SHAVE!

On Saturday, some people in our hostel shaved their heads or dyed their hair an extreme colour in order to raise money and awareness for the Luekaemia & Blood Foundation.

This shaving of their heads got me thinking. I would have cut some of my hair off but this did not seem like much. I would have shaved my head but i kept on coming up with the following excuses:

• i love my hair and i know i would bawl my eyes out
• If i wasn't doing a teaching degree then yes i would

The whole time i was watching people have this done, it reminded me of when my brother had cancer back in 2007.

Since Saturday i have continued to think about hair shaving and cancer and a whole lot of other things.

So what is happening inside my brain?

If all is okay with my lecturers and tutors (as i have a solid four week teaching block straight after), then this year during CanTeen's Bandana Campagin, i am going to shave my hair in order to fundraise and raise awareness for CanTeen.

I still know that i will bawl my eyes out, will certainly need a hand or two to hold and i will be scared but I just know that it is something that i need to do at some point (especially after seeing a lot of people doing this on Saturday).

As long as i have the support of Mum, Dad, Ash, N@, friends and significant others in my life, then this thing which seems like a massive task will seem so much easier. I

Will keep you updated with the progress re talking to tutors/lecturers and information about how to support etc.

Till then keep safe and know that God love each and every one of you.

Love and blessings,

Kathryn xox

ANZAC Day 2010

April 25th 2010 was a Sunday, it was also ANZAC Day.

This year, i finally made it to my very first ANZAC Day Dawn Service. I don't know what it is but already this year i seem to be doing or going to a whole lot of new things which i have always wanted to go to but have never got around to it.

Anyway, once again, the fire alarms went off at our amazing Hostel at 4:50am (ish). For a change, i actually appreciated this going off as it meant i was at least up and would be ready in time for the Dawn Service.

After the fire alarm situation was sorted, it was time to head off to the Dawn Service with our hostel chef Russel and fellow residents Caleb, Olive and Nicole.

I had been talking to a couple of girls in the hostel the day before and they said they had been to Dawn Services before and they found them very moving. Being my first Dawn Service i had no idea what to expect.

WOW - honestly, i am so glad that i finally got to go to an ANZAC Service. Like the girls had said the previous day, it certainly was moving and i myself was almost in tears. Listening to "The Last Post", reading of poems, seeing all the forces represented in some form or another, the RNZAF plane fly over, the laying of the wreath, the reading of numbers of casualties - it was all just so amazing.

I then went to church and the ANZAC's were once again mentioned. Even when i went online to look at deals on grabaseat.co.nz , they had decided out of respect to the ANZAC's, to not sell flights untill after 1:30pm - RESPECT!

ANZAC Day 2010 made me stop and actually seriously think about all that was done for us those many years ago - life would not be as easy and free for us now if it was not for the soldiers who gave their lives for the countries back then.

I am so proud to be a New Zealander and I am proud of the history that our country has.

ANZAC Day 2015 = Gallipoli = Here I Come!

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

- Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)

Fire Alarms and God

So once again it was a nice early wake up call this morning - silly fire alarms going off at like 2am! Grrr, i was having a great sleep and then off goes the fire alarm which is so loud and noisy, i am not entirely sure how some people manage to sleep through it.

After our R.A's and Managers checked to see who was here and who was not, and after some people (who had obviously been out on the town), had finally shut up long enough for people to hear their own names and for our managers to give a quick talk we got back inside around 2:30am. Most of us (i think) got off to sleep again in a short space of time which was pretty good.

When i was in the shower this morning, this whole fire alarm thing got me thinking..... why? well let me explain. This all makes sense in my head so hopefully it makes sense when written down.

We are deep in sleep in the early hours of the morning (in this case) and then the fire alarm goes off and wakes people up.

What happens when the fire alarm goes off?

• We wake up (or at least most of us do)
• We do what we have been told to do which is assemble outside in our "wing groups" in the courtyard.
• We are obedient to the fire alarm - it is a signal which tells us to do something and we go ahead and do it.... STRAIGHT AWAY.
• Its not like we wake up and sit in our rooms and contemplate going outside or not - we just do it.
• People don't know if there is an actual fire, if its a drill or as the case usually is in Taurima - a bug is caught in the fire alarm sensor in someone's room. Because we have no idea, its not like we are going to stay in our rooms and risk getting burnt or getting injured on the chances that it may be an actual fire.

The same would happen any time during the day, no matter what we are doing, we all head outside to the assembly point and wait for instructions.

So why the title Fire Alarms and God?

If we are this obedient to something as important as a fire alarm (which could theoretically save our lives), why then are we not always this obedient to the Lord our God who has already saved our lives (or at least some of our lives?)

It seems that often in our lives, God is trying to tell us things and we do not listen, we tend to ignore him and pretend that he is not telling us these things - why,

• because we may be afraid or scared of the outcomes.
• because we are comfortable where we are and we do not want to step out of our comfort zones
• because we think we know better than God does

as well as many other reasons.

The thing is, we all ( i know i specifically do) need to learn to start obeying God and following the signs that he gives us, as much as we obey and follow the signs or signals that fire alarms give us.

When a fire alarm goes off in the middle of the night, we don't risk our lives staying where we are comfortable (tucked up nice and warm in bed), instead we step out of our comfort zones (get out of bed, not matter how asleep we are or how un beautiful we look) and make the move to safety.

