The end of April marks eight months of living in New Zealand. We’re two months into autumn, the promise of a rainy winter season just peaking around the corner. Back home, the months of April and May bring sprouting tulips and greener grass, along with anticipation for warmer days and summer skies. Here, we find ourselves pulling out our jumpers (sweaters) and wool socks in the mornings and evenings, while still enjoying the warmth of the strong sun during the afternoons. While most leaves, plants and grass remain lush and green, various trees have slowly changed color over the past month, dropping purple, red, orange and yellow leaves, a reminder of the changing season.

It’s strange to think that as we move from fall to winter, we won’t be inching our way to Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Instead, we lean into the final months of our first year abroad, leaving me feeling introspective and gracious for the change we’ve endured. Autumn is often a time of reflection, the cyclical change in nature offering us a reminder of the inevitability of change and ephemerality of life. So much has happened over the past eight months and I can’t help but appreciate how far we have come.

It’s not uncommon that you’ll find my nose in a book (or kindle), as reading has increasingly become not just my hobby but a calming release. Last month, I picked up The Wayfinder by Adam Johnson from our local library in Takapuna. Judging the book by it’s vibrant blue and gold cover and noting it was written by a “Pulitzer Prize-winning author,” I was intrigued by the promise of an epic tale of survival, power, and self-discovery set amongst the Polynesian islands of the South Pacific. The book follows a young girl whose ancestors were once kidnapped from Aotearoa (now New Zealand) but escaped and settled on a remote island. The girl is faced with the decision to travel with strangers across the vast ocean to save her people from starvation, unsure of where the journey will take her and if she’ll ever return to the only home she’s known.

Though fictional, the book incorporates local indigenous cultural themes and language, including te reo Māori, the language of the Māori people. I instantly admired the authors commitment to authenticity, and the deeper I fell into the novel, the more I felt connected to the themes of human resilience and cultural identity. After a handful of chapters, I flipped to the back cover of the book to read more about the author whose writing I was so enthralled with. In an unexpected twist of fate, the author was born in South Dakota, an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. I’ll never forget how fortuitous it felt that I had found such a meaningful book about cultural identity and resilience set in the South Pacific at a time when I was settling into a life in that very region – and to have it written by someone from my home state, nonetheless.

I am not a religious person, and don’t necessarily consider myself spiritual either. But I increasingly am finding that life has a way of guiding you if you allow yourself to be moved. Some might call it a coincidence that I stumbled upon this book, and it just happened to connect with my life in this moment. Others would insist that the universe or God or fate placed it in my path. The only certainty I know is that at a time when I felt a bit lost and reflective of my own journey, the words from this book hit me quite profoundly. As I’ve reflected on how far we have come these last eight months, a line from the book continues to resonate with me – “You’re no longer where you were. Tomorrow will bring more progress. And after that, even more. You’ll learn where you went when at last you discover where you are.”

So where are we exactly? Well, buckle up folks, I’ve got a lot to share!

Turns out, Easter is quite the holiday in New Zealand. Lamb roasts and hot cross buns are all the rage, so we made sure to do it up right and make our own Easter meal of lamb shanks, roasted carrots and mashed potatoes. While I had hoped to bake my own hot cross buns, I took the easy route and snagged some from the local baker – Baker’s Delight. Traditional buns are spiced and include dried fruit, but my disdain for dried fruit in bread led me to the chocolate chip option instead. As Prue Leith would say from The Great British Bake Off, it was definitely “worth the calories.”

Following Easter, Cyclone Vaianu began making the news, threatening to make landfall and on the Eastern part of the North Island, hitting Auckland and the Coromandel Peninsula with life-threatening winds and rain. Prepared for the worst, we stocked up on food and water, making sure our phones were charged and our flashlights were handy. Calls for emergency kits and grab bags left me wondering how bad things really might get. But as often occurs back home, the warnings of nasty weather were far more intense than the weather itself. The storm passed by without much fuss, though it did cause some damage to the South. Thankfully, there were no major issues, and we made it through our first cyclone without a scrap.

