Snowboarding – a journey of discovery

How did you spend the school holiday break?

I had the opportunity to spend a couple of days at the snow with my family. My sons, who love being in the outdoors, were excited to try snowboarding for the first time.

So, we borrowed some snow gear, hired some boots, and hit the slopes.

Having never snowboarded, their first day was spent working out how to attach their boots to the snowboard; trying to decide which leg to lead with, and how to angle the board – do you travel down the hill sideways or front ways?

It was all guesswork with no one around to assist or advise. Over the course of a few hours, they fell down a lot, but gradually improved and began to get a feel for it together with some bruises and grazes.

On the second day, we bumped into a friend who is a very experienced snowboarder. So my sons spent the day with him; teaching them the basics and revisiting what they had done the previous day, but with his experience and knowledge directing them.

They quickly grew in confidence and began catching the chairlift up the mountain with him, then snowboarding down and repeating that over and over. His ability to share his knowledge, combined with his practical help and encouragement made a big difference - not just their confidence, but their ability. They loved it!

God has created us for community; to share the journey of life together. To encourage one another, and to guide and teach, to support and care, so that each of us can flourish in who we are created to be.

Each one of us is an important part of community, of sharing who we are and our experiences, and of encouraging and cheering one another on.

I encourage you this term to look around for who you can be encouraging, teaching and sharing life with. Who can you be encouraging to grow and flourish?

What are the new things you’d like to explore, learn or grow in, and who can you invite to teach or help you to do those things?

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”

1 Thessalonians 5:11

Blessings,

Reverend Cindy Waters