CK's life in Derby

Catching Up with The Kims Vol 16

Welcome to our newsletter for September/October! We trust you are warming up now that spring is here. Term three of the Student Focus Program is well underway and we are well and truly warm up here in the Kimberley! Thank you for taking the time to read about our lives. Remember to send us an email and tell us how you’re doing.

A note from Yong

At the end of October, I went to Noonkanbah community Christian weekend conference. I flew up there with one of the Kingdom Aviation workers. It was calm and smooth flying to Noonkanbah. We got there just in time for the morning session. The service started with praise and worship then a guest speaker. It was my first aboriginal conference. It was not fancy

but small gathering of local Christians. The highlight of this visit was the contact with local Christians. I really enjoyed having a lunch with an elderly lady at her house. As we ate I was able to hear about her walk with God and her struggle at this moment. She told me that she grew up in a mission and there she met Christ. For her it was life changing experience and very positive in her life. This lady is caring for her grandchildren with her husband. She said that sometimes it is too hard and she wants to give up, but she is hoping that one day her grandchildren will come to know God. She has a strong faith that God who saved her life will also save her grandchildren. It was real eye opening conversation hearing the issues aborigines faces and understanding their faith. I am hoping to meet more local Christians in remote communities.

October to early December is build-up season before the wet season. It is really hot and humid with no signs of rain to relieve the heat. For some people it is a very difficult time of year especially people who are on the edge of their life. There have been four suicides and two attempts of suicide. The fact had been shock to whole town. Some people do not see the true hope we have in Christ Jesus and end their own life with their hands. It is very sad that people lose hope to live and leave irreparable scars with loved ones. Even though it is very sad, it gives us opportunities to share Christ with others. It is not just aborigines in remote communities who need to hear the true hope in Christ Jesus but also non-aborigines in the town as well.

We had a special visitor from Melbourne. Leah from Youth Dimension visited us for a week. She is in charge of the remote Student Focus program. She visited all the communities we normally visit. For her, it was first time visiting remote aboriginal communities. It was an eye opening experience for her to see the different needs in remote communities. She also ran a few training sessions for people who are interested in helping run the program. It was good revision for me and good input from her as well.

One of the community’s school teachers asked me to do a presentation for her class. She said they are learning about airplanes and pilots. I agreed to help her out in her class by preparing a presentation. I made a boarding pass for the kids and set up the classroom like inside of airplane. I gave them passenger briefing. It was great fun to explain about airplanes and how to become a pilot. I am hoping that one of the kids will become a pilot and serve their community as a pilot. It was great way to get to know the kids and the school teacher. This is a really enjoyable ministry God gave me in the West Kimberley area.

A walk with Vicki

Back in September the Derby Baptist Church (one of our supporting churches) asked us to participate in their missions weekend. On the Saturday night Yong and I prepared a Korean dinner for about 20 people and had the opportunity to share about our journey in coming to Derby. The following morning during the church service we shared about our work with Kingdom

Aviation and how we have been adjusting to life in the Kimberley. It was great for us to be able to reflect on how God brought us to this point and give him thanks for the wonderful experiences we’ve had so far.

At the Church camp in September we had the pleasure of watching a beautiful sunrise from bed each morning! This is the first time our family has gone camping together! We drove along the red, sandy, corrugated dirt road to the peninsula three hours away where One Arm Point is located. The aboriginal community gave us permission to pitch our tents under the shade shelters on the shores of their land. It was really hot, but a great chance to get to know people better and enjoy the beautiful surrounds. Caleb thoroughly enjoyed being outdoors non-stop, and having so much sand to play in! We had good fellowship with the aboriginal people of One Arm Point. One time a young mum shared about how she recently re-committed her life to Christ and how much the community values the weekly visits and Bible Studies that Kingdom Aviation do. We pray that God will continue to touch lives in that community and all the places Kingdom Aviation visits.

I’ve been putting on a little weight lately, and it’s not from eating too much icecream! I have a 17 week old baby on board! We’re excited about welcoming this new little one into our family in April.

Meanwhile I’m still involved in facilitating the Terrific Toddlers program where Yong and I are learning some practical tools for parenting young Caleb through the toddler years. We are thankful that a number of church families have become involved too.

Caleb’s world

I’m sure Caleb sometimes wonders why his mum keeps making him do silly activities and get his face wet at the swimming pool. Later he will realise that it’s all part of learning to swim. We’ve been attending swimming lessons at the loc

al pool which also offers heaps of other fun things for kids. Caleb particularly likes the water

that squirts up from the ground in the water fun park.

