Travels in New Zealand and beyond, going back to 2003!
I’ve been really enjoying having my youngest daughter around at home a lot more and we have been spending time reading books out loud and drawing, taking bush walks and playing around on the piano, doing head stands and dancing, essentially being in the moment, together, and it’s been wonderful. I think all this ‘play’…
I feel the light pulling me out, from the dark enveloping me, I’m clinging to the dappled rays, focusing on their offer of warmth, as the cold air creeps around me. It’s a battle of light and dark, winter’s steely grasp on my hand, leading me into the tunnel. Bright chinks in the darkness save…
I don’t feel like I’m a parent to a teenager – at least, not in a ‘ARGH! I have teenager in the house, run for the hills!’ kind of way. But then, the teenage years last six years, so I am sure those moments will come, but right now our Miss 13 is a real…
It was such a mild Autumn that I wasn’t prepared for winter and its dark nights. I always struggle when there’s less hours of light in the day to play with. If I don’t get out for a day or two I feel like curling up in bed and not emerging till spring. It’s a…
I’m so glad I made the decision to start my forties with a half marathon, as I haven’t looked back in the past two years – only forward to the next challenge. Thankfully New Zealand has an ever-growing array of organised races to participate in, with various distances and terrain. It’s fast becoming an addiction…
There’s days when I’m not convinced, that I’m really ‘a runner’ now, and then I have a crazy moment, where not even the weather can stop me. I used to drive past runners, on inclement days, and wonder, ‘Why?!’ A part of me admired their determination, but on the whole, I thought they were crazy……
The last weekend in April I jetted up to Rotorua, on an Air New Zealand turboprop jet departing Wellington, for a less than 24 hour whirl-wind trip away. I planned to run the half marathon, after my ambitious plans to run the full marathon fell short, due to not enough training time (family commitments and…
In between the ages, is where I am right now, as they write the pages, that their young lives sow. Their grandparents live a time that treasures every moment – knowing life is no mime, but to live in the present. I sit in between, silently observing, holding tight, with hands keen, hoping for smooth…
I woke with no expectation – or even desire – for breakfast in bed. I’m past the days of sleep deprivation making a lie in a luxury I lust after. These days, thank the heavens, my daughters don’t wake me for night feeds or cuddles (I had three daughters that didn’t sleep through the night…
What a blessing the weather has been for us this year. We’ve had glorious days of sunshine and warmer than average temperatures, hanging on well into Autumn, here in New Zealand. The only signs of the coming winter are the shortened days and the turning of the leaves to golden hues. It was, with little…
It’s school holidays here and so my usual hobbies are naturally taking a back seat. Not much time for writing and running, but the day 17 prompt on the 2016 National Poetry Writers Month website caught my interest yesterday. The prompt was; ‘Find, either on your shelves or online, a specialized dictionary. Now write a poem that…
JUMP! You make it look effortless to jump A fluid body at ease in the air Feet barely touch down before they fly No fear holds you back, again you fly Your body sailing into the next jump Flipping over like a leaf in the air Smile beaming every time you catch the air Arms…
Playfully, the shadow led her feet, On a merry dance, in the soft grained sand, Illuminated by the glowing sun. The shadow tall, a stranger to meet, And yet, their merry dance, with nature’s band, Was in perfect step, accented well, By the evening light, of the glowing sun, Playing till dusk, when, then, her…
Dear Feet, I am grateful to you, for all the miles we’ve travelled. I am happiest when treading the earth with you. There have been times, trapped behind an office desk, when I’ve felt your restless sadness. You aren’t the kind of feet, that like to be still for long, from the moment I could…