Why "Inkie" or "Ink"?

"Inkie" (often shortened again to "Ink") is short for "Ingrid" and is the nickname I've had since I was born. My family is Dutch and traditionally I would have been called "Ingridje" (or "little Ingrid"). However, my Dad thought this was too much of a mouthfuI, and decided to call me "Inkie". These days it represents the fun-loving, less serious side of me.

Who is Inkie, anyway?

I am a gracefully aging (well, I like to think so) daughter, sister, wife, mother, step-mother and step-grandmother.

While my parents may be Dutch, but I was born in Australia and, will always be proud to be Australian. However, the older I get the more of the Dutch I find in myself, so it seems like you can take the Dutch out of Holland, but you can't take Holland out of the Dutch! Interestingly, my children also have a fascination for the Netherlands.

I grew up mainly in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, and have moved around quite a bit since, but now live, work and worship in the bayside suburb of Frankston with my husband Graeme and my four children, Beth, Josh, Zac and Ellie.

At various times I have been referred to as a student, a teacher, a musician, a singer, a nurse, a hairdresser, a candlemaker, a minister, a drug and alcohol worker, a chaplain, a counsellor, a mentor, a computer enthusiast, a philatelist, a genealogist and a scrapbooker. Some of these skills were learned in a recognised learning institution but most were honed by making mistakes in the school of life....

Last but definitely not least of all, I am a Christian - that is, I know I am a child of God.

So why does Inkie need a website?

While all of the above may tell you who I'm related to, what I do and what I believe, they still don't really tell you who I am. My temperament type is variously referred to as Sanguine-Choleric, or ENFJ-ENFP (I'm somewhere between J & P). But knowing this still doesn't mean that you really know ME.

To know me you must live with me, work with me, talk with me, laugh with me, cry with me, have fun with me, worship with me and just "be" with me. Strangely, some people I know have rarely (if ever) done these things with me, yet they still believe they know what is best for me.

True, my life has not been perfect (whose life is?), but it has been a great training ground. If I had lived my life any other way, I would not be the person that I am now. It seems God knew what he was doing when he allowed me to travel down this broken road....

Well, for those who are really interested in getting to know me, here are some bits and pieces of my life. While many of the labels are the same as the ones listed above, I hope that somewhere in my ramblings you will also find a little of who I really am.

I suppose we all like to think that we have left our mark on the world, and this is just one of mine. If you really know me then you will know about some other places that I have left marks, too. Hopefully one of those places has been (or will be) your heart....

However well you think you know me, you are most welcome to have a good look around and get to know me even better. If you think it will help either you or me, please email a comment to me at and I will happily respond.

Inkie :-)