Going to register and discovering no registration was needed.
A week after Conference, and photos are still being uploaded onto Facebook. It prolongs the experience, obviously. It keeps us together, subconsciously. (Yeah, Chris Nolan’s Inception did that to me.) It makes me wonder, index finger on mouth Hello Kitty-like, why it was a week away from home like no other.
This medley, performed by the talented Israel Houghton, who was a Conference guest worship leader, will give you an idea of the prevailing mood over those dreamy wintry days in Sydney. Music speaks where words fail. Or when one doesn’t want to get wordy on the thing.
Please play.
The experience was probably a combination of things:
#1: Weather in the teens, which kept everyone cool (especially moodwise) and dry.
#2: Teens in our group, which kept everyone young at heart.
Many jumps at Manly
#3: Messages which spoke to the heart, which made us remember dreams and visions that had somehow grown cold.
#4: The warmth of old and new friends, whether it was podcasting in the 12-seater or hiding from the person who had gone to the toilet in a bid to frighten her that the group had gone. (And while we’re on the topic, why haven’t Sydneysiders embraced warm toilet seats the way the Japanese have?)
Hiding from Jennifer behind some unused boats
#5: These pictures are a sample of the last reason.
Manly Cool
So, the last reason: Maybe it was the wind at Manly. Maybe it was the way it blew our hair to pieces as we watched surfers ride the cold cold waves that rolled in from the Tasmanian Sea. We laughed, and were happy, and lived in the moment.
Surfers riding the Manly waves in the late afternoon
Tell me what you think.