After a two and half week holiday, Larsen eagerly returned to school for Term 2 and is hitting the ground running. She’s joined two new school clubs, including the Expressive Art Club and the Clew Crew. The first is a weekly art club where she gets to express her growing artistic self. The latter is named after a group of worms, known as a “clew.” The group helps take care of the school’s worm farm, learning about the significance of worms and their role in keeping soil healthy and nutrient rich. Austin and I have loved hearing all about it at the dinner table, though I can honestly say I never imagined knowing so much about worms.

In addition to working on writing and maths (they call it maths here, not math), Larsen’s class spent time learning about New Zealand and Australia’s role in the First World War. April 25^th is known as Anzac Day, a national holiday and day of remembrance for the soldiers who served and died in all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping missions. For the few days leading up to the holiday, Larsen came home eager to share knowledge about the trenches they dug, the conditions of their sacrifice, and the women who served as nurses on the frontline.

With the start of a new term, the soccer/football and netball seasons are also beginning. Larsen has joined the Takapuna Football Club and had her first soccer practice this week. Tomorrow (May 2^nd) is her first game, which Austin and I are both eager to watch. Next week she begins netball, a popular female-only sport like basketball, but with different rules and equipment. It seems the growing schedule of practices and games will keep us busy during the rainy winter months ahead.

Over the Anzac holiday weekend, we celebrated Austin’s birthday (April 23^rd) by visiting a brewery recommended by my new boss (more to come on that!). Hallertau Brewery is nestled just south of Riverhead Forest in a quaint, rural community about 25 minutes West of where we live. Austin enjoyed a tasting paddle of brews while Larsen climbed on the onsite playground, and we shared a bowl of chips (fries). It reminded us of afternoons spent at our favorite spot back home, Fernson. Though we enjoyed discovering this new spot, and Austin loved the gifts and homemade card he got from Larsen, birthdays and holidays are always so bittersweet knowing our family and friends are a world away. Every message, text, and call continue to mean so much to us. Thank you to everyone who reached out to Austin to wish him well!

As for me, I finally started my new job at Auckland Council. As a Senior Customer and Citizen Engagement Specialist, I’ve been getting up to speed on how Auckland Council engages with the community on key projects and policies, while building my network of internal colleagues to help support the department’s internal communications. From the moment I walked through the office doors I felt like I belonged. During a meeting on my first day, the team leader sat across from me and said, “Every day that you walk through those doors, I want you to feel safe, loved and supported.” I can honestly say, for the last three weeks, I have felt all of that and more.

Back in the states, work-life balance felt like a fallacy that we wanted to believe in but knew deep down was unachievable. But here, in New Zealand and especially at Auckland Council, it’s a key priority that is evident in how people show up each day. My team is as diverse as the country itself, and everyone has built a schedule and routine that best fits their home life. While we’re expected to work onsite in the downtown office on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, when you walk through the door and when you leave is determined by each person’s unique routine. The hybrid nature of my role has allowed me to seamlessly adjust our family routine, and though we’re still working out some kinks, Austin and I are both feeling grateful for the family-oriented culture of our companies that allow us to get Larsen to and from school, sports practices and games. 

It’s a sunny Friday here and I’m keen to enjoy the beautiful weather while it still lasts, so I’ll leave you with some pictures from the last month. I’ll be picking up Larsen is a few hours and helping her get ready for her first sleepover tomorrow with her new bestie at school, for which she is immensely excited. Austin and I are equally happy to have our very first night off as parents since arriving in August. What will we do, you might ask? The options are endless! Dinner and drinks, perhaps a walk on a nearby beach? Hard to say. But as with most ambitious parents, we’ll likely be too tired to plan anything big and instead just relax at home and feel grateful for the time we’ve been given.