Wildlife

I have started a blog about my wildlife photos and experiences. I am planning to make wildlife a far larger part of my life in the future, and with this in mind I have decided to post the pics I take and the things I learn on a blog. Feel free to take a look at wildlife.perfectpic.co.za

This pic of a Cape cobra was taken after it fled into a tree in an effort to hide from us.

On days like this ...

I fail so miserably at believing what my blog title says.

On days like this I think about what lies ahead, and I look at the piles of unpaid bills , and I cringe when the phone rings and the display reads "ID withheld".

And this burden becomes to much. I become focused on my needs and fears. I become stressed out and depressed.

And in all of this I make my God small. I limit Him to what I believe is possible. And to what I believe He thinks of me and what I believe He thinks I am worthy of.

I believe that God is almighty and Loving. But somewhere I lose the plot and I believe that He is all of those things to others , but not to me. That I am different. That I do not deserve any of His love and Grace and care.

Some days are difficult. Some days really hurts. In fact some days really suck!
This is one of those days.

And then to top it all off, I feel guilty for having days like this. What a stupid cycle !

32

Seeing as I turn 32 today I thought I would write a post of the 32 highlights of my life. one highlight for every year. The scary part was that I realized that there were quite a number of years that I would not be able to list highlights for.

Make no mistake - there were some .

• Like the day I met my wife.
• The day we got married.
• The day she was accepted as a probationary Methodist minister.
• The day I got my first digital SLR camera.

But surely not enough to make up 32. Especially not if I had to limit them to one per year.

So I decided that I would rather make another list. and even this one may take some thinking. So here we go :

32 things you may not have known about me :

1. Although ,by all accounts, I look mean , I have a very small heart.
2. I do not see myself as a particularly good photographer
3. I am always surprised to see myself in a photo ( I never think of myself as so much bigger than most other people)
4. I was the nerd at school (not the smart geek type, just the guy that everyone bullied)
5. I studied computer-systems-engineering for a year and then quit.
6. In Matric I wanted to be an air force fighter pilot
7. I was Youth Pastor in the Dutch Reformed Church for a year
8. I met my wife when she was dating my best friend
9. I struggle to see God as a loving Father
10. I do not have a very good relationship with my own father.
11. I would love to own a motorbike. I have a softspot for the Honda Transalp 700
    
12. I would love to have a go at being a rally driver
13. I love Christian music.
14. I love Abba and classical music.
15. Sometimes I will listen to heavy metal (though still Christian Metal)
16. I google my name sometimes
17. I like to cook
18. At one stage after school I was super fit and won 32km cycle race against pros. I was on a borrowed mountain bike.
19. I would like to start cycling again.
20. I hate running (it hurts my back)
21. I am very practically minded
22. My first computer was a Commodore Vic 20. I was 8.
23. I have designed at least 12 websites.
24. If I could do any job in the world , I would like to be a Helicopter Pilot.
25. I like to read Terry Pratchett's Discworld books
26. I like to sing
27. I like new challenges but get bored once I have mastered them.
28. I have very few close friends
29. I am not very good with money (and at the moment I am paying the price for my stupidity)
30. I love gadgets.
31. I have a thing for torches and flashlights. I have to really restrain myself from buying new ones when I see them in a store.
32. I would like to learn to drive big interlink trucks.

Today

A word of thanks.

Thank you for taking the time to meet with us. Thank you for spending time to set our minds at peace and calm some fears.

Thank you for being 'real' where so many people and Christians are fake.

Thank you that I know that Alet will be in safe hands.

Thank you for your friendship, compassion and care.

And thank you for the cap. I will wear it with pride , knowing that a good friend gave it to me.

Thank you!.

May God bless you and guide you in this time ahead. May His will be done in the days and decisions that follow.

It is a privilege to call you my friend.

The Shack

I have recently read , as I am sure have many others, a book called 'The Shack' by William P Young.

To be honest , I read it in one day. Then cried my eyes out. Then started reading it again two days later.

I can not recommend this book enough. I do think that it is necessary to point out that the word 'shack' in a South African context has a negative connotation to it and that this 'shack' is not the shack that South Africans have in mind.
Whilst I am surely no great theologian , I will say that this book resonated with my soul and that I have read nothing in this book that I felt was ,if not biblically true then , not spiritually true.

