Home | Around The Sun

May 12, 2008

Baptism

Steve Harrison is baptised in the midnight hour.

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May 05, 2008

Meeting Another Hungry Soul

Steve Harrison tells how he found another soul mate on his lonely Christian path.

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April 28, 2008

Dad's Funeral

Steve Harrison pays the saddest of sad return visits to his homeland.

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April 21, 2008

Reading The Bible

Steve Harrison begins to read the Bible and is soon faced with a huge conflict between his work and his growing belief.

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April 14, 2008

Leaving Jacquie

A knife was brandished when Steve Harrison finally got around to telling his girlfriend Jacquie that he was going to leave her.

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April 07, 2008

The Lucky Country

...I travelled to work every day by ferry across the emerald green waters of Sydney harbour. Work was a breeze. At weekends I lounged by the seaside on Balmoral beach. Naturally I attended the compulsory barbeques...

Steve Harrison arrives in Australia.

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March 31, 2008

Swimming With A Shark

Steve Harrison goes swimming in the sea off Bali and encounteres his worst nightmare.

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March 24, 2008

Say Goodbye You May Never See Them Again

Steve Harrison recalls a traumatic walk with his father.

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March 17, 2008

Weed Kicking

Steve Harrison sees the light and turns his back on the deadly weed.

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March 10, 2008

The Angels Brawl

Steve Harrison and his girlfriend Jacquie find themselves caught up in a fight to end all fights.

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March 03, 2008

Go North Young Man

Steve Harrison heads north to Sonoma, California.

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February 25, 2008

Settling Into The American Dream

Steve Harrison tells of escaping from the clutches of the Scientologists and the Moonies.

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February 18, 2008

Arriving In The USA

Steve Harrison's arrival in the United States heralded experiences in the first 48 hours which were more bizarre than a fiction writer could have invented.

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February 11, 2008

Grape Harvest

Steve Harrison does a spot of grape picking in southern France.

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February 04, 2008

Money Changers In Morocco

Steve Harrison is dragooned into duty as a street artist.

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January 28, 2008

Driving To South Africa

Steve Harrison sets out to drive from England to South Africa in a van which should not have been used for a journey to the local supermarket.

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January 21, 2008

A Sign From God

...I was alone. I spoke aloud. "If you are real, show me a sign. Show me you exist.''

No sooner were the words out of my mouth than there was a huge flash of lightning, the biggest I had ever seen...

Steve Harrison tells of a night to remember.

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January 14, 2008

Meeting Jacquie

Steve Harrison signs on the dole and meets the girl who was to be his companion for seven years.

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January 07, 2008

Magic Mushrooms

Steve Harrison eats magic mushrooms, and survives a nightmare.

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December 31, 2007

Public Speaking

Steve Harrison turns into a new evangelist on visits to a pub.

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December 24, 2007

The Dream

Steve Harrison tells of a dream that has haunted him for years.

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December 17, 2007

Suicidal Tendencies

Steve Harrison, having been abandoned by the girl he loved, went through a turbulent and frightening time.

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December 10, 2007

Falling In Love

Steve Harrison falls in love for the first time - and hitches his way to Portugal to be with the girl of his dreams.

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December 03, 2007

A Night In Jail

Steve Harrison spends a night in jail after a madcap drinking bout.

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November 26, 2007

Locked In A Car

Steve Harrison goes hitch-hiking in France, his first trip broad.

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November 19, 2007

A Ford Anglia

Steve Harrison buys his first car - and his life becomes even more hectic.

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November 12, 2007

Spotlights And Fame

Steve Harrison, while still in his teens, managed to get a job as a barman at England's leading entertainment club.

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November 05, 2007

Acid Trips

Steve Harrison tells of mad days when he and two friends became regular drug takers.

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October 29, 2007

LSD - Just Which Hole Did That Rabbit Run Down

Steve Harrison, in his wilder days, sampled LSD.

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October 22, 2007

Saturday Night At The Cricket Club Hop

Steve Harrison recalls beery, fun-filled nights at the local hop.

