Tag: dailyprompt
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My Virtual To-Read List
What books do you want to read? I’ve got a to-read list that, if I’m honest, looks like I’ve been downloading books the way some people buy grocery items: on the assumption they’ll be useful later. But when I line the titles up, it’s not random. It’s a self-portrait. There’s a part of me that’s…
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Australia Day
Write about a few of your favourite family traditions. As I write this, it’s 26 January—Australia Day. It’s the official national day of Australia, marking the 1788 landing of the First Fleet and the raising of the Union Flag of Great Britain at Sydney Cove. It’s also a contentious day which divides people. I personally…
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Two Kinds of Leisure
What do you enjoy doing most in your leisure time? I’ve realised I don’t really have one kind of leisure. I have two—quiet rest and active rest—and I seem to need both. Quiet rest is where my mind gets room to breathe. That’s mostly writing. Not writing to impress anyone, or to prove something, or…
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Valley of the Waters
Name an attraction or town close to home that youstill haven’t got around to visiting. I visit the Blue Mountains once or twice every year, but for reasons I can’t quite explain, I’ve never done the Valley of the Waters Walk at Wentworth Falls. I drive past the sign at the turn-off, think that would…
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Five Kinds of Fun
List five things you do for fun. Body fun: I’m an active person. Sport is fun for me, especially football — not just the contest, but the camaraderie of being part of a cohesive team. The best moments are when everything just clicks and you start playing attractive football without forcing it. Mind fun: I…
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Friday Night Makeover
If you could make your pet understand one thing, what would it be? You look beautiful when you let us brush you. Some households do Friday night footy. We do Friday night brush the dog (I know — we live on the edge). Our dog has a beautiful coat — dark on top, but with…
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Petros
Write about your first name: its meaning, significance, etymology, etc. The name Peter comes from the Greek Πέτρος (Petros), meaning “rock” or “stone.” It’s one of those names with an instant personality attached to it: steady, solid, dependable. It also how the ancient city of Petra got its name — same Greek word, different purpose.…
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A Curator of Life Stories
What is your dream job? If money didn’t exist, I’d love to be a curator of life stories. I’d want to sit with an elderly person who can no longer write their story for themselves, and help them shape it. Not by putting words in their mouth, but by listening closely—reflecting back not only what…
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What Makes a Good Leader?
Leadership isn’t something a person owns. It’s something a community recognises. People decide whether they will follow you, and they keep testing that decision over time. Character matters because leaders lead people and shape communities. Skill and strategy help, but without integrity they don’t last. Here are three tests that sit underneath most leadership assessments.…
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Remembered Well
Can you share a positive example of where you’ve felt loved? I’ve learned that being loved isn’t always a warm feeling. Sometimes it comes as a question. “Are you going to stay on?” When people ask that, they’re not only asking about a contract. They’re saying: we’ve grown used to you. We trust you. We’d…
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Closing Tabs
Where can you reduce clutter in your life? I sometimes think of about clutter as open tabs – the low-grade pressure running in the background, the feeling that life is always slightly unfinished. We’re in the declutter process at the moment. We’re currently living in a five-bedroom house, and in a couple of years we…
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The Calm at Our Feet
The Calm at Our Feet I think my favourite animal is the one that helps me identify what I’m longing for. That’s why it’s dogs. And why, if I’m honest, it’s Nia. She’s a black seal border collie who turned two recently, and she is equal parts joy and steadiness. Give her a basketball and…
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House Rules for Online Communication
In what ways do you communicate online? Online communication, for me, isn’t a toolbox so much as a building: same address, different rooms, different dynamics, different outcomes. Email: This is the study. The good reading lamp. The filing cabinet. It is very adult. Everything said here can be printed, forwarded, rediscovered in 2029, and used…
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A New Kind of Freedom
Think back on your most memorable road trip. Late May 2021, between the two NSW COVID lockdowns, we took a road trip because it was the easiest kind of travel that still felt possible. No airports, no border rules, no sudden cancellations. It wasn’t the trip we would have chosen in a normal year. It…
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Dried Figs and Yoghurt
What snack would you eat right now? I try not to snack. Not because snacking is inherently bad, but because I’m old enough now to know how quickly I put on weight if I pretend my body still runs on the metabolism of my twenties. When you’re younger, you can eat a little here and…
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The Roosters Jersey
Describe an item you were incredibly attached to as a youth.What became of it? The item I was most attached to as a boy was a rugby league jersey: the Eastern Suburbs Roosters (now the Sydney Roosters). These days, the Roosters are one of the glamour clubs. They’ve been successful for a long time, and…
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A Life Mission
What is your mission? I have dedicated my life to helping people grow. That has taken different forms in different seasons, but the thread has been remarkably consistent. I did it as a parish minister, walking alongside people as they grew in their knowledge and love of God. I did it as a husband, taking…
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What Makes A Long Life Good?
What are your thoughts on the concept of living a very long life? I find myself thinking a lot about the idea of living a very long life, because my parents are now living the questions that longevity raises. My mother is 91 and in a nursing home with dementia. It is getting worse each…
The Afterword 