Shushann's birthday lunch at Frenchy's

Such a lovely lunch at one of our favourite places enjoying the glorious weather.  Afterwards, I walked to Taronga Zoo and got a ferry to Circular Quay.

A song for Shushann

A heartfelt song I created for Shushann to celebrate our beautiful friendship. She enriches my life in so many ways.

The Gold You See

Verse 1

Jilly drew a circle

On a Tuesday night in town,

Eckhart spoke of stillness

Till the noise was settling down.

I couldn’t know that evening

How deep this bond would run—

You’d be the friend I turn to first

When worry clouds the sun.

With you I never need a mask,

I’m simply welcome there;

You listen without judgement

And meet me with your care.

Chorus 1

Shushann, you see the gold in people

Before they see it too;

You hold it to the daylight

Till they know that it is true.

With your radiant smile and wisdom,

With a heart both deep and kind,

You give us back the parts of us

We thought we’d left behind.

Verse 2

We drove the road to Bowral,

Took dear Jilly to The Mill;

Out to Tina in Carcoar,

Past the Blue Mountains, calm and still.

Manly, Watsons Bay and Balmoral,

Malabar beneath our feet;

Frenchys lunches, sushi, picnics,

Ice cream, chips and something sweet.

You always knew which exhibition,

Which concert we should see;

We watched the Whirling Dervishes

Turn like a living prayer.

Then out would come Her Majesty—

Your Queen beyond compare—

And soon your glorious laughter

Was filling up the air.

Chorus 2

Shushann, you find joy in small things—

A pathway, meal or view;

And somehow every ordinary day

Feels newly made with you.

You gather friends and keep them close,

You always make a place;

The world becomes more generous

Inside your warmth and grace.

Verse 3

Christmas comes to Coogee

With the circle by your fire;

Sometimes you guide us into stillness

Till the room begins to breathe.

At morning you’re in ocean pools,

Salt water, open sky,

Hoping some small octopus

Will quietly wander by.

Then home again to Anush—

Two souls that just belong;

The love between you, plain to see,

So tender and so strong.

And Mack stays warm in memory—

We’ve always understood

How furry souls can fill a life

With simple, faithful good.

Chorus 3

Shushann, you find wonder everywhere—

In ocean, earth and sky,

In friendship and in mystery,

In all that passes by.

From Uluru to Japan,

From Norway back to home,

Your curious and playful heart

Still calls you on to roam.

Verse 4

You sit beside the troubled,

Help couples find their way,

And help those living with Parkinson’s

Meet each changing day.

You show us age can deepen us,

That eldership is grace—

Not slowly disappearing,

But finding our true place.

You took the hardest chapters

And made wisdom from the pain;

A lifetime spent becoming,

Choosing love time and again.

Through books and soulful cards,

Through every workshop that you lead,

Your creativity keeps flowering,

Still answering the need.

Bridge

There’s a mystic in you listening

For the oneness under all,

For the sacred in the silence,

For the meaning in the call.

And after all your searching,

Your journeys far and wide,

The light you went out looking for

Was always there inside.

Final Chorus

May all the gold you see in us

Come shining back to you;

May love and deep connection

Surround you all life through.

May creativity and wonder,

Beauty, purpose, sacred grace,

Keep opening new horizons

And keep laughter on your face.

And wherever we are carried,

Whatever we pass through,

My life is richer than I can say

For sharing it with you.

You are one of life’s great gifts to me—

Shushann, I love you so.

Taronga Zoo to Balmoral with Shushann

Always a lovely walk to do. We stopped off for lunch at Frenchy's for their delicious goats cheese quiche.
 

Helping Shushann with her conscious aging presentation

Shushann is starting a series of presentations on conscious aging and I helped her with her presentation. I believe so strongly in this topic. Shushann has so much priceless wisdom to share with the world around this.

Watsons Bay with Shushann

It was wonderful catching up with Shushann after my time away and what better place than Watson's Bay.  We had planned for Frenchies but took the wrong turn off.  Some things are meant to be!

Looking after Nushi

 Shushann had to go out for the day so I dropped by her home in Coogee at lunchtime to give Nushi some company. We went for a lovely walk to the park where I met lots of other lovely dogs and their owners.

How cute is this little guy!

Memorable moments: The Grinder revelation

A couple of years back, I invited my meditation group over for an evening of quiet contemplation. We were deep into the "Now," watching Eckhart Tolle on the TV and soaking in the stillness of the room.

Toward the end of the night, my long-term housemate, Martin, returned from his weekly Friday ritual at the pub. Martin is a wonderful character, funny at the best of times, but particularly "tiddly" after a few pints. He wandered into the lounge, still radiating the boisterous energy of the public house, and joined our circle of calm.

My friend Sushann, curious about our living arrangement, asked Martin how the two of us had originally met. The mundane truth was that we’d connected through a website called Roommates.com.

Martin, however, saw a golden opportunity. With a mischievous twinkle in his eye and the confidence of three beers, he looked at the group and deadpanned:

"We met through Grindr!"

For anyone familiar with the app, the joke was obvious—a renowned hookup site for gay men was the furthest thing from our "Roommates" reality. The room erupted in laughter, and we moved on, eventually drifting back into our meditative presence.

Or so I thought.

A few weeks later, Sushann pulled me aside, her expression heavy with solemnity and a touch of newfound understanding.

"Wow, Graeme," she said with all seriousness, "I didn’t realize you were gay."

It turned out she was the only person in the room who hadn’t caught the punchline. To her, Martin’s drunken "revelation" wasn't a joke; it was a profound piece of personal history. It was a classic "Myburgh" moment: while I was sitting there immersed in a world of spiritual presence and higher consciousness, Sushann was busy recalibrating my entire identity based on a Friday night prank.

My favourite doggie

Now that Mackie and Jason have gone, Nushi is my number one doggie in the world.  Here are some precious photos and video taken by Shushann. Their relationship is so beautiful. Two way unadulterated unconditional love!

Related link

• All posts featuring Nushi