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October 15, 2007

Life-Changing Words

Steve Harrison is stirred to the depths of his being by the words of a North American Indian chief.

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October 08, 2007

Lager And Lime

Steve Harrison discovers the cloudy world of alcohol.

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October 01, 2007

Parachute Jump

...So there I was at twelve thousand feet, and it was my turn to jump...

Steve Harrison swallows his nerves to attempt a parachute jump.

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September 24, 2007

My First Job

Steve Harrison "sneaks in by the side door'' to begin a career as an artist, designing adverts.

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September 17, 2007

A Sleeveless Blazer

Steve Harrison finds that he is not considered to be grammar school material.

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September 10, 2007

Incredibly Shy

Steve Harrison recalls the day a two-letter word brought his dreams crashing down.

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September 03, 2007

Dad Made Me A Mechanic

Steve Harrison tells in glorious style of a father-son relationship.

For more of Steve's vivid life story please click on Around The Sun in the menu on this page.

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August 27, 2007

A Lovely Old Bird

...Mum stood by the window, gazing upwards. "Come see the spacemen land on the Moon,'' we said. "I can see the Moon,'' she replied "and nothing is happening. I don't believe a word they're saying.''

One day I peeked over her shoulder as she was trying to complete a crossword puzzle. The clue was "extinct animal''. Mum had written Elephant...

Steve Harrison pays tribute to his wonderful mum.

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August 20, 2007

An Uncaged "Tiger''

Steve Harrison recalls the day he learned to ride a motorbike and had a close encounter with a hedge.

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August 13, 2007

Dangerous Games

Steve Harrison tells a tale that may make you wince.

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August 06, 2007

A Kick Up The Backside

Steve Harrison recalls a winter's eve when he was taught a painful lesson.

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July 30, 2007

Who Needs Roller Skates?

Steve Harrison joins the stern 5 am world of work.

For earlier episodes of Steve's story please click on Around The Sun in the menu on this page.

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July 23, 2007

Bath Nights

Steve Harrison recalls the simple life-enhancing joy of bath nights when he was a boy.

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July 16, 2007

I Never Knew We Were Poor

Steve Harrison tells of growing up in austere times.

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July 09, 2007

Those Aliens Will Return

Steve Harrison dreams of a peaceful place.

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July 02, 2007

Broken Bones

Steve Harrison confesses that it doesn’t pay to be too cocky when you’re out on those ski slopes.

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June 25, 2007

Early Days

Steve Harrison shares some of his childhood memories - not all of them happy ones.

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June 18, 2007

Flight To Nowhere

Steve Harrison tells of a nervous day at Manchester airport in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist acts which destroyed the New York Trade Centre.

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June 11, 2007

Either This Life Is Very Dreamlike Or This Dream Is very Lifelike

Steve Harrison questions his own watery reality.

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June 04, 2007

Learning To Be Responsible

Steve Harrison learns a beautiful truth.

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May 28, 2007

Heaven Scent

Steve Harrison glimpses Heaven in the innocence and scent of his baby daughter.

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May 21, 2007

A Sad Day For Chickens

Steve Harrison tells a sad tale about a heavy-handed farmer.

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May 14, 2007

Listen Up

Has it ever occurred to you that common sense isn’t all that common. Steve Harrison tells a cautionary tale.

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May 07, 2007

The Perfect Landmine Clearance Solution

In the best tradition of Jonathan Swift, the satirist who wrote Gulliver’s Travels, Steve Harrison suggests a shocking solution to a terrible problem that is afflicting Cambodia.

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April 23, 2007

Saving Starfish

Steve Harrison tells a parable for all time.

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April 16, 2007

The Dreaded Weed

Steve Harrison tells how he kicked the smoking habit with the very best help available.

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April 09, 2007

The Grim Reaper

Steve Harrison tells of a somber days when he lost the two guiding lights of his life.

