Highlights of 2008

For the last three years on this blog (2007, 2006, 2005), the turning of the year has been occasion for looking back at the events that made up the year. 2008 has been different in many senses, and instead of writing one long list as before, I have decided on a more sectional approach, with a few headlines.

Australia

One of the big changes has been the move to Sydney, where I have now spent more than seven months. A couple months are left before Katrine and I return to Denmark in April next year. Highlights of the time spent around here include:

• Attending Fox Valley Community Church
• Passion World Tour in Sydney
• Meeting C and D, and many others
• Preaching in English for the first time

Travels

No new countries this year, but several new places, and still lots of travelling and great fun, especially in Australia. Here’s a list of noteworthy destinations and experiences:

• Paris, with the Jutland Academic Choir
• Alice Springs and Uluru
• Darwin and Kakadu
• Cairns
• Brisbane
• Hervey Bay and Fraser Island
• Mackay region
• Whitsunday Islands
• Northern New South Wales
• Blue Mountains
• And of course lots of stuff in Sydney

Graduating

Another highlight of the year has been writing my MA thesis, which was a very good experience. I really enjoyed the studying and writing process, and I enjoyed working with LEGO Australia. Of course, I was happy that Aarhus University subsidised my travel expenses to Australia, and also thrilled with my final grade of 10 (next to highest) on the Danish scale.

Other highlights

Include:

• Singing in the choir for the Passion of St John in Aarhus, in March
• Playing worship music for National Youth Day in Nærum
• Couple training weekend
• Camp meeting in Denmark
• Talking about Aarhus Cafe Church at Vejlefjord

The future

While New Year is a time for looking back, looking back is also looking forward. The most important event and decision of 2008 has by far been my engagement to Katrine. And although the main event is still to come, a highlight also of this year has been that decision, that relationship, and the first steps of planning next year’s wedding. If any of my readers are around Nærum (Copenhagen) on June 13, you’re welcome to drop by at our wedding ceremony.

2008 has been an important year, but 2009 promises to be just as eventful, and hopefully just as joyous. I look forward to seeing you. Happy New Year!

Where Are You From?

It is a most fundamental question, and one of the first questions we ask when meeting someone new. (Second only to: what do you do?) But recently I have come to see that question as somewhat of a challenge. For some people it’s easy. They grew up in one spot, their family probably still lives there, and they call it home, even though they have since moved away. For others, like me, the world is not nearly as simple as that.

Born in Denmark with a Danish father and Norwegian mother, I usually felt mostly Danish. The four childhood years spent in the U.S., and subsequent moving around within Denmark didn’t inflict on my nationality, but I still never had one place to call home. The city of Aarhus was my home for nine years, but whenever people would ask me: where are you from? I would reply with a lengthy explanation, almost an excuse.

When my parents moved to Australia, Sydney became another home, as impossible as that may sound to people who have never lived in more than one country. I visited once each year and took pride whenever someone mistook me for being a ‘real’ Aussie. Never mind that this is a country of immigrants, and a lot of people here weren’t actually born here. But now, having been here for seven consecutive months, I still struggle with answering the question.

I live in Sydney, but I’m from Denmark. I’m here on a holiday, but I also have work and a home. I have a Danish passport and student ID card, but an Australian bank account and mobile phone number. When I try to get a student discount, I answer that I’m from Denmark. When clerks ask for my postcode, I reply 2076. So where am I from? Sydney? Denmark? Previously, one of my favourite answers has been: “Well, my passport says Denmark.” But while here, I’d rather be a Sydneysider, and while in Europe, I’ll settle for being a Dane.

What am I trying to say here? That geography isn’t everything. Where I am from does not answer the question of who I am. Identity is a whole lot more than that.

It’s Beginning to Look… a Tiny Bit Like Christmas

It’s the second day of December. And it’s the second day of summer. And here in Australia, the latter is more evident. I am approaching my 7^th holiday season in Sydney, and while this is now the single location in which I have celebrated Christmas the most often, this year is not quite the same.

Usually, I have been in Denmark for the build-up period, experiencing autumn and winter and rueing the dark and rain. The joys of travelling to the middle of summer at an instant (if 24 hours of flying time qualifies as an instant) are obvious: no more cold, getting wet not from incessant rain but from gentle waves at a sunny beach.

This time, though, I have been in Australia all through winter and spring, and summer feels quite in place. Christmas, however, does not. Sure, Christmas trees are up, both in our home and on streets and plazas. Holiday shopping is well underway for a lot of people. On Sunday, we’ll be going the Messiah at the Sydney Opera House. Things are gearing up for the festive season, but it does seem a bit awkward in the heat.

Which once again highlights the brilliance of early church fathers when they chose to merge the pagan midwinter’s feast with celebrating the birth of Jesus. Light is best appreciated in light of darkness. Grace is best appreciated in light of condemnation. It’s easier to see a great light if you’re walking in darkness.

I will enjoy a long and warm summer. And don’t get me wrong, I am looking forward to Christmas. But I’m finally beginning to see that more distinct seasons have at least one advantage: it gives you something to look forward to. For now, living in the moment seems almost too easy.