I am currently in the San Francisco airport, waiting for the final leg of my flight back to Pittsburgh. It has been a long day, a day that started at 3:30am NZ time and continues until 6:00pm Pittsburgh time.
This final week of my journey has been quite special and a bittersweet end to my time in New Zealand, as I experienced both the joys of the week and the sadnesses of recognizing the end of my NZ adventure.
On Sunday, we went to church. The church that Paul and Robin are a part of is quite different than what I am used to, as I had already experienced when church took place at the house my first week here. This week was the more “traditional” form of church, if you would call it that. We met in a community center, sat in a circle, and engaged in worship and reflection together. The message involved participation and discussion; it was far from being “talked at.” I really enjoyed experiencing this form of church. Sunday afternoon consisted of orienteering and mountain biking. I appreciated the opportunity to go orienteering with Paul and work on my navigation skills.
On Monday, we worked from home in the morning. I sorted through boxes of food leftover from previous weeks of camp so that it can be utilized for the upcoming spring camps. In the afternoon, I went for a final long run in the hills (and I carried water with me, which meant I also brought my phone, and therefore finally took some pictures). The weather was perfect for a long run, and it was a great opportunity to process and clear my head. We continued our discussion of Huia Come Home on Monday night. The chapters we read discussed the Treaty of Waitangi, a treaty that has been instrumental in New Zealand’s history but is so often neglected in discussions today due to people’s fear of talking about messy things. We considered how the Treaty of Waitangi is a metaphor for all of the “treaties” in our own lives – the messy things that we avoid talking about, like conflict, mental health, and changes that need to occur. We put these things in the “too hard basket” and avoid talking about them altogether. Our discussion of Huia challenged me to consider the messy things that I need to engage with.
Tuesday was my final full day, and there are few ways that I would rather have spent it. I had the option to go into town that day and walk around, but I decided against this. My time here has been shaped by the day-to-day rhythms of family life, and I decided that this is how I wanted to spend my last day. So I went to the office with Paul and tagged along for Ruby and Moana’s swimming lessons, savoring my final moments with each of them before the beginning of my journey home. In the afternoon, I played with Moana at a huge playground in town, as Paul had to go to a meeting. This was one of my highlights of not only the week, but my whole summer, as we laughed together and had a ton of fun playing. It was a joy to have this play experience with Moana before I left. And Tuesday night, we went to a “Moon party” at Moana’s preschool, where we viewed the full moon together (they are doing a unit on space at preschool right now).
Then I began the long journey home this morning. The goodbyes were hard and tear-filled. It is hard to leave a place, an experience, that has felt like heaven touching earth. It is hard to leave a family that has welcomed me so warmly and that I have experienced life with for the past eight weeks. It is hard to leave the places that have become spaces of serenity – the stopbank and hills that I have run along every day. It is hard to leave the beautiful land of Aotearoa. But there is a time to begin adventures and a time to bring adventures to a close, and the incredible adventure of this summer has now come to a close.
Please pray for a safe journey the rest of the way home and that I may feel God’s presence as I navigate transitioning back to States. Please also pray for Abby as she returns from Vietnam. And look out for one final blog post when I return with closing reflections on my summer adventure.
Playing with Moana in the park
The pipeline that I ran up to get to the ridgeline in the hills
View along my run
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