I.

This time is a gift I give
Sharing these pictures on a page
The words a gift from the past
So that you remember the age

This love is a gift I give
To teach is to learn is to teach
Wisdom is the gift I offer
Put within your reach

II. (Rolling Haiku)

The gift keeps giving
To the wisdom of learning
Each generation
To the wisdom of learning
The gift keeps giving

Submitted to No Theme Thursday

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Today I’m feeling:

Tired because I had slept too much over the last two days and so struggled to sleep last night along with Cap wanting to be let out and back in again three times.  I hope to get home in the early afternoon and catch up on some sleep then.  The air is still making me feel dizzy and sick too.

Today I’m grateful for:

The four staff at the post office who I communicated with Google Translate telling them that I didn’t want to pay customs tax on a parcel from Yukari in Japan.  The shirt and CDs were already expensive and I don’t want to have to pay even more just to receive them.

Anyway, in my mind I’m already resigned to having to pay the tax but I thought that I would try my best to not and the four guys were all a little stuck as it is just their job to collect the money and send it to the customs people.

I explained that the things in the parcel were just some stuff that I left in Japan when I was visiting there and it was just being sent back to me.  The value on the customs declaration is just for insurance claims if it gets lost.  They were sympathetic but said they just collected the money.

This would be different in Australia where you have a good chance of not paying import duty if you can argue a good case as I have done in the past on several occasions.

Well, as it was up to the customs people I asked them to call them and explain the situation.  They tried but said there was no answer, maybe because it was lunchtime.  OK, when you’ve talked to them you can call me and I gave them my phone number and left.

I doubt that they will call as none of them speak English so I will go back in a day or two and see what the situation is.

The best thing about today was:

Getting my grading files all done and dusted by 9.30am, allowing me time to enjoy coffee before a little bit of shopping, where, finally, Big C has the Strawberry Granola in stock again.

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

I suppose the situation above that I describe about the customs tax is out of my control and I dealt with it calmly and softly.  There was no point in getting upset with the staff at the post office – they were just doing their job.

How do I deal with uncertainty?

I remind myself that everything is uncertain.  When you consider that everything is uncertain and that you have been dealing with this reality for 56 years already, you might not be exactly sure how you deal with it but like my mum always said you ‘just get on with it.’

I have become more flexible and accepting of change over time, something I know that Hayden often struggles with.  I have also reduced my expectations around things being a certain way – Thailand has taught me this quite well.