behind. You have to be prepared to let go, even renounce much that seemed to be important.

So far I have driven three days from Painted Post to be with my daughter, making my fourth semi-transcontinental crossing. I am sad to be leaving so much that is good and valuable behind. Passing through the needle's eye is not without pain. I shall miss being each day with my lovely friend, Uma, but we plan that our paths will cross from time to time while we support each other in the paths we must tread in the meantime.

For me, the biggest loss is friends I have made along the way. While travel permits, some at least of you might have to bear an occasional visit from me. Nowadays we have this marvelous Internet so you will continue to hear of me through this Blog. I plan to get better at blogging. I am getting to see that regular updates in Facebook can really work. If you are not on Facebook, give it some serious consideration. That way I will get to hear of you.

I am here at Basalt for three more days and then go on to stay with my friends, Frank and Mary Wright, in San Francisco for a day or two before boarding United Airlines on Thursday night arriving in Sydney on their Saturday morning. My life in America will be behind me, having arrived here as an immigrant on February 19, 1995. Only one or two visits each year remain. On the other hand, I am looking forward to completing my apprenticeship as a grandfather and plan to have my grandchildren remember me a supportive and interesting person.

So it is almost farewell to my life in America, almost time to say, 'Goodbye'.