All I can say is: Leave your prejudice behind and read the book from beginning to end. It is awesome. I am sure that you will meet and experience , and maybe catch a glimpse into, the heart of God like never before.

I wish...

When I was young my dad owned a Honda CX500 like this one. His was blue.

Specs : 500cc V-Twin
Liquid cooled
Shaft Drive
manufactured : '78 to '83

What a nice old bike. Lots of torque.Very forgiving. My dad sold his bike for R2500 and I was mad at him for months. I learned to ride on that bike. And ever since I had a thing for the CX's. I have always wanted to own one.

A while back I discovered one standing at an Engineering works here Uitenhage. Same colour and design as the one in the pic. It needs some work, and exhausts , but the otherwise it is not in bad shape.

And I have been dreaming and scheming and raking my brains for ways to acquire this bike. And slowly I have come to the realization that I will not own this bike. There is just no way that I will be able to scrape together the money.

And so I will keep on dreaming. Maybe one day.....

Today

1. gone fishing
2. Earned some money (thank you Father)
3. had nice food to eat
4..
5..

This is so much harder than I thought it would be.

And yet I know that I have so much to be thankful for.

aha wait.

4. Alet
5. Jaco

I understand.

Thank you.

5 things a day

I have a little plug in on my web browser(Firefox) called "Stumble". Stumble allows me to specify things that interest me , and then by clicking on the stumble button it would direct me to random websites that deal with one of those interests . Very addictive to be honest.

But any way .. This evening I stumbled onto this site , with a very long story about the jewish feast of tabernacles. At the end of this post the author mentions how (s)he found that writing down 5 good things that (s)he expereienced per day , helped to keep him/her from depression.

And I thought that this was a good idea. And so I will also try to do two things.

1. blog more regularly
2. post 5 good things per day ( when I blog)

So here goes .

Today I experienced God thru the following 5 things.

1. I watched a movie with my wife called " Ouma se slim kind"
2. I had coffee with my friend Neville and his wife.
3. I listened to a couple of worship songs on my pc.
4. I had coffee with my wife in a coffee shop.
5. Alet took Jaco to school this morning and I could stay in bed till late.

It is amazing to note how hard I had to think to find these 5 things. Yet I realize that God blessed me with so much more.

I pray that my eyes will open and that I will see all the things I have to be thankfull for every day.

God's Clown

This morning I was stunned at how God used a clown to speak to me and Alet. We know this clown and after his show I went up to speak to him. When we made to leave he walked with us with the words "I just want to bless your wife"

And then while speaking to us he made this balloon flower and gave it to Alet whilst writing on the leaf :Luke 12:24. Me and Alet both had to swallow hard to stop the tears. Not that I think that he knew or noticed. But today God used a clown to speak to us.

And so while he spoke to us/her he quoted these words :

22 Then turning to his disciples, Jesus said, "So I tell you, don't worry about everyday life--whether you have enough food to eat or clothes to wear.
23 For life consists of far more than food and clothing.
24 Look at the ravens. They don't need to plant or harvest or put food in barns because God feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than any birds!
25 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Of course not!
26 And if worry can't do little things like that, what's the use of worrying over bigger things?
27 "Look at the lilies and how they grow. They don't work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are.
28 And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, won't he more surely care for you? You have so little faith!
29 And don't worry about food--what to eat and drink. Don't worry whether God will provide it for you.
30 These things dominate the thoughts of most people, but your Father already knows your needs.

Luke 12: 22 - 30

Now I know that Alet and I took away different things from this encounter. I will not comment on her side as I know that she will do so on her blog , but I will tell of my experience.

I was amazed that someone can be so in tune with God that God can use them to give us this message. I was stunned by the fact that God used this man and this flower to speak to us. And I was so touched by the love and care in this clown's voice while he spoke to us.

Today I met a clown and a man who lives close to God.

The first post

The first post on a new blog is always the most difficult. I have so much to say. But how to start. And where to start. What to tell and what to leave. And so for now I will not say much.

My story I will tell. In due time. I am not much of a writer and so do not expect too much in the form of literary prose. I do not promise to post on a daily basis , but I will post occasionally. About things that bug me, or things that happen to me , or things I feel. An in all I hope that you will be able to see a normal human being trying to make sense of, and live life according to, God's will.

Enough said for now.