Catching the Magic

Travels in New Zealand and beyond, going back to 2003!

  • Home
  • About
  • Blasts from the past
  • Country Kids
  • Motherhood
  • Poetry
    • 2011 Poetry
    • 2012 Poetry
    • 2013 Poetry
    • 2014 Poetry
    • 2015 Poetry
    • 2016 Poetry
    • 2017-2018 Poetry
  • Travel
    • Auckland
    • Fiordland
    • Kapiti Coast
    • Nelson, Tasman, Marlborough & Canterbury
    • Otago, Queenstown, Wanaka & Southern Lakes
    • Taupo, Rotorua & Tongariro National Park
    • Wairarapa
    • Byron Bay and the Gold Coast (2005 and 2016)
    • Californian Adventures, 2013-14
    • Canada, Dec. 2018
    • Cook Islands
    • Copenhagen, July & August 2014
    • Japan
    • Singapore
    • Sydney
    • UK Visits from 2014 to 2022
    • England via Santa Barbara & San Francisco, 2012
    • England via San Francisco – July 2007
    • NZ to UK, with our 9 month old, 2004
  • Running
  • Special Days

poetry

Poetry from the mountain

August 31, 2018August 31, 2018 BritMumInNZ Leave a comment Header, Poetry

The higher altitude suits my mood at least for a day or two I’m not missing the ocean or the salty sea breeze there is a clarity to the air here I feel high on its vibe gliding down the snow cloaked slopes riding the volcano with a smile from my heart I feel so […]

Continue reading


Lavender scent on a whisper of air – poetry on a Sunday

November 20, 2017November 20, 2017 BritMumInNZ Leave a comment Header, Lyrical Sunday, Poetry, Sarah

  Relaxed in a hammock, I smile, watching my seven year old daughter, a florist for a moment, carefully cutting roses from the garden, clutched in her fist. The thorns she is wary of, bees she accepts for without their buzzing, there’d be no roses footsteps are left with care, leaving no debts roses arranged, […]

Continue reading


The Glass Jar

April 5, 2017April 5, 2017 BritMumInNZ 2 Comments Poetry

THE GLASS JAR   Daylight saving has ended the earth has turned on its axis days have shortened nights are long and when the clouds set in – with incessant rain the darkness tries to pull me along. . I turn to the glass jar a recipe of strength to ward off the blackness.   […]

Continue reading


Paws #NaPoWriMo

April 3, 2017April 3, 2017 BritMumInNZ Leave a comment Our pets, Poetry

PAWS Floorboards marked with mud and sand telling stories of the land; adventures in the rain muddy tracks, sodden fields blades of grass sticks and twigs – all brought in on his paws. Days of sunshine spent on beaches sand on beds and couches, remnants of a day well spent. Grass spurs from country walks, […]

Continue reading


Autumn mushroom #NaPoWriMo

April 3, 2017April 3, 2017 BritMumInNZ Leave a comment Poetry, Seasons, Writing

MUSHROOM On the edge of the forest path, defiant to the shortening day, the fungi’s startling colour stood, bold red, with white spots, under which a fairy ought to play. It stood in stark contrast to the greens and browns, tree roots, rotting leaves and muddy ditches. Autumn could not be ignored and the mushroom warned not to […]

Continue reading


Gone bush | Prose for Thought

July 8, 2016July 8, 2016 BritMumInNZ 4 Comments Header, Poetry

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’ […]

Continue reading


Winter days | seeking light | #Prose4T | #ThePrompt | Sun

July 3, 2016July 8, 2016 BritMumInNZ 3 Comments Header, Poetry, Sarah

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 […]

Continue reading


I must be a runner now… a poem

May 23, 2016May 28, 2016 BritMumInNZ 2 Comments Poetry, Running

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… […]

Continue reading


In between the ages – a poem

May 12, 2016May 12, 2016 BritMumInNZ 4 Comments Header, Poetry, Relationships, Sarah

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 […]

Continue reading


School holiday crescendo #NaPoWriMo #Prose4T

April 22, 2016 BritMumInNZ 2 Comments Poetry

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 […]

Continue reading


Shadow of the evening sun

April 15, 2016April 15, 2016 BritMumInNZ Leave a comment Header, Poetry

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 […]

Continue reading


Dear Feet… #AprilLove2016

April 12, 2016April 12, 2016 BritMumInNZ Leave a comment Poetry, Sarah

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 […]

Continue reading


Dear Hunger… #AprilLove2016

April 12, 2016April 12, 2016 BritMumInNZ 2 Comments Poetry, Sarah

Dear Hunger, I shall never forget the way you looked, expressed on the lips of my first child. The milk she sought was slow in coming, after a prolonged and difficult birth. After several weeks and long, painful nights, of little sleep and endless nursing, her hunger was finally satisfied – but the weight of […]

Continue reading


Dear Imagination… #AprilLove2016

April 11, 2016May 7, 2016 BritMumInNZ 4 Comments Alice, Poetry

Dear Imagination, I see you every day in my child’s eyes, in her creative play and questions, in the songs she sings and stories she tells, straight from the heart, with natural ease. Her mind has no limits, she can travel through changing dimensions, shape shifting her body through time and space. Today, on the […]

Continue reading


Posts navigation

Older posts
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Pinterest

Archives

Recent Posts

  • WAI2K 50km trail adventure, November 2024! February 20, 2025
  • Visits back to the UK aren’t always a holiday – when those you love aren’t well. February 6, 2025
  • Celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary with a long weekend on the Gold Coast – June 2024 January 6, 2025
  • ‘Last time’ moments on a spring visit to the UK, May 2024 January 2, 2025
  • Race Tekapo 50km September 29, 2024
  • Running the stunning Motatapu Trail Marathon May 30, 2024
  • 50km for 50 years! How I saw in the first day of my fifties running the 50km Faultline Ultra! May 21, 2024
  • Six month catch up! March 9, 2024
  • Ten blissful days in Rarotonga, Cook Islands. August 8, 2023
  • Marlborough Food & Wine Festival Birthday Celebration August 7, 2023
  • A few running events to kick off the year & a sub-4 PB at the Rotorua Marathon! May 10, 2023
  • Auckland mid-week break away for Harry Styles! April 4, 2023

Things I Write About

Art (100) autumn (42) Baking (37) beach (67) Birthday (51) birthday party (31) breastfeeding (29) cafes (46) christmas (71) Country Kids (59) family (117) family time (57) featured (34) friends (38) Garden (43) holiday (36) Holidays (133) Lyall Bay (47) Lyrical Sunday (68) milestones (62) motherhood (37) New Zealand (38) parenting (36) photography (39) poem (69) poetry (92) running (62) Santa Barbara (32) school (75) school holidays (50) seasons (45) Silent Sunday (51) sisters (29) sleep (35) spring (38) summer (60) swimming (28) the gallery (62) Things I'm Loving (118) UK (33) Walks (47) weather (34) Wellington (137) winter (42) writing (50)
dazzling Theme by Colorlib Powered by WordPress