Living waters, quilting and ceramics

We have been in the midst of a huge winter storm system since Friday. The wind has shaken the house at times, the thunder has shaken the house at times and the heavy rain and hail have pelted against the windows and roof. There have also been periods of calm and dry within all this extra high energy.

This is all set against the news in the past few days of more earthquakes in Japan, the Pacific, Christchurch and a sizeable tremor located in Taupo but felt here in various degrees of severity. The Kermadec Islands jolt set off Tsunami watches here and with three family members living or working close to the coast my antennae were well up for an hour or two until the “watch” was lifted. A tornado hit an area 35 kms north of where I live and that has put an increased alert in my mind too. There seems much to be aware of right now.

Set against all this weather and the forces of nature it was with delight that I noticed patches of blue sky during the morning and so I set off to watch a DVD being shown outside our main public library.

This DVD featured 2 or 3 episodes in the Living Waters, Tiakina Nga Taonga – Protect the Treasure series. The makers plan to make a new episode each month for a year celebrating the unique ecology, diversity and beauty of the Porirua Harbour and the piece that I see on an almost daily basis, the Pauatahanui Inlet.

I felt transported into a much calmer space as I sat and enjoyed the small creatures, the fish, the birdlife, and the plants that inhabit both the Inlet and its fresh water sources. The humans featured on the episodes ranged in age from young school age children to elderly, all of whom were learning about this wonderful environment and contributing to the maintenance and knowledge of a very unique eco-system.

I see on the website that there are episodes online that I have yet to view so if the forecast “systems” in this storm arrive I can look forward to watching those at home.

I then went to the nearby gallery and enjoyed the exhibition mounted by the Coastal Quilters and artists from the local Gear Homestead group. The range of colour, pattern and individual creations was stunning. It was a visual feast.

Refreshed from this outing I am pleased to report a lull in the weather currently which I am really enjoying.

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14 years ago

It was very wet here all weekend and we needed to find a videotape to record on. So I dug into a box of tapes and came upon one that was named (that was a surprise) describing an evening held in my honor 14 years ago. Yep June 1997.

I watched it this morning and had a real trip back in time as a non-profit group honoured me with Life Membership. Among the gathered group were some people who did not know each other particularly well and so introductions were done around the group. This proved to be really interesting as details were given and connections made, legs pulled and funny anecdotes shared.

It reminded me of a very, very happy period in my life as part of an organization I had gained so much from and which I loved giving back to.

The fashions, earrings, and hairdo’s were worth a wee giggle and the telephone (landline) was mentioned so often as being a life line to all of us personally and organizationally. That was startling given how often we use texts, emails, social network sites and cell phones now to communicate.

I’ve made a note of who attended and will get this archival “gem” transferred to DVD to help ensure it remains as part of my family history and my memoirs.

I felt quite overwhelmed on the night with lots happening but I am so pleased that someone thought of videoing most of the evening and giving me a copy to look back on.