Sinbad the Sailor

April 30, 2010
by Rodney Olsen
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I’ve got a confession to make. I don’t like your children quite as much as I love mine.

That means that at times I’ve been to concerts of various kinds where my kids are involved and I’ve been thrilled to see what Emily and James have done … but after endless performances by other people’s children I’ve sometimes had a secret wish that the earth would open up and swallow me. It’s not that the other children aren’t good at what they’ve done, it’s just that I haven’t had the same level of interest that I’ve had in my own children.

I thought last night would be a bit like that. We went to see Sinbad the Sailor, performed by the students of Thornlie Christian College. Emily had a part right at the start of the production. When the curtains opened there she was, centre stage. She delivered her lines so very well but once her part was over I thought my mind would start to wander. No chance. The performance was so funny and engaging that I was a little disappointed when it was all over.

The acting skills were outstanding and drama teacher Chris Willesee, the director, has every reason to be very pleased with what his team was able to achieve.

The second and final show is on tonight at the Don Russell Performing Arts Centre and I’m told that there are still tickets available. Mind you, there are a few less tickets available than there was a short time ago. After seeing how wonderful the show was last night we’ve booked tickets for tonight’s show too.



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Visiting Fairbridge Village

April 17, 2010
by Rodney Olsen
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Wolfe Cottage - Fairbridge, Western AustraliaYou may have noticed I’ve been missing in action for the last several days. I was spending some time away with my family in Wolfe Cottage at Fairbridge Village near Pinjarra.

Pauline and I took Emily and James to share a house with Pauline’s mum, Pauline’s brother and his four children, and Pauline’s sister, her husband with their two children. We had a great time sharing the cottage.

If you’ve never been to Fairbridge it’s well worth checking it out. The village offers a range of accommodation and all the money raised through hiring out the various cottages goes back into helping young Western Australians in various ways.

Fairbridge is a major youth charity in Western Australia and the only charity in Australia that owns a whole nationally heritage-listed town site.

Kingsley Fairbridge saw a dream in creating a nurturing and positive environment for young people to grow. He established Fairbridge Village (now nationally heritage-listed) as a world first, in 1912.

Fairbridge runs a myriad of programs and services for young people and has partnership agreements with dozens of other youth organisations. Fairbridge works with children with a disability, young people at risk, young people with drug problems, the unemployed, young people in our justice system, young people who are struggling with life, indigenous young people and refugees, through to gifted young people. Fairbridge helps young people reach their full potential and bring about long term positive sustainable change in their lives.

Fairbridge uses a holistic approach to working with young people and their families. Services provided range from mentoring, leadership development, life skills, interest free loans, accommodation, education, accredited training, employment opportunities and adventure camps.

I’ll tell you more about what we did over the past few days in coming posts.



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Do Some More Tricks

February 18, 2010
by Rodney Olsen
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Ballet at the Quarry 2010I have to admit to being an uncultured swine. When I should be marvelling at the grace and beauty of a magnificent artistic performance I’m more often thinking, “That was a really cool move. Do some more tricks like that.”

I went out on a date on Friday night. I took our thirteen year old daughter Emily to the opening night of Ballet at the Quarry by West Australian Ballet. The programme featured Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring.

It’s been a while since I’ve been to the Quarry Amphitheatre and it was wonderful to be reminded of what a magnificent venue it is. In the eighties it went from being a disused limestone quarry to an amazing performance venue.

As for the ballet … I’ve got to admit that I don’t really understand it all that well but I do enjoy the sheer athleticism that the performers display.

There are times that I’m caught by the beauty of the dance but for a lot of the time I’m just amazed at the talent of dancers who can train their bodies to be able to achieve what they achieve. The fitness, the timing, the precision, it all amazes me. I’m one of the least coordinated people I know so I find it even more incredible.

I sometimes wish that I was one of those people who can appreciate all the finer aspects of such a performance but on the other hand, if someone like me can enjoy a night out at the ballet, I’m sure that just about anyone can.

