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Thankfully for me, birthdays have mostly been joyous affairs. The standout ones so far have been my 18th, 21st and my most previous one, my 28th. This year's one promises to be just as good.
Like New Year, birthdays have also served as a time to reflect on my past, present and future, and give thanks to God for His generous love and grace.
As most of you know, I have mild Asperger's Syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder characterized by difficulties in social interaction and awkward, at times obsessive behaviour. Although of course my parents found out from friends who observed me when I was little, I didn't find out until my late teens what it was that I had. All I knew was that I was different from everybody else, and while at times I felt happy being unique, I also desired to be "normal" like those around me. My recollections of my early years are very vague, but I remember having to undergo speech therapy and then having a social integration aide in primary school.
I'm thankful to my parents that they didn't treat me differently because of my condition; I guess it helps that both are in the medical profession. They did their research, learned along the way how best to help me, and I'd like to think that they're now starting to reap the rewards of their patience and efforts.
My condition may also have played a part in me developing a sense of inferiority and worthlessness, which led to many years of struggle with low self-esteem. Especially once I became aware of my condition, and that I would have it for my whole earthly life, I even dared to say to God, "Why have You made me this way? I wish I could be just like everyone else and not feel so retarded in my social development."
But God in His infinite mercy, patience and wisdom has been working slowly to change me into the person He wants me to be. The answer to my question came in a roundabout way when I recalled to mind the episode in John's Gospel where Jesus restored a man's sight by anointing his eyes with mud, a man who had been blind from birth. Before he did that, his disciples asked him:
"Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him." (John 9:2-3, ESV)
It has been thanks to a combination of this revelation, which has only come with the gift of hindsight, along with the importance of understanding that everyone has different struggles, and finding approval by God and not by man, that I'm in a position to say to God today:
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. (Psalm 139:14, ESV)
I hope that my life so far has been a testimony to God's grace and glory. Thanks to Him being in me and by my side I have overcome all sorts of challenges, and will hopefully continue to overcome greater challenges that lie ahead.
I also thank God for bringing many special people my way who have helped me along my life journey, some of whom I will be celebrating my birthday with later today.
Special thanks to my amazing girlfriend Vanessa, for accepting me as I am and being so loving and supportive, even if I don't seem appreciative sometimes. You truly have been God's gift to me, and I hope to continue treating you as such and never take you for granted.
Before I finish this post, a quick shout-out to Becky and Scott, who were happily joined in holy matrimony in front of friends and family on a delightful day. It was great to catch up briefly with both of them and I wish them firstly a blissful honeymoon and secondly the joy of starting their own family hopefully in the not-too-distant future.
Cheers and God bless!
As mentioned in my previous post, I am planning to go to England to teach for one year. Before I continue, a quick warning to my girlfriend (in case she opens this post): YOU MAY NOT WANT TO READ THIS! I'll talk a bit more later about why I added that.
It all started when I received an email from the Smart Teachers agency in February, informing me that England was suffering from a shortage of teachers, and that there was guaranteed work for international qualified teachers, particularly Australian ones. At the time I didn't think much of it, other than that it would be something nice to do.
The real catalyst came later in the week that Sunday morning at church. Before the service, I had a brief chat with one of the aunties whose daughter, a long-time friend of mine, is moving to England from Spain later in the year to teach. She told me that I should also consider going since I am still eligible to apply for a work visa under the Youth Mobility Scheme.
When I got home, I looked at the email again, and then, just to be sceptical, I googled "teacher shortage UK" and sure enough, a whole range of articles came up about how in certain areas the problem is at "crisis" level. With my mind now set at ease, I registered for the information session held in Melbourne. I then set about asking for advice and information from people living / who have lived in England and those who had experience teaching there.
While the information session with Smart Teachers didn't convince me to go, it did convince me that if I were to go, it would be with them. They seem quite a professional organization, composed mainly of ex-teachers who know how the system works there. I've been to Europe twice now, but not yet to England, which is a must on my to-visit list.
