Don't miss this...

I seem to be continuing a Maori theme over the last few posts! This time it is about a wonderful exhibition at the Auckland Art Gallery of portraits by Gottfried Lindauer. Click here for details.
Most of the portraits are of Maori people. The detail and expressions in the faces are truly breathtaking. If you visit the exhibition (which is free) don't miss watching the series of videos Behind the Brush. The stories of some of the people Lindauer painted are told by contemporary descendants. We spent well over an hour in this exhibition and I'd gladly go back for a second time.
My photos (especially small on a Blog post!) don't do justice to seeing the real thing of course - but these few might tempt you to see more!

Beautiful Kerikeri

On our trip North we stayed at Kerikeri - such a lovely central point for the historical sites we visited. Of course it is a good jumping off point for the Bay of Islands and Waitangi too but we had been there previously so didn't go there this time. We stayed at Kauri Park motel. We'd highly recommend it! It is small and quiet, situated right next door to the Chocolate factory and Cafe (!) and has a lovely garden outlook from each of the 12 units.

On the deck of our unit with complimentary drink on arrival!

The Stone Store, Kemp House, Honey Cafe from across the river

Still trading since 1836!

Where else in NZ could this be true?

In front of the Stone Store

By the inlet outside Stone Store

Entrance of the walkway to Pa site 

Looking back from the Pa

Tranquil Beauty.

Ruapekapeka

As well as visiting Marsden Cross recently we also explored Ruapekapeka - another historical site. This was where the final battle of the Northern land wars was fought.
Ruapekapeka was the site of the last battle of the Northern War, where about 400 Ngāpuhi and Ngāti Hine warriors stood against a combined British force of 1600. The warriors built a pā (fortification), which was cleverly adapted to the methods and armaments of European warfare. However, they were outnumbered four to one and they lacked heavy artillery. The British did not. For days, they blasted the pā with canons, howitzers, mortars, and rockets, eventually breaching the massive timber palisades.
It was fascinating to walk around the site of the British position on one hillside and then walk through the Maori defences not far away. The trenches and underground tunnels dug by the Maori were still quite easy to see.

The beautifully carved entry to the site.

Very helpful information boards at several points.

There were lots of these dugout positions of varying depths.

The underground tunnels are still clearly visible!

Who 'won' this battle is a moot point! As the final paragraph of the full article at this link says: 

After engaging the soldiers for several hours, the warriors withdrew into the bush. It was no rout. Ruapekapeka was not a besieged castle, full of terrified women and children to be defended at any cost. Kawiti chose a location that had no strategic value – there was no particular reason to hold that particular ridge. The purpose was simple: draw the enemy in, cause them a great deal of trouble, and leave when necessary. An orderly withdrawal had probably been in progress for several days before the British entered the pā.

It is difficult, then, to talk of victory and defeat. The British had taken (or were given) the enemy position, but what value was an empty pā in the middle of nowhere?

"Tidings of great joy..."

The week before Christmas this year we decided to visit the Marsden Cross site north of Kerikeri. Here two hundred and two years ago, in 1814, Samuel Marsden preached his first sermon on Christmas Day.

The text is now on the wall of the building at the entry to the track that leads down the hillside to the beach below.

This building is designed to look like the wings of an eagle and the text on the facing wall is "They shall mount up on wings like eagles..."

All the way down the 1 km track to the beach there are very interesting information boards. Set back from the beach is the cross celebrating the mission settlement and the accord between the first settlers and the local Maori.

My hiking stick was useful for the steeper parts of the track and we were glad of a cloudy day as the walk would have been very hot in full sun. 

It was a fascinating pilgrimage into our own NZ history and challenging to think of the early families landing on this remote beach and starting from scratch to set up home, build a school and a Chapel, plant crops, learn the language, have babies... and proclaim the "tidings of great joy to all people".

This link takes you to an excellent site which gives full information about the Rangihoua Heritage Park. I thoroughly recommend a visit if you haven't been there. The last 10ks of the road is unsealed but not too bad!

Nativity round the world

I have inadvertently become a collector of Nativity sets! I brought home one from Nigeria after my years living there. It is carved from the wood of the Thorn tree. The craftsmen sit by the side of the road with a pocket knife and tube of Uhu glue and produce amazing figures. Most of them are about daily life in Nigeria. But the Nativity set (and a Chess set) are also frequently on display.

A few years later missionary friends of mine working in Krygyzstan had the idea of encouraging  a local family to raise money to rebuild their house which had been badly damaged. My friends advertised this among their contacts and supporters. It was definitely a win-win! The money raised helped a needy family and the Nativity set is a beautiful work of art and a labour of love.

Then another friend gave me one she brought back from Bolivia. I don't know the history behind this one but the image of a broken clay pot with light shining through is symbolic in itself. The expressions on the faces of Mary and Joseph suggest that this was an amazing experience!

By now I was on the lookout for other international depictions of the Nativity. I spotted the next one in a shop run by the Good Shepherd Sisters (a bit like a Trade Aid shop). I was told it came from Peru and seems to be intricately carved out of a single piece of marble-like stone. It is the size of a large egg.

