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Dear Inner Circle,
A gorgeous Aboriginal lady stopped me in the street this morning. “You know I’m a spiritual woman, don’t you?” “Yes. I know it and I love it,” I replied. “Well,” she said, “Lately I’ve been dreaming about you. I saw some long grass and you were laying down in it. As I was looking at you, you turned into a butterfly, a white butterfly, and then you flew off into a rainbow”.
After a bit of a pause she said, “I don’t think you’re going to be with us for long”. We both paused for a bit while her kindly eyes penetrated deeply into my soul. “That day will be a bit like falling in love,” I said. “How do you mean?” “Well, when you fall in love, you never really know what you’re getting into but you know every cell of your being is being called and you just trust that it is being called to something good”. She started to smile. “I don’t know if I’ve got a long time or a short time but I think the day I fly off into a rainbow will be a good day”. Her face broke into the broadest smile and she said, “For me too”.[vc_row columns_on_tablet=”keep” padding_top=”0″ padding_bottom=”0″][vc_column h_text_align=”left” h_text_align_mobile=”left” v_align=”v-align-middle” use_background=”” width=”1/1″][tm_image image_id=”244″ link_image=”none” textarea_html_bkg_color=”#ffffff” caption_type=””][/tm_image][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row columns_on_tablet=”keep” padding_top=”50″ padding_bottom=”50″][vc_column h_text_align=”left” h_text_align_mobile=”left” v_align=”v-align-middle” use_background=”” width=”1/1″][tm_textblock textarea_html_bkg_color=”#ffffff”]After the lovely moment shared with this Aboriginal woman, I turned to walk on to Wayside, and she called out, “Can you help me?” She rarely misses an opportunity to ask me for money. I opened my wallet, quite confident that it was empty and was shocked to find I had ten dollars. “Ten dollars would be good,” she said. “Gosh,” I said, “How much might this have cost me if you had good news?”
With many tears and the kind of sobbing that comes from the boots, a young woman told me how her boyfriend had forced her to be intimate with two of his friends. Notwithstanding many indicators that this is an abusive relationship, the woman loves the man and wants to please him. She has been pushed beyond her own boundaries on many occasions but this recent event has paralysed her. She said that she felt numb but her words indicated that she felt violated and ashamed to have given into the demands. All three men pestered her until she accommodated them. She certainly didn’t feel loved. She felt used. Her sense of self-dread was so profound that she used the phrase, “I guess they got what they deserved,” at least three times. It broke my heart because this is not a stupid woman. This is an intelligent, attractive woman who has been so abused in her life that she thinks any intimacy she might give, is an act of judgement against another person. As it happens, I know the boyfriend and saw him up near the main drag of Kings Cross. I walked over to him even though he was with some mates and asked if he could make a time to come and talk with me about his girlfriend. His countenance became serious and he acted as if he would be pleased to talk in my office later. “Poor Suzie,” he said, “I’m doing all I can to help her”. Suzie was in my office again today. I’m helping her move interstate and referring her to some good support.
We’re in a season where people are dying again in big numbers. I’m so grateful for my sidekick in Kings Cross, Pastor Jon, who is currently trying to squash four ceremonies into this already busy week. Most ministers would feel quite stretched to do even a couple of funerals in a week, but Jon will take all of this in his stride and everyone will know that his heart is big enough to stand with people in their grief. He’s another tower of weakness.
As always, there is plenty of good news to balance the bad at Wayside. A tall fellow threw his arms around me on my way in the door. The court yesterday dealt with his matter. The result was much better than anyone expected and he gave the credit to me for my letter of support. I don’t recall writing the letter but I was pleased to share this happy moment. Another lady yesterday approached me with tears streaming down her face. She clearly knew who I was but no bells were ringing in my head. She simply hugged me and said, “The world is a better place even when I say your name”. She didn’t want to talk further. After a long embrace, she walked away quickly. I’m embarrassed to admit that I have no idea who this was but count myself a lucky man to have played an important part in a life.Thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham
Rev Graham Long AM
CEO & Pastor
The Wayside Chapel
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