The circumstances seem right to go. I'm not yet tied down to any schools in Melbourne, and finding ongoing work has been difficult. I've already mentioned the Youth Mobility Scheme, and many whom I've talked to have said it will be great for my career development and look good on my CV.
My parents haven't said no, but being who they are, they've asked me to consider things carefully, especially when it comes to finances, accommodation and future work prospects here.
For me, the biggest downside of going is that I would have to leave Vanessa behind. Even though her parents have said she can come and visit when they are on holiday, it's still going to be very hard for her. The thought of me going has touched a raw nerve, and therefore I have promised her that until my departure is fully confirmed, we will not talk about this when we are alone together.
I know that one reason is the length of time we would be apart, which is why for Vanessa's sake I would only go for one year, although the Youth Mobility Scheme allows successful applicants to stay for two years. The other main reason I can think of is that Vanessa's previous relationship when she was in New Zealand ended because she was coming back to Melbourne, and when she tried to get in touch with her ex, he wouldn't respond, leaving her very sad. I have assured her that if I do end up going, according to the famous Beatles song: "I'll write home every day, and send all my loving to you." Thank God that these days we have it so easy with Facebook!
On Monday, I had a phone interview with Smart Teachers as a follow-up to the information session I attended, and now have some paperwork to fill out before we can proceed. I'll be sure to keep you posted on how that all goes.
This afternoon, I will have the privilege of attending my first wedding for 2015, between old friends Becky and Scott, who have been together since 2002 and then got engaged last year. I wish the both of them all of God's blessings and a long, happy and fruitful marriage.
Then tomorrow is my birthday, which I will talk more about in my next post.
Cheers and God bless!
2015 has been a busy year so far, and it's only now, four months into the year, that I've taken some time to reflect on what has been going on, and what may be to come. Every year marks a season of change, and although many people dislike it, development cannot happen if there is no change.
Barely had the year begun and I was back into the thick of teaching Academic English Studies (AES) at Deakin. Unlike most universities in Australia, which operate their academic year in semesters, Deakin University operates in trimesters, along with the University of Canberra and Bond University.
After another intake of teaching English for Academic Purposes (EAP), I decided on a change of scenery and chose to teach General English (GE) for the following intake. As you might be able to tell from the course name, GE is not as academically driven as EAP. There's more emphasis on grammar and everyday English, and the pace is slightly more relaxed. In some ways, GE resembles teaching at primary school; every day, lessons include a spelling test and 15 minutes scheduled silent reading time.
Another change to happen already this year is that after four wonderful years singing with MUCS, I've decided to jump ship and join the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic Choir (here after referred to as RMP). Thankfully, because MUCS has worked so closely with RMP over the last few years, the change hasn't been a drastic one. I was pleased to hear from my singing teacher Helena that Andrew, the conductor at both MUCS and RMP, has been impressed with the improvement in my singing. Our first major concert this year is with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in May, when we perform a re-enactment of Beethoven's epic 1808 Vienna concert. You can find more details about that here.
My relationship with Vanessa has been steadily growing, and ever since our siblings got married last year, people have started asking when will it be our turn. However, as we've said, we're not going to rush things but wait for God's proper timing. We are now starting to see each other most weekends, and I'm glad to see Vanessa gradually becoming more involved at my church. We've been able to tick off a few more relationship milestones so far this year, big and small: the biggest one was introducing our parents to each other on Australia Day, and I think it's fair to say that the meeting was a success. As for a small but significant trust-building milestone, we recently went on an Easter holiday retreat with church friends near Wilsons Promontory in south-eastern Victoria, and on the way home, I let Vanessa drive part of the way back to her place. It was her first time driving my car, and given the difficult road conditions, she handled it well.
Yet another significant change that may be about to happen later this year is a move to the UK to teach for one year. There's a lot to cover about that, so I'll leave it for my next post.
Cheers and God bless!
