I’m still working from home and exclusively talking to people on the phone or screen, but it’s better than nothing. One time I should keep track of how many phone calls I’m on over the average working week – it will probably be an eye-opening exercise!

Three chats stand out: with Perth’s Catholic Archbishop Timothy Costelloe, who departed from his usual easy-going way in writing a blistering rebuke to the state’s minister for child protection after she called on him to (essentially, though she didn’t use these terms) eviscerate the sacrament of confession.

Why she did that, why he responded so strongly and what he said are all here.

On a very different note was hearing the story of Kristy and Steven Keesing-Goldsmith who have a busy household with three-year-old Charli-Rose and one-year-old twins Zavier and Zachary.

A while back Kristy was suffering after four miscarriages and being told by an IVF doctor that he couldn’t help her. But within a month of meeting a Blacktown GP trained in restorative reproductive medicine (naprotechology) she was expecting Charli-Rose.

Read the story – with super cute family pic! – here.

Even though he paints a strange vision of the future based on current trends and the massive disruption of COVID-19, I was really uplifted after talking with Mark McCrindle, one of Australia’s leading social researchers, yesterday.

We talked about some likely long-term effects of the pandemic on Australians in general and on church communities. His team is constantly taking the attitudinal ‘pulse’ of Australians and it’s fascinating to see what they come out with. I’ve got another researcher to talk to and hopefully will write that story up on Monday.

One sombre moment – hearing of the death this week of a Sister of Charity I met in January, who is much-loved by her former music students. Sr Rose Anne Croke turned 100 in March.

(Doesn’t January seems like it was years ago?)

On the home front, there were a lot more actual in-class school days for the kids. We had one or two at home each day, which means I had a companion for a quick pre-work walk in the mornings.

They all start full-time on their school campuses next week. But it looks like my husband and me – we work in the same office – will be working from home for at least a couple more weeks.

No gardening this week – except if you count picking one of the first camelia blooms off the hedge out front to bring inside. No fancy cooking either, but I did manage to blog so that’s something!