His other favourite water activity is washing dishes (plastic ones!). It keeps him entertained for hours,

which is much better than having him unpack the kitchen cupboards!

Catching Up with The Kims Vol 15

A note from Yong

Time surely goes quickly! We are slowly adjusting to the Derby lifestyle and are enjoying the new friendships we are establishing. Since last newsletter, I have been busy flying into remote communities and working with kids in the schools. They are still shy and reserved but I can see some breakthroughs with the kids. A few weeks ago, I talked with the kids about rejection. Their responses blew me away. They clearly and honestly expressed their feelings when their family members and friends rejected them or put them down. It was real and personal hearing from them about what they were going through. I was very honored that they opened up and expressed their feelings, but on the other hand sadden by their hurt.

New Ministry Places

We have been praying for and talking with Milijeedee and Ngalapita aboriginal communities to start a program in their communities. For various reasons, we weren’t able to meet with community leaders and school principal for while, but a couple of weeks ago Paul White and Jamie Short (other Kingdom Aviation workers) met and set a starting date for these two new communities. These are very small communities with small numbers of kids. We are very thankful for the new opportunities to reach out to the communities. We really appreciate your continued prayers!

First fishing trip….

A couple of weeks ago, I went to fishing with Craig, one of the church members. It was my first fishing trip ever. We went to the marsh area and threw our fishing line into the water. First we caught a sawfish. This fish looked very mean and cut the line itself with his saw. The second one was a barramundi but it got away… The third one also got away. At last Craig and I caught a Threadfin Salmon each. They were about 70~75cm long! I was told that this fish is better to eat than barramundi… Anyway, we brought them home for cleaning, cutting up and storing in the deep freezer! My first fishing trip was successful and enjoyable as well!

A walk with Vicki

On a weekend recently we had the privilege of driving to one of the remote aboriginal communities that Yong flies to each week. It was a rare opportunity for me to travel outside of Derby, so I was looking forward to the change of scenery and the concert being held in the community. One of the best things about this trip was meeting some of the aboriginal folk in the community. Firstly, there was the group of (mainly) women striding happily around the oval, on a mission to lose weight. I caught up with them under a shady tree and took up the leader’s invitation to speak with them about healthy eating and weight loss. Even in remote areas there is still a high usage of convenience foods and sweet drinks. However, it was good to learn that nutritious bush foods are still part of their lifestyle. Another lady told me about her positive experience of growing up on a mission. She also shared about how she believed that the missionaries in the Kimberley have planted many seeds, which, in the right season will bear much fruit. Isaiah 55:11 ‘…so is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire…’

Back at home we had some curious aboriginal kids from the neighbourhood visit us when they saw Caleb playing outside. During a friendly chat I learned that the tap at their house was broken and they wanted a drink of water. I was also told which of the girls (aged 7 or 8) smoked cigarettes and that one of the boys has a brother with swine flu! Kids are so funny in their openness. I wonder if they’ll come again and tell me more stories.

Along with some friends from church I’ve been involved in helping facilitate sessions for parents, using materials from a group called Growing Families Australia. This term we’ve been looking specifically at the 12-18 month age group. While participant numbers have been small I’ve really valued the things that I’ve learned. Thankfully as facilitators we don’t have to know everything! We’re looking forward to next term when we’ll be focussing on the terrific toddler years! Hopefully a few more of the parents in the community will come to these sessions as the materials and discussions are really practical and helpful.

Last month the Derby rodeo was a real highlight for the town! We’d never been to a rodeo, so we went along to see the participants hanging onto their horses and bulls for dear life! Many of the riders came from the outback stations and were very skilled in a lot of events. Even though we didn’t really understand the scoring system, it was still interesting to see.

Caleb’s world

Caleb continues to enjoy the outdoors and insists on having time outside each day to play. Sometimes mum would prefer to be indoors where it’s cooler, but he’s not troubled at all by the heat. He’s a busy boy and likes to try multi-tasking. With an object in each hand he might sit on a rocking toy and while doing that he’s looking for the next thing to do! His favourite toys lately have been a toy broom and rake. Whenever we go to people’s houses he always looks for their brooms and rakes and is so pleased with himself when he finds them!

Caleb has just starte

d using a few words of sign language. He says ‘please’, ‘drink’, ‘more’ an

d sometimes says ‘th

ank you’. Verbally he says a lot, but we have no idea what it all means! He’s also looking more grown up with a new haircut from mum. On close inspection the sides are a little uneven because Caleb got bor

ed and wriggly with the process. It will hopefully get straightened out

next time!