Phrase Phase
Over here you are a mate...
it's good on you not good for you...
McDonalds is Maccas...
Trolleys are Trams and strollers/shopping carts are trolleys...
it's a toilet not a bathroom or restroom...
girls are sheilas and guys are blokes...
football is soccer, rugby is like football, and cricket is more popular than baseball...
when you go out it's to a pub not a bar...
cars pump petrol instead of gas...
you take the rail not the metro, the subway, the T or the tube...
pb&j is considered a dessert...
tim tams come in EVERY flavor...
A regular coffee is a long black...
alcohol is expensive so everything is BYO...
Rubbish cans are red and recycling is yellow...
kosher isn't common but all things Asian are...
Myers is Macys and everything else is American...
everyone that lives here, loves it here and I'm learning to.
I'm still trying to figure out a lot of things like my favorite places in Sydney. Where to meet people? Where to shop? Where can I get my eyebrows threaded??? (without having to walk for 3 hours being directed to 4 different places and all of them being closed) Where's the best take-out anything? Where can I get good coffee without getting a medium sized cup posing as a large and costing the equivalent of a meal? Little details I can't answer just yet.
Here's what I do know. I live 20 minutes from the beach in one direction and UNSW's campus in the other. I live in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, apparently the safe part. My office is right by the Harbor or Harbour. Quay is pronounced 'key' here. The harbour and circular quay are all the same area. My co-workers come from everywhere and somehow everyday I go into work I find something or someone that has inspired me in a new way and that will never get old.
Today at work we had a staff meeting and a future post I'm going to have to dedicate solely to Opportunity International Australia but for now I'm just going to talk about the staff meeting. Learning the bigger picture and seeing how the puzzle pieces of an organization fit together is an extraordinary privilege and beautiful process to be a part of. After training or meetings, since Opportunity is motivated by the call to help others in Christianity, there are prayer devotions. During today's devotion, I was so inspired I had to control myself from tearing. My parents, my family and my upbringing has always been so devout that as a result I kept those values but remained more secular in many ways not necessarily religious. Since I came to Australia the only person I could thank was God, for blessing me with such wonderful circumstances especially given that I came to an unknown country 9,935 miles away from my home. I honestly think that I found Opportunity and somehow was chosen for this internship because I would find something here in Sydney and at Opportunity that would have a lasting impact on me.
Our CEO today during devotions, shared the story of the Good Samaritan that was shared with him as it reflects Opportunity's mission, values, vision and motivation. There are so many layers I can't even begin to unpack it in the same way and do it justice. Of the many things said that resonated with me were are you working here because of what motivates and inspires you or are you only here as long as its convenient? I thought about it for a long time in regards to Opportunity and past jobs or positions I have held. I realized that nothing about coming to Australia was convenient for me. I realized that nothing about my decision to choose Sydney over Melbourne was logical or convenient for me. I realized that I take the most inconvenient paths and cause challenges for myself, but I have never viewed the challenges I created for myself as a burden. Those challenges and the inconvenient choices I make on a daily basis are the same things that keep me happy, give me peace of mind and drive my motivation to continue.
For me, inconvenience is a gift that helps guide me.
it's good on you not good for you...
McDonalds is Maccas...
Trolleys are Trams and strollers/shopping carts are trolleys...
it's a toilet not a bathroom or restroom...
girls are sheilas and guys are blokes...
football is soccer, rugby is like football, and cricket is more popular than baseball...
when you go out it's to a pub not a bar...
cars pump petrol instead of gas...
you take the rail not the metro, the subway, the T or the tube...
pb&j is considered a dessert...
tim tams come in EVERY flavor...
A regular coffee is a long black...
alcohol is expensive so everything is BYO...
Rubbish cans are red and recycling is yellow...
kosher isn't common but all things Asian are...
Myers is Macys and everything else is American...
everyone that lives here, loves it here and I'm learning to.
I'm still trying to figure out a lot of things like my favorite places in Sydney. Where to meet people? Where to shop? Where can I get my eyebrows threaded??? (without having to walk for 3 hours being directed to 4 different places and all of them being closed) Where's the best take-out anything? Where can I get good coffee without getting a medium sized cup posing as a large and costing the equivalent of a meal? Little details I can't answer just yet.
Here's what I do know. I live 20 minutes from the beach in one direction and UNSW's campus in the other. I live in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, apparently the safe part. My office is right by the Harbor or Harbour. Quay is pronounced 'key' here. The harbour and circular quay are all the same area. My co-workers come from everywhere and somehow everyday I go into work I find something or someone that has inspired me in a new way and that will never get old.
Today at work we had a staff meeting and a future post I'm going to have to dedicate solely to Opportunity International Australia but for now I'm just going to talk about the staff meeting. Learning the bigger picture and seeing how the puzzle pieces of an organization fit together is an extraordinary privilege and beautiful process to be a part of. After training or meetings, since Opportunity is motivated by the call to help others in Christianity, there are prayer devotions. During today's devotion, I was so inspired I had to control myself from tearing. My parents, my family and my upbringing has always been so devout that as a result I kept those values but remained more secular in many ways not necessarily religious. Since I came to Australia the only person I could thank was God, for blessing me with such wonderful circumstances especially given that I came to an unknown country 9,935 miles away from my home. I honestly think that I found Opportunity and somehow was chosen for this internship because I would find something here in Sydney and at Opportunity that would have a lasting impact on me.
Our CEO today during devotions, shared the story of the Good Samaritan that was shared with him as it reflects Opportunity's mission, values, vision and motivation. There are so many layers I can't even begin to unpack it in the same way and do it justice. Of the many things said that resonated with me were are you working here because of what motivates and inspires you or are you only here as long as its convenient? I thought about it for a long time in regards to Opportunity and past jobs or positions I have held. I realized that nothing about coming to Australia was convenient for me. I realized that nothing about my decision to choose Sydney over Melbourne was logical or convenient for me. I realized that I take the most inconvenient paths and cause challenges for myself, but I have never viewed the challenges I created for myself as a burden. Those challenges and the inconvenient choices I make on a daily basis are the same things that keep me happy, give me peace of mind and drive my motivation to continue.
For me, inconvenience is a gift that helps guide me.
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