Recently Anthea was given a Nativity set from Rome. This one is even smaller and set inside a tiny cup shape.

                                  

                              

Finally, another gift which I think was made here in NZ and is intended as a paper serviette holder.

It's a pity these only have a short time on display in our house but I hope they give pleasure to you as well!

Advent: Season of Joy

Advent is a time of "waiting for Christmas". This can mean a frantic time with long lists of things to do, presents to buy, excited children, parties to go to... excitement and anticipation, yes, but so much stress and hurry as well.

Advent - waiting for Christmas - can also mean a reflective time of thinking about what Christmas actually celebrates: the coming of Jesus, a fragile baby born into a politically dangerous situation. Insignificant as that sounds it is the turning point of the world. Even our calendar counts the years since that day! Traditionally the four weeks of Advent focus on Hope, Peace, Joy and Love.

Today I'm thinking especially of Joy. I've recently finished reading a book I may have quoted from earlier: The Book of Joy. 

Two amazing men in their 80's talk together for a week about joy. It is one of the best books I've read and certainly the best one to make joy a realistic experience even in the hardest times. They have both been through great challenges both personal and political. Nothing they say is glib or simplistic. They come from two different religious traditions. What greater hope can there be than hearing from these two seasoned spiritual practitioners about the ways joy can be the deep foundation of even the most difficult life. It would be a wonderful Christmas present to give to someone you love - and I hope that includes yourself!

Table of Contents includes:

The Nature of True Joy

Obstacles to Joy

  Fear, Stress, Anxiety

  Frustration and Anger

  Sadness and Grief

  Despair

  Loneliness

  Envy

  Suffering

  Illness and fear of Death

The Eight Pillars of Joy

  Perspective

  Humility

  Humor

  Acceptance

  Forgiveness

  Gratitude

  Compassion

  Generosity

  Celebration

Joy Practices

  (This section is very practical with six specific ways to implement what has been written about.)

Simple beauty

Stay rooted beside the water.

Absorb and reflect

the sunshine.

Before I Forget

I have just listened to this half hour Podcast on All in the Mind:
"Imagine being in your 40s and having a diagnosis of dementia—at the prime of your life. Twenty years ago this happened to Christine Bryden.
Despite having difficulty remembering what she’s doing—often from one minute to the next—she’s applied her extraordinary insight into the disease for the benefit of others.
This diagnosis doesn’t automatically mean you are an empty shell, she says, and she’s discovered the joy of truly living in the moment."

I was particularly interested in Christine's comments about three levels of being and communication: cognitive, emotional and spiritual. She makes the point that the cognitive dimension is the first to decline for people with dementia, then the emotional level becomes more difficult. But even to the end the spirit of the person is still real and connection can be made on a spirit to spirit level without the need for words and cognition.

This is an excellent interview for all of us to listen to! It has great wisdom for those suffering from any stage of dementia and for those who care for and support them. Both the audio and the transcript are available here.

Bee breakfast!

This bee having breakfast

right outside my house

brought a smile to start my day!

A Shocking Statistic

Some quotes from a longer Blog by Rachel Held Evans which you can find here.
"The stark reality is that most white Christians, including more than 80 percent of white evangelical Christians, supported Donald Trump for president, despite his evident immorality, bigotry, and disregard for the dignity of women, (not to mention complete lack of qualification or competency)."

***

"The good news is that Jesus is already on the margins. Jesus is already present among the very people and places our president-elect despises as weak. When we stand in solidarity with the despised and the suffering, Jesus stands with us. We don't have to abandon Jesus to abandon the unholy marriage between Donald Trump and the white American Church. In these troubled times, a prophetic resistance will certainly emerge, made up of clergy, activists, artists, humorists, liturgists, parents, teachers, and volunteers committed to partnering with and defending "the least of these." "

It's a wake up call

The result of the American Presidential election is a wake up call to all of us. There is no point in continuing to wring our hands and say "How could this happen?" It has happened.

I recently posted about the Welcoming Prayer. Let's be clear - this practice does not invite us to welcome injustice, discrimination or hate. It invites us to know that the reality in front of us can be welcomed into the presence and resources of God. The Serenity prayer makes very clear the difference between accepting (ie welcoming) the things we cannot change and changing the things we can. Here lies the wake up call.

We may think that here in New Zealand, far from the epicentre, there's nothing we can do. Wrong! We live in a global village. These are our brothers and sisters. This our world. I am as shocked as anyone about the thought of Donald Trump as President of the USA. But I am very grateful that I am already part of many organisations that stand for justice, equality, human rights, care for the environment... People joining together in non-violent ways does have an impact. This is especially true in this age of digital communication. History has plenty of examples. It has examples of what happens when "good people do nothing". It has examples of "good people who did something" even at great cost to themselves. You can fill in the names.

Let's meaningfully pray the Welcoming Prayer and the Serenity Prayer and listen for the wisdom to know what contribution we can make to a world of love, peace and security for all. It always starts right where we are!

Here are some of the organisations that I belong to that have values I am happy to support. You may want to check them out.
Amnesty International NZ
Avaaz
Action Station NZ
350 NZ
Greenpeace
Green Party

Dominoes anyone?

