A Glass Full of Water

  I was watching the 7am TV news, when a moving shape outside our Hamilton home lounge caught my eye. A hooded figure came into view. He was struggling to lift two large bags over a hedge bordering a neighbours property. Quickly realising he was making for the gap between our house and another neighbouring property, I yelled to Val, “Burglar! Burglar!”  I sprinted on to our lawn, intending on cutting the intruder off. Perhaps a good rugby tackle would stop him? It was a great plan with very poor execution as old calf and hamstring injuries came back with a vengeance. Down I went with arms flailing. Val ran inside to ring the police.  At this stage two of our neighbours came out to see what all the early morning yelling was about. Raewyn and Peter looked at my contorted, moaning face. Val and Raewyn couldn’t help themselves and started to giggle.  Two policemen arrived a few minutes later. They tried to be professional, but soon they too were turning their heads away ...

I watched in awe as a massive log twisted upwards in the wind created by a huge fire. The ferocity of flames knows no human bounds.  When I left school my first job was in a forestry gang near Warkworth, north of Auckland. During the fire season we longed for a drink, something to eat and rest in the shade as we wore full length protective gear and wielded flame throwers and diesel burners in the sweltering heat. Ironically and even with that experience, I can only imagine how tough it has been for the Los Angeles fire fighters. We trust they are being well looked after by their colleagues and communities. How good it is to know that a kiwi owned cafe in West Hollywood has been offering free coffees to frontline workers and evacuees of the wildfires. A ‘big ups’ to the Ponsonby Road Cafe and owner Jaime Choi.  Closer to home, a big thanks to volunteers from Matatā and Ōpōtiki (Bay of Plenty, North Island) who provided fatigue stops for weary travellers early in the new year. ...

“I thought you had Ruth!”  “I thought you had her!” To our horror, Val and I realised that our two year old daughter was somewhere by herself on the inter island ferry between the North and South Island of New Zealand. Our catastrophizing thoughts multiplied as we took our older daughters, Rebeccah and Sarah with us to hunt for her. What if she went overboard? What if she wandered into a cabin somewhere? What if we never find her?  I rushed over to the bar to ask a barman if he had seen a little girl wandering past. He ignored me and turned away. Val was going deck to deck frantically calling and looking. Nothing. I went back on the top deck and looked over the side. If Ruth had gone over she wouldn’t have survived the impact and swirling waters of Cook Strait. Keep looking!  We met at the top of some stairs to restart our panicked search and then heard Ruth. She was crying and being comforted by a kind older woman. Never has a hug been so good as relief and joy flooded o...

Have you noticed how flower colours never clash? What about the intricate repeated patterns? Not to mention the divine smells! Talk about sensory overload…  Over the past two years and on a personal note, Ange (Leef Floral design Raglan) created beautiful wedding anniversary bouquets for Val and I. They were made with loads of love and considerable skill. She personally delivered them to our restaurant table and we couldn’t help but note a ripple of smiles and admiring glances coming towards us. I remember asking Ange a few years ago, how she consistently achieves such beauty in her work. Her delightful reply was, “I just play with flowers.” Wow. What a metaphor for life with all its ups and downs. She just keeps things simple and she knows what is important to her… ‘Community, joy, love, empathy and my amazing family and friends’. In a Raglan Chronicle article, (Talking About Mental Health with Ruby Gibbs, August 24, 2023) Ange commented ‘she believes that as you get older, life g...

Smith & Caughey’s is a large department store in Queen Street, Auckland. The store was founded in 1880.  In the 1960’s Mum would occasionally take her six children for a morning tea treat upstairs in the cavernous building. Not so sure it was a treat for her! In the 1970’s, Dad’s chemist shop (Peter Horne Limited) was situated next door. It’s sad to note that Smith & Caughey’s will be downsizing in the near future due to declining revenues.  Last month TVNZ ran a story about Kevin Broadfoot, Smith & Caughey’s special projects manager, who started work with the store in 1980. He designs the Christmas animated windows and his work is all year round. Each year he looks for a new story theme and this year the theme is based around a New Zealand book titled The adventures of Huta and Kawa, by Avis Acres. This was a bestselling classic children’s book from the 1950’s and was re-issued in 2023.  Kevin says, “This year is tinged with sadness as this could be the last ...

A few days ago, my sister in law Anne sent me a thought provoking and beautifully written article . It is titled, The cancer patient who changed my approach to medicine (2023) and is by a first year University of Auckland medical student Thomas Swinburn. My edited version for space and brevity follows. ‘On the first day of my first clinical year I met a patient who would challenge my perception of clinical medicine, a Māori man named Ereuti. He wanted to leave hospital, but his oncologist told him that without the constant intravenous infusion, he would be making the choice to go home to die. I asked him what mattered most to him now. He replied, “What matters is regaining health, eating without this tube in my throat and moving my bowels naturally. Relationships. Relationships where I can be myself. Relationships like the one we’re building.”  I had no words for Ereuti’s answer. It drilled down to the very essence of what it meant to be human. I was uplifted and moved by what he s...

Elizabeth Barrett Browning, an English poet (1806 - 1861) wrote a sonnet titled, ‘How Do I Love Thee?’, She begins,  How do I love thee? Let me count the ways… I feel a lot like that about Raglan. It has a unique community vibe and is full of a variety of smaller communities within bigger communities (rather like playing with a Russian doll).  The Raglan arts community is vibrant with visual artists, carvers, potters, craft makers, writers, dancers, theatre, musicians and singers. And, it also has The Clay Shed.  The ‘clay community’ is full of volunteers (mostly women), who meet weekly in the Raglan Old School Arts Centre to create, chat and laugh. Occupations range from business owners to teachers.  Our home overlooks the centre, so last week I dropped in to see how this community works and was met at the door by Justine and her friends. A number of quotes from the busy and friendly group members were elicited. “It’s all an experiment and the end result is always a...