Monthly Archives: Jun 2022

“Fiction is like a spider’s web, attached ever so lightly perhaps, but still attached to life at all four corners.” Virginia Woolf

Wake up in the cold, foggy with a bit of sunshine peeking through the cloud in the garden. Oh, what a delight to see many spider webs in the roses garden!

Mum let dogs out for their runs around the property while walking around the roses garden and admiring unique works woven by spiders overnight. Quickly dashed inside the house as it was a frigid morning. Mum had a warm porridge breakfast while waiting for the sunshine to peek through the foggy clouds. Finally, outbreak – the sun looked through and shone over the roses, and mum grabbed her mobile camera to take photos for this blog. Oh, what wonder artworks made by the spiders that delighted that morning.

Yes, it is Winter here in New Zealand, and it is not quite the end of June. Thankful for the bountiful rain we need in the Waikato Rural regional, for we, the local rural community, do not complain about rainy weeks. 

https://faithlife.com/posts/4516849

Kindly remind Mum that today’s world is heading for destruction and the danger of global warming. Global warming is becoming destructive caused by mankind, Mother Nature and the lack of horticultural education to preserve trees and grow seeds to plants/trees. Trees/shrubs and boulders/large rocks can prevent erosion along the coastal beaches like Port Waikato or Raglan, New Zealand. For example, the war between Ukraine and Russia without warning made mum think about the late blind woman who foretold the future and said there would be a World War Three. 

Looking back to the spider’s web and the handwork, the spider continues to be woven the web each time any insects or humans break the web. “Spiders rebuild their webs by eating the silk then “recycling” it to make new webs. Webs have multiple purposes, but the most important one is to trap insects for food.”

“Spider’s web symbolizes destiny and mortality. Christian symbolism of the spider is usually that of a Devil, which captures by ensnarement just like the spider traps its prey. Folklore also associates the spider meaning with good luck, wealth, or coming rain.”

There was another detail that mum forgot about, and here is the quote. “In Ukraine, if you find a spider web in the house on Christmas morning, it is believed to be a good luck omen. An artificial spider and web are often included in the decorations on Ukrainian Christmas trees. There is also a popular spider inspired folk legend from Germany and Ukraine.9/01/2011″

The worst nightmare and shock affected the close-knit families when a policeman came to the door, or a phone rang early in the morning. 

Yesterday morning we read the newspapers in the Waikato Times and the NZ Herald. In the article, the family members detailed were a mother and a child who died and left a young father alive and injured. This detail brought back my memory of the 1st of February in Eureka. The worst serious accident happened on State Highway 1, south of Picton, South Island, resulting from a van (mover van) and a truck with two container trailers. Seven out of nine family members died instantly, leaving two other families injured, and the truck driver was barely shaken and had a mild injury. 

We learnt that the mover van had crossed the centre line while the truck driver tried to avoid it but ended up tipping over to the rail line 50 metres away. We watched the new video and can tell the brake line/tyre marks along both sides of the roads. We leave the clues to the investigation team to understand what happened the whole thing.  https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/129019470/seven-people-from-same-family-killed-in-crash-on-way-home-from-funeral-named

I tried to focus on other areas like gardening, genealogy research and jigsaw puzzles. My partner knew what to feel like having been injured and living with the accident in the past. Because he had been involved in vehicles and other accidents in the past, he is a truck driver. At the same time, I am a deaf-specialised community worker, deaf advocator and deaf historian. I have experience involved with assistance in the accident near our property back on the 1st of February. 

The family came from consistent church-goers. The father was a primary teacher who received extensive extra training for the high-needs children; the school dealt with behaviours that “fall into the broad categories of profound, severe and moderate disability”.

Consider there is more work to be done on the safety of driving on the road and the acute awareness of the road codes and speed. It is called Road to Zero. The campaign starts on the 13th of February 2022, and it is not okay for people to die or to be seriously injured in a crash. 

https://www.nzta.govt.nz/safety/what-waka-kotahi-is-doing/marketing-campaigns/current-marketing-campaigns/booth/

Your loss saddens our hearts, and our thoughts and prayers are with you. May our Lord bless and comfort you and your family during this time of grief. May the memories of this family and the love of family surround you and give you strength in the days ahead. Please accept our sincere condolences.

Kererū is in the picture here. The bird cloaks iridescent green and bronze feathers on its head and a bright white vest and sits on a branch. The kowhai flowering is displayed along the branch stem. Copyrights Joanne Bowe – NZ Artist and her website is www.JoanneBoweArtist.com

This year, this picture was a birthday gift from my brother from Hamilton, New Zealand. I have not framed this picture yet as it sits on my work table at home. Every day I am in the office here and look at the picture because it reminds me how life’s contrast impacts human lives every day.

Today is the first day of June, and it has been four months (1st of February) since we witnessed and were involved in the severe three-car accident site next to our property. I am a deaf Christian through my family’s strong connection to Christianity over many years. I have remained in solid faith throughout my life whenever I go and am constantly safe before coming home or leaving home for work, shopping and home visits. 

Māori have had a solid connection to kererū for many years. Currently, farmland owners and conversation teams regularly check in the forests, bushes, and farmlands to avoid gradually declining in areas where predation and illegal hunting are unchecked. Let’s look at the details about Kererū and why this native bird is rare and protected from having an extinction of birds in Aotearoa (New Zealand). 

“Māori have an enduring relationship with kererū that goes back to the arrival of the first canoes – a spiritual connection that transcends mere sustenance.

Iwi in former kererū strongholds – Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Hine, Tuhoe, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Whanganui, Te Ātiawa, and Ngāi Tahu – hold a particular reverence for kererū, which frequently features in tribal myths and lore.” https://kererudiscovery.org.nz/about-kereru/

What do the Kererū symbolise? They are symbolic of guardianship, forewarning, grief and awareness for Māori. “Are you taking enough care for yourself and your whānau and your provider, Papatūānuku (Earth Mother).” The kererū’s colourful feathers were used to make cloaks.

https://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/birds/birds-a-z/nz-pigeon-kereru/

Recently our neighbour and his family moved to Morrinsville for a new pasture, and yes, he was one of us at the accident site. They are moving forward with a fresh start in their lives. We are not going anywhere, and we are staying put as it is our home. The battle with the Land Transport NZ and the Waikato District Council is not done, and they are working with us on improving the corner in the intersection, putting up new signs and reviewing road safety for school buses. But we are getting there and keeping the communication open to everyone here.

Now it is the Winter season, and the plan of growing sunflower sections is underway in our large open fields surrounded by five cherry trees in a straight line.