Autumn leaves fall and are swept out of sight ...

Welcome to Autumn! I'm appropriately listening to 'The First Day of Autumn' by Enya which is making me think the end of Summer's not so bad. Summer's my favourite time of year and I've had a fantasticly busy Summer, but Autumn is beautiful, and I'm sure will bring lots of challenging but exciting new experiences...

One of which is starting Uni this week! On the one hand I think it'll take a bit more getting used to than I anticipated, but on the other I've seen SO many people I know around campus and town that it reminds me I'm not alone in it all. I've also realised just how spoilt I've been for the past 5 years living next door to school - having to navigate my way into town by bus, bike or car is something I'll have to get used to (and isn't so bad a thing - biking will be great excercise, and I like going on bus' and people watching or contemplating). I think I'm liking all the subjects I chose - particularly Intro to Latin and Ancient Greek which'll be hard but fun. The other subjects I'm doing are Classics (no surprises there!), Philosophy and History, and also anthropology in the second semester which I'm really looking forward to. Oh and annoyingly though I managed to get through the entirity of year 12 without getting sick, I've managed to get some wierd fevery cold thing this week :S Oh well I can't complain really, a chance to get some good rest in :) It has meant though that I've found it a bit harder to be really 'with it' and make more of an effort to introduce myself to new people ...

Just to work backwards I also had a really good weekend - much of which has already been documented on Phili's blog articulately! An encouraging and thought provoking EFAC introduction to the Archbishop Jeffory Driver on Friday night - his own address was encouraging, and then the question time directed at him thought provoking. It brought my thinking about the 'women' issues such as ordination and in the home to the surface again, which is great! Saturday brought Ignition - a one stop training shop - where I did the youth ministry stream which was helpful and, dare I say it, ignited some ideas inside me. That night I accompanied Dan, Phili, Ali, Emily, Nick and Pat to 'Pluck' (a string trio - the two guys playing violin, and rather petite but agile girl playing cello) and then out to a fun Chinese dinner on Gouger street. Lots of fun and craziness! Sunday morning I did Sparklers for Mum (she was on the Women's Retreat, which went really well by the sounds of it) which was just fun - they're so gorgeous at that age (3-4 or 5ish), the comments they come out with! Then onto a Pancake Kitchen belated birthday lunch for Miz with Anne and Jordan, where we pored over a wedding magazine, and admired the rather sizeable ring we got her (eat that Jordan!). Before SAS I went to the new prayer meeting (which I'd forgotten to go to the previous fortnight) which I found quite encouraging - I find it hard to be disclipined in praying sometimes, so praying so specifically for prayer points in a group before the service helped shift my mindset to be more in line with God, and calm my scurrying mind.

Anyway, I'd better go get an early night as promised. Hopefully I'll sleep better than last night! *NB Thank goodness for Dad's (read: mine) - I felt very cared for as I was dropped off and picked up from each of my lectures, sniffling and keeping off a fever!