When God is calling us to something, yes it might be a risk for us and yes we will have to step out of our comfort zones and change our lives but would you rather "stay in your room tucked up where it is nice and warm in bed" and risk your life or follow the one who has already saved our lives?

My challenge for you all is to stop wondering why we are where we are but instead listen for that "fire alarm" which may be going off in your life and start to obey God and follow his signals as much as we obey fire alarms.

¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

- Jeremiah 29:11 (New International Version)

Well that is all my rambling on for now, i hope that actually makes sense :)

God Bless,

Kathryn

Update

Life is incredible - I am so grateful that i have God in my life and that i can put all my trust in him and know that he will provide all of my needs.

I was thinking the other, how amazing it is that God can just totally change our directions in just a few moments/days and the complete different path that we can lead.

I have now been in Hamilton for just over 8 weeks (apart from a couple of weeks at Totara Springs over the holidays) and my life seems to be going amazingly well. I still find it hard to believe that I have been accepted into The Faculty of Education at Waikato University (the top FOE/SOE in the country) and that i am now just over one twelfth of the way through my Primary Teaching Degree.

Taurima Christian Hostel in Hamilton East is my home for the academic year of 2010 and it is such a fantastic place to be. There are 54 (usually but now 53) residents in Taurima Hostel and we are all just seeming like one great big family - its awesome! I am starting to understand what people have told me all my life about friendship and high school friends and university friends - i am already seeing that "the friends you make during your university years, will certainly remain your lifelong friends".

My holidays or better known as a "teaching recess", were spent at Totara Springs Christian Camp in Matamata. I was nannying as well as working in the kitchen, doing random work, catching up with people, trying to get assignments done as well as helping with admin work, spending time with and continuing to be amazed by my incredible boyfriend and helping run the canteen. PHEW, what a holiday.

I continue to be surprised at how major of a part Totara Springs plays in my life after first going there during summer. Totara Springs is one of those places where all the staff, volunteers, campers and just the whole environment touches your heart and automatically becomes a part of your life. THANK YOU GOD FOR TOTARA SPRINGS CHRISTIAN CENTRE AND ALL THE PEOPLE ASSOCIATED WITH THIS.

After being away from the hostel for a couple of weeks and spending time at Totara Springs will all my "family" over there, coming back to the hostel seemed so exciting. I was lucky enough to be able to get a ride back to Hamilton with Jess from Taurima and the whole trip back we talked about things that we missed at the hostel - there are certainly some strange things that came up such as missing peoples loud voices and attitudes, people burping in the hallway, the laughs that some residents provide us with daily as well as all those magical "family moments". So many of us residents missed each other so much during the "teaching recess" and being back together after just two weeks literally made us jump with joy.

Everyone in the hostel seems to love my giant white teddy bear and each and every day i wake up and see it, i am reminded of how lucky i am to have Nathaniel Charles Feldon in my life. He is always there for me,makes me happy when i am sad, organises romantic picnics, shares his life with me, tells me how he is, understands me, respects me and loves me for who i am and also tells me to stop procrastinating when i need to do assignments. Nathaniel does all of this and so much more and i am so incredibly blessed and grateful that God has placed him in my life. The name Nathaniel = Gift of God..... what more can i say?

All my hard work (or more like hard procrastination) during last term and the holidays with my assignments has seemed to pay off. When i began university i had no idea how the heck to write university essays, had never heard of APA referencing, and did not know a lot about the level of work that would be expected. Looking back, my attitude of "C's get degree's" last term was not the best attitude ever but some how, all my grades so far have managed to be higher than a C - wahoo!

So far I have had:

• 2 C+ 's
• a B-

and somehow i have also managed in HEALTH AND PE (of all subjects)

• an A+

hehe, talk about irony!

Placement - OH MY GOSH!!!! Hillcrest Normal School is a fantastic Primary School and the children here have really become a big part of my life. Room 11, you are the best and i love you. One of my favourite parts of each and every week is Tuesday mornings - although these mean an early rise, it also means time to spend four hours in a classroom at a Primary School! Yay! Every Tuesday morning for all of Semster A and B, i am based in Room 11 at Hillcrest Normal School. Yes the joke is still continuing about how i of all people got placed in a "normal school". We have great laughs with the students and get on so well with them (most of the time), although there are a few challenges which present themselves each week.

After doing work experience at a Primary School in Hastings (at the end of year 13), i thought that I would want to teach year 1 and 2 children. Now that I am placed in a Year 5 and 6 class, i am not entirely sure of this anymore. Thank goodness i have another 2+ years before i need to actually decide which year group i would like to teach - all i know at this stage is that during my teaching block of four weeks at the end of this year, i shall try and go for a Year 7 and 8 age group.

Hawkes Bay, i miss you and i love you. I miss mum's home baking, i miss my HB friends and family, I miss everyone at The Station Community Church and i miss Sooty my Cat. Hawkes Bay, i miss you so much but I will come back at some point for a visit but just hang in there (not sure if i am talking about myself or Hawkes Bay here but ohh well) and i shall be back before you know it :)

So yes, life is great up here in Hamilton, i have met some amazing friends, I am loving uni, church is fantastic (YAY, go ARISE) and at the moment i seem to have a great relationship going with my family too - maybe i should have moved out of home sooner... haha.

2010 is certainly a life changing year and i am learning more about myself (and who i am in this world), than i have ever before.

Thank You God for all that you do in and through my life. Thank You so much for always being there and for listening to us grumble and moan and putting up with our stubborn attitudes - you