A Poetic Weekend

A weekly visit to the sea
Hunting for treasure on the seashore.

It's cold and I see my breath.
The sea air is invigorating.

Sparing a few seconds to pose for a photo or two.

The Story of New Zealand

One of the latest news stories in New Zealand is the debate to officially name the North and South islands of New Zealand. Apparently, these names aren't geographically official, so it's been suggested that the islands be named with their Maori names -

North Island : Te Ika-a-Maui (meaning the fish of Maui)
South Island: Te Wai Pounamu (meaning the canoe of Maui)

Here is the beautiful traditional Maori story of how New Zealand was created and the origin of these names:

Once upon a time there was a Maori god named Maui who was the youngest of 5 children in his family. Maui's 4 older brothers didn't like him very much and often left him out when they played. Maui, however, was very creative and imaginative on his own doing things like taming the sun and capturing fire. One day the 4 older brothers decided to go fishing, of course without Maui. But Maui was clever and snuck onto the canoe, Te Wai Pounamu (the canoe of Maui - the South Island), and hid there. To show his brothers that he indeed was able to fish well, Maui attempted to catch a fish and ended up catching the biggest one of all, Te Ika-a-Maui, the fish of Maui (the North Island).

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr

It's autumn now, and the trees are bare for another year. And it's cold outside too. Frost on the ground, and snow in the forecast. It's our second May here but it still seems strange. Dad had to buy some new slippers! I got a new hat. I like it when it's cold because it means I can stay inside, and bounce in my Jolly Jumper, and read with Mom, and compare slippers with Dad.