If you've got three minutes watch this amazing YouTube of a triple spiral of 15,000 dominoes.
You can watch it just for fun... or for a modern mandala meditation... or for the sheer amazement of the skill in creating it!

Challenging invitation

This morning on the Gratefulness site this quote was the "word for today":

If your everyday practice is to open to all your emotions, 

to all the people you meet, to all the situations you encounter, 

without closing down, trusting that you can do that — 

then that will take you as far as you can go. 

And then you’ll understand all the teachings that anyone has ever taught. 

– Pema Chodron 

This says more briefly the same thing as the following Welcoming Prayer which was our call to worship in Church yesterday. The Welcoming Practice is a deeply powerful (and challenging) way to pray which has been made more well known by Cynthia Bourgeault at the end of her book Centering Prayer. I find it helpful the way it is worded here as an actual prayer.

  

The Welcoming Prayer

What we are “welcoming” is the Indwelling Spirit’s Presence amongst the ALL of life.

 Gently become aware of your body and your interior state.

Welcome, welcome, welcome.

I welcome everything that comes to me in this moment

because I know it is for my healing.

I welcome all thoughts, feelings, emotions,

persons, situations and conditions.

I let go of my desire for security.

I let go of my desire for approval.

I let go of my desire for control.

I let go of my desire to change any

situation, condition,

person, or myself.

I open to

the love and presence of God

and the healing action and grace within.

––– Mary Mrozowski 1925-1993 The creator and spiritual mother of the welcoming prayer practice

Hang in there!

Sometimes your strength and beauty

is even more obvious

in hard places!

Lingering to really look

I've noticed this flowering flax for several days - appreciating its beauty as I walked by. Yesterday I stopped and took time to deeply appreciate the detail, the intricacy, the patterns... Sometime soon the flowering season will be over...

Silence

If we were not so single minded

about keeping our lives moving,

and for once could do nothing,

perhaps a huge silence

might interrupt this sadness

of never understanding ourselves.

- Pablo Neruda

I've always been a person who loves silence. Even as a child my favourite places were quiet ones - indoors or out. Now I spend many hours of most days in silence. I walk - without earbuds! I usually drive and do things round the house without the radio or music. It is a preference, not a discipline. I spend quite a lot of time listening to others, that's a different kind of "silence". Of course there is the sound of the other person speaking, but internally I am as silent as possible to hear without the distortion of my own internal "noise".

Internal noise/silence is of course a completely different dimension to plumb. External silence often reveals the cacophony of endless thought loops, inner monologue, or dialogue between opposing internal voices. This is an arena I have been exploring more intentionally for many years. I suspect it is a life-long journey - a very rich and rewarding one. A daily meditation practice is a cornerstone. For me that is Centering Prayer but any established practice leads to the same end.

I'm always drawn to books about deeper, contemplative silence and have been nurtured and tutored through them by people who have charted the path ahead of me. The poem heading today's Post is from a book I am re-reading: The Grace in Aging by Kathleen Dowling Singh. I feel grateful that (most of the time) I can identify with this comment from the chapter on silence I was reading this morning:
"Silence is a solace. It is a space of penetrative relaxation, like falling into a hammock and, feeling ourselves to be suspended and supported, allowing ourselves to be suspended and supported. We can sink into it and let go of all the tension and energy required to hold up both ourselves and our stories. Quietude gives a deep rest."

I'm not sure which book I'm reading in this literal "hammock space"! But two of my favourite books supporting the practice of silence are:

and its sequel...

This is where I am

This is a truly remarkable book. I've never read anything that gives such clear and poignant insights into the adjustments required of refugees and those who mentor them. Of course every person's story will be unique and thus different but I was immediately drawn into the realities of Abdi, his daughter Rebecca and their mentor Deborah. The story is set in Glasgow and gives an idea of the setting and of the intricacies of English laced with Glaswegian colloquialisms! How far all that is from Somalia and the refugee camp Abdi has lived in for the whole of Rebecca's life. Abdi is not the only one dealing with past grief and painful memories... The title of the book is multi-layered and emerges several times. It is a powerful reminder to me too, to remember in every situation, whether 'good' or 'bad' that this is where I am.

Poem: CLEARING by Morgan Farley

I am clearing a space
here, where the trees stand back.
I am making a circle so open
the moon will fall in love
and stroke these grasses with her silver.

I am setting stones in the four directions,
stones that have called my name
from mountaintops and riverbeds, canyons and mesas.
Here I will stand with my hands empty,
mind gaping under the moon.

I know there is another way to live.
When I find it, the angels
will cry out in rapture,
each cell of my body
will be a rose, a star.

If something seized my life tonight,
if a sudden wind swept through me,
changing everything,
I would not resist.
I am ready for whatever comes.

But I think it will be
something small, an animal
padding out from the shadows,
or a word spoken so softly
I hear it inside.

It is dark out here, and cold.
The moon is stone.
I am alone with my longing.
Nothing is happening
but the next breath.

Poem from Gratefulness.org Photos taken at Shoalwater Retreat Centre, Western Australia.