The Afterword

Tag: life

  • Light and Shadow

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    Peter
    in

    When you’re a child, everything feels big. The days stretch long, the friendships feel forever, and even the smallest moment can fill the whole sky. Childhood is made of contrasts — light and shadow living side by side. I remember the joy first. Endless days with Robert, three doors up the street. We played until…

  • The Heirloom

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    Peter
    in

    Describe a family member My mother is ninety-one. Her memory drifts now, and her balance is unsteady. She no longer knows what day it is, or where she is. She knows that my father sleeps at home, but she can no longer remember where that home is. She lives in a nursing home now, where…

  • The Common Thread

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    Peter
    in

    What alternative career paths have you considered or are interested in? They say most people will work four or five different careers in their lifetime. That’s certainly been true for me — though looking back, I’m not sure I’ve ever really changed careers. The work has always been the same: helping things grow. I began…

  • History in Black and White

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    Peter
    in

    What major historical events do you remember? The first world event I remember is the death of President Kennedy. I was a kid in infants school. The news came through our black-and-white television — one my father built himself, his engineer’s pride sitting square in the corner of the lounge room. We were among the…

  • The Desert I Still Might Cross

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    Peter
    in

    What’s the biggest risk you’d like to take — but haven’t been able to? If I were a younger man, I might try to cross a desert. But I’m not, so I’ll settle for something more realistic — the Larapinta Trail in Central Australia. It runs 223 kilometres from Alice Springs to Mount Sonder, one…

  • When the World Is Asleep

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    Peter
    in

    What have you been working on? Sometimes the work begins when the world is asleep. Last night the phone rang well after midnight — a mother, frightened and far away, worried for her son who hadn’t been in touch since early evening. Her son is an international student staying in our residential college. She couldn’t…

  • The Boy Who Stepped In

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    Peter
    in

    What’s something most people don’t know about you? My first year at school was a blur of anxiety and confusion. I was only four, too young to understand what was happening. My best friend was still at home, nine months younger, and the playground felt like another planet. I hadn’t been to pre-school, so I…

  • Through Many Moves

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    Peter
    in

    What makes a good neighbour? I’ve moved a lot. Different streets, different locations. Each one teaches you something about people and how we live near each other. When I was a kid, our street was full of children. We were in and out of each other’s houses all the time. There were small irritations but…

  • Friendship at This Stage of Life

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    Peter
    in

    What could you try for the first time? I know it sounds strange, but I’m going to try something that comes innately to three- and four-year-olds. Something my dog does without thinking. I’m going to try to be more intentional about friendship. That might sound odd for someone who already has friends — some going…

  • What I’ve Been Putting Off

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    Peter
    in

    What have you been putting off doing? Why? Here’s a list of things I’ve been putting off: At first glance, it’s just a list of chores. But they form a quiet constellation — pieces of life I’ve postponed because they each deserve more than a rushed hour squeezed between meetings and errands. The boxes hold…

  • The Ripple Effect

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    Peter
    in

    If I had a million dollars to give away, I know exactly where it would go.It would go to people who believe — as I do — that education changes everything. I’ve spent my whole adult life helping people grow. It’s the thread that runs through everything that has mattered to me: seeing people develop…

  • If I Couldn’t Fail

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    Peter
    in

    If I couldn’t fail, I’d buy a patch of land — a tired stretch of soil and scrub — and try to bring it back to life. I’d plant local eucalypts and grevilleas, wattles and banksias, enough variety to invite the birds back and coax the insects home. I’d watch the contours of the land…

  • The Hardest Goal I Ever Set

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    Peter
    in

    What was the hardest personal goal you’ve set for yourself? It began with an idea.A flicker really — a connection I started to notice between my interest in creative writing and my practice as a preacher. Both, I realised, were about shaping meaning, holding attention, and opening space for discovery. I thought a doctorate might…

  • Nothing to Lose, Everything to Give

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    Peter
    in

    What would you do if you lost all your possessions? It’s a confronting question — one that sounds hypothetical, except it isn’t. For me, it came close to reality. I was caught in a scam. What I thought was a small, trustworthy investment turned into a complex trap. Over time, what had seemed solid dissolved…

  • When “Black Tie” Didn’t Mean What I Thought It Did

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    Peter
    in

    I feel very embarrassed when I look back on it. I was a broke uni student when the invitation arrived: a 21st birthday party in one of Sydney’s more affluent suburbs. The card read simply: Black Tie. Perfect, I thought. I didn’t own one, but I knew a mate who did. A quick borrow, and…

  • A Day in the Diary

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    Peter
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    Your life without a computer: what does it look like? 7.00am. The desk feels emptier without a screen in front of me. Essays take forever. My pen scratches against the page, and when I need a reference, I head to the library, combing through indexes and card catalogues. Progress is measured in hours, not minutes.…

  • The Hidden Economy of Friendship

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    Peter
    in

    I was talking recently with a friend who noted that loneliness is a major issue for Australian men. Maybe less so for women—I’m not sure. I sometimes wonder if busyness simply covers it over. Being the boss at work comes with its own kind of solitude. Responsibility sits with me, and for now, people seek…

  • The First Time I Learned Hard Work

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    Peter
    in

    In what ways does hard work make you feel fulfilled? I was fifteen the first time I met hard work face to face. Not chores, not the jobs around home that I already knew. This was something else—intensely hard work, the kind that strips you back, leaves you empty, and then fills you with a…

  • Risk and Waiting

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    Peter
    in

    What’s the trait you value most about yourself? What I value most about myself is not a single trait but a paradox I live with. I am both daring and patient. I will risk everything when the cause is right, and yet I will wait years if the time is not ready. It’s a strange…

  • Three Jobs if Money Didn’t Matter

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    Peter
    in

    List three jobs you’d consider pursuing if money didn’t matter. If money were no object, I’d choose work that feels less like a job and more like a way of honouring what matters. Each of these roles is about restoration—of stories, of people, of things we might otherwise lose. The Story GathererI imagine a workstation…