Sunday has arrived!

Tena koe. I haere au ki te whare wananga o Otago ki te ako i te reo Maori, a, ka haere au ki toku kainga inaianei. Ka tino pai te noho, kai atu, tangata atu, ako atu. Ka korero au i te reo maori, engari, kaore oku 'flatmates' e mohio toku korero!

I made it through the language weekend. It was so good, the food, the people, the learning. I had a really good time. There were some bits that were really hard for me, but I was able to cope with it, even if I didnt always understand what was going on.

It was funny though, as I lay in bed last night trying to sleep, there were thoughts running around and around in my head...and they were all in Maori! How cool is that. Just goes to show that what we immerse ourselves in gets inside us aye. Food for thought for me in terms of my hikoi (walk) with Jesus. How much do I immerse myself in him? Is he running through my head at night time or is it the latest episode of Prison Break? Am I immersing myself in scripture and does it flow out of me. Am I fluent in scripture or do I struggle to understand?

Some say practice makes perfect, but a wise man told me the truth...practice makes permanent...so I want to make sure I'm practising the right things, so they get cemented in my life. I want the things of Christ to run around in my head and in my heart and that they would be what people hear and see when they meet me.

A final greeting from Ephesians 1:2

"Kia tau ki a koutou te aroha noa me te rangimarie, he mea na te Atua, na to tatou Matua, na te Ariki hoki, na Ihu Karaiti."

freaky friday

So today is one of those Fridays I both loathe and look forward to. I'm heading to uni tonight for a 'wananga' (we stay overnight and do lectures and other stuff). Its for my language paper. I really love the context of them, and the fun and laughter of these weekends, however since its the language one there is NO english allowed! My Māori is not at the level of being able to converse freely with others and so my levels of anxiety are always higher than normal. It will be great for me though, cos the immersion environment is the best way to learn languages and unfortunately there is no country in the world where you can be emmersed in Māori in everyday situations. So the countdown is on until I head in, 2 hours and counting down. My previous experiences with the language wananga have given me a new appreciation of people who move to a country where they dont know any of the language and throw themselves right in at the deep end.
Im all for New Zealand being a bilingual country....it can be done. Seychelles has 3 national languages and people grow up learning and speaking all three. I wish more New Zealanders understood the importance of language to the survival of any culture.
So tonight I continue my learning.....I'll let you know how I go.

Ka kite ano

the art of forgiveness

so its Saturday morning, Im procrastinating...i have an essay to write on the treaty of waitangi, so instead I'm in bed, electric blanket on and laptop perched somewhat unstabily on my knees. I've been reflecting on last night. I had the privilege of speaking at recovery church on the topic of forgiving others. The opening question to us all last night was'what is the hardest thing about forgiveness' My response was 'trying to explain or define it'. Its not a one size fits all, some situations forgiveness is easy to understand or apply, then along comes something else that forgiveness just doesnt seem so simple anymore.

I used a clip from 'red dust' a film that is based around the truth and reconciliation commission that went through south africa, where those who had committed crimes could apply for amnesty if they gave full disclosure of the crimes they committed. At the end there is a series of scenes where the concept of forgiveness is addressed. One man both grants and receives forgiveness and it is a thought provoking watch. I loved one of the final lines of the movie where the character Alex (who was the 'victim' in the trial) says to his lawyer (who as a 16 yr old was imprisoned for dating a black man, and the conseqences were a severing of her relationship with her mum) "we have the right to say that it hurt".

Often people struggle