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April 02, 2007

The Key To Truth

Steve Harrison writes of deep and significant matters.

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March 26, 2007

Food For Thought

So if you had to choose a staple food to feed the world would it be potatoes or rice? Steve Harrison considers an important question.

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March 19, 2007

Quiz Challenge

Steve Harrison recalls the day when his family started to regard him as a brain box.

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March 12, 2007

Thoughts On Pride And Death

Steve Harrison finds peace and self-awareness in the harsh reality of a market in Vietnam.

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March 05, 2007

Precious Infant

In straight-from-the-heart words Steve Harrison expresses the total joy of being the father of a beautiful infant – even when sleep becomes a distant memory during the long night watches.

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February 26, 2007

Computer Dangers

Are computers servants, or would-be dictators? Steve Harrison considers the issue.

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February 19, 2007

Pyromania

Steve Harrison proved to himself that sometimes fire lighting can be too successful.

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February 12, 2007

Running Man

Steve Harrison presents the philosophical thoughts of a running man.

For more of Steve’s columns please click on Around The Sun in the menu on this page.

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February 05, 2007

Sweet Dreams

Steve Harrison envies those who instantly fall aslep to enjoy sweet dreams.

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January 29, 2007

Passing Before Your Eyes

An imaginary walk across Sydney harbour bridge brings a clear and contended perspective on life to Steve Harrison.

For more of Steve’s heart-felt columns please click on Around The Sun in the menu on this page.

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January 22, 2007

Lost Innocence

Steve Harrison says that if you do go home again you will never find what you are looking for.

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January 15, 2007

Illustrated Man

Steve Harrison chats to a man with horns.

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January 08, 2007

Peter Pan

The arrival of a baby daughter has convinced Steve Harrison that he may regain Peter Pan’s secret of eternal youth.

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January 01, 2007

The Perfect Nappy

New dad Steve Harrison wrestles with the smelly problem of nappy changing before coming up with the ideal solution.

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December 18, 2006

A Moment Of Bliss

Steve Harrison recalls a morning when he was lost in wonderment while waiting for the ferry boat to Sydney.

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December 11, 2006

My Little Baby

Steve Harrison is enchantedby a very special baby with fair skin, straight nose, double eyelids, cupid lips, fair hair, bright blue eyes - and a Vietnamese mother.

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December 04, 2006

4 - Rules Of The Road In Asia

Steve Harrison, writing with gusto and bubbling humour, concludes his four-part guide to the roads, and their users, in Vietnam and Cambodia.

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November 27, 2006

3 - Rules Of The Road In Asia

Steve Harrison takes us on another hair-raising journey into the psyche of Vietnamese drivers and motorcycle riders.

Just remember, the aim when negotiating Eastern roads is to increase your heart rate. That’s good exercise!

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November 20, 2006

2 - Rules Of The Road In Asia

Driving and crossing the road in Vietnam require nerves of steel and a sharp awareness of the odds, as Steve Harrison reveals in the second of his seriously humorous article about the rules of the road in the East.

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November 13, 2006

1 - Rules Of The Road In Asia

Westerners who risk life and limb in Asia need to understand a whole new attitude to life, as Steve Harrison reveals.

This is the first of four choice articles by Steve on the dangers of travelling around in Asia.

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November 06, 2006

Heaven

Steve Harrison contemplates the nature and reality of Heaven.

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October 30, 2006

The Perfect Life

Steve Harrison recalls a family tragedy and muses on the way things have worked out in his life.

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October 23, 2006

Snake Wine

If you ever drink Vietnamese snake wine it’s best not to look inside the bottle, as Steve Harrison reveals.

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October 16, 2006

Peace Baby

Steve Harrison’s baby daughter was born at the tale-end of a typhoon which devastated Vietnam this month. Read his account of the night Rachel arrived – and be deeply moved.

Steve, no newcomer to Open Writing, will now be writing a regular column which will appear on Mondays in Open Writing. These will be filed under the title Around The Sun.


Continue reading "Peace Baby" »