September
proved an eventful month. My sister Jan stayed with us for a long weekend in
the middle of a business trip. It was funny seeing her again, it seemed like
she was out of context…a bit like unpacking familiar household items on the
other side of the world. It was nice to show her places we talk about, like the
wharf. We also took the chance to go and explore somewhere new, so we went on a
3 hour drive to French Pass.
Not
long after she left (but was still in NZ), we got the news from Diane that Aunt
Mable had passed away. It was a call I knew I was going to get as she was 94.
My Dad had told me a few days earlier that she had a chest infection and he
didn’t think she would last more than a week. She didn’t. Jan and I had talked
about her when she was here, that was good as no one else here knew her. I
mourned her death with a sense of relief as she hadn’t wanted to be alive for
the last 11 years. I had said my goodbyes to her before I left. I mentioned it
to a couple of people but they had no idea what she meant to me. When you mourn
on the other side of the world it seems to be quite a solitary experience. It is also an odd experience waking up in the middle of the night, knowing that a funeral is taking place a long way away. Lisa
had met her a couple of times, but my memories of her stem from the huge amount
of time my sisters and I spent at ‘the bungalow’. Our aunties were a very big
part of our childhood. I will plant a tree in her memory and the memories of
our aunties.
The
growth and vibrancy of Spring is evident everywhere you look. The garden has
burst into life. A beautiful and odd looking tall flower has sprouted up.
The
weeds are on turbo charge as well!
Spring
also feels like the calm before the storm, in terms of our business. We have lots
of bookings and we are starting to get more tourists turning up at the wharf.
We have introduced new tours and they are proving popular. We are waiting to
get the final go ahead to put a shed on our site at the wharf. That will make a
huge difference to our day to day wharf operations. I hope it is going to be
there by early December.
Early
December also marks the end of the school year. This is my first end of school
year at school and it is just like all the others I experienced, except I am
not in charge and don’t have to worry about all the admin stuff that goes on. I
only had one set of reports to write and there are no school exams for juniors.
The end of term staff function will be a lunch and wine tasting, held at a
winery and starting at 11.30am. It also which happens to be across the road
from where I live! I will also be returning to school next year to teach 3
classes which is almost half of a full time-table!