Even if I didn’t quite get it, I had a wonderful evening with my beautiful daughter and I’m looking forward to the next opportunity to take in a little more culture.



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Getting adventurous with your family

January 20, 2010
by Rodney Olsen
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It’s a wonder that I don’t have constant back pain, or at least deep psychological issues, after being cramped in the back of an EH Holden station wagon for days on end.

Back when I was about 8 years of age, we packed up our family for the holiday of a lifetime. Dad, Mum and five kids with luggage all packed in station wagon for a memorable drive across Australia to catch up with relatives on the other side of the country. We were towing a trailer with what was called a ‘caravanette’. It was pretty much a glorified tent attached to the trailer frame. Dad shared the driving with my eldest brother who had recently turned 17 and got his drivers license. (The photo in this post was taken much earlier with the family leaning against what I remember as an EK Holden wagon. Yep, I’m the cute little one.)

The five children, of which I’m the youngest, slept in the tent thingy while Dad and Mum dropped the seats and slept in the car each night.

The trip across was cramped but not too bad. On the way home we’d bought all kinds of things that took up even more room (such as a kitchen bin with a swinging lid) so one of brothers and I were forced into a small area in the very back of the station wagon.

The conditions weren’t ideal but I loved that trip. It was a family adventure and all these years later I still think about that trip.

This morning during my radio programme on 98.5 Sonshine FM I was joined by David and Charissa Scotford for our Growing Families segment. We discussed family adventures and looked at those experiences that make great memories for our families. They see great importance in adventures of various kinds in enhancing family life.

As we are about to become parents of a teenager, we’ve been encouraged to keep the ‘lines of communication’ open and to make sure our teenagers have a chance to talk to us as they wrestle through this time of change.

Whether you pack up the car and head off around Australia or simply make time for an evening walk as a family, we need to be intentional about making time to spend together as a family and giving them opportunities to talk, before our children have all grown up and left the family home. – David and Charissa Scotford

I wonder what family adventures you remember from your childhood. Are there memories made many years ago that helped shape you? What kinds of adventures are you planning with your family?

If you’d like to hear our discussion about adventures and making memories, as well as some great input from listeners, click the pkay button on the audio player at the bottom of this post.

[audio:http://mpegmedia.sonshinefm.ws/feeds/GRO200110_1430.mp3]

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Facebook Fuels Divorce

December 23, 2009
by Rodney Olsen
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Facebook.jpgCould our online lives be destroying our real world lives?

The Telegraph has published an article that claims Facebook is being cited in a growing number of divorce petitions.

Apparently many people are using Facebook and other social networking sites to look up old flames or to find new ones. Many don’t see the harm in flirting with online contacts.

Divorce lawyers claim the explosion in the popularity of websites such as Facebook and Bebo is tempting to people to cheat on their partners.

Suspicious spouses have also used the websites to find evidence of flirting and even affairs which have led to divorce.

One law firm, which specialises in divorce, claimed almost one in five petitions they processed cited Facebook.

So is Facebook to blame?

As we all come to terms with new technology we need to be constantly examining the boundaries that are required to keep our relationships safe, but I can’t help wondering if we also need to re-visit and reinforce some old boundaries.

My marriage vows included a promise to ‘forsake all others’ and that goes for every part of life. I started this post asking if our online lives could be destroying our real world lives but that’s really a deceptive question. It’s a question which presupposes that those ‘two lives’ are somehow separate. They’re not. The real world real you is really the person punching the keys on the keyboard and it’s really you who is flirting with another real person via a real keyboard and computer somewhere else in the world. It may be on the other side of the planet or next door, but real people are involved.

I talk about my family a fair bit on both Facebook and my blog. I’m not leaving anything open for interpretation. I love my wife and whether I’m at home, at work, out with friends or online, people should be in no doubt that I will continue to forsake all others.

I don’t buy the argument that flirting is just light hearted fun. Whether it’s online or offline, if you’re married, flirting should be reserved for your spouse.

So is Facebook fueling divorce? I don’t think so. I think it simply provides another opportunity for people to act out the things that are already in their hearts.



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