Wedding dilemma update.

I touched base with my friend who gave the wedding invite.
The invite was for me alone. The only reason why she did not invite my partner was due to numbers limitations at the venue. She was super apologetic and said that if other invitees don't come, that he would be first on the list. My fella is super understanding about this also.

You've probably all heard about the sad and frightening events in the south-east of Melbourne recently. There is probably very little I could write about it that hasn't already been covered in detail, but it makes me sad.

There is a lot that is confusing about it. How could this boy, who has spent most of his life in Australia and with fairly limited life experience, developed such hateful views. Was he ill, psychotic, drug-addled?

What did he think he was doing, rushing at an armed pair of police officers with a knife? Was he thinking of martyrdom? Was he thinking at all?

The fallout is already occurring. People protesting Islamophobia. A poor lady (presumably a hijab-wearer) had her head slammed against a train carriage. What a hateful, filthy act.

Religious Muslim women are often targeted; their faith is patently obvious. It's ironic that they don't seem to be the ones fighting the holy war. Islamophobia meets misogyny, perhaps.

Phrases like "high alert" and "be vigilant" and "increased security" are bandied about in the media. Fear makes the community like decisive action from hard-liners. We send military might into the disaster area, with no clear endpoint.

And what worries me is that our hard line leaders start looking like good blokes, much like George W. Bush did in 2003. "You are either with us, or against us" he said.

I don't have a solution here, but I do worry about the way things are headed.

I suppose climate change and a $7 medicare surcharge are a little moot if we all feel we are under threat of being blown to smithereens.

I have seen very simple but very powerful instances of kindness, compassion and tolerance between cultures and religions. Can we not start with this?

Anyway that's my slightly addled thoughts for the evening. I have been having terrible tension headaches recently and my scalp and back are sore. I might take my achy carcass to bed.

I hope you are all well, and that you are blessed and stay safe x

And thankyou to all those that visit and comment; I don't often reply but I love reading them and receiving them. Thankyou for listening. Link to your blog if you have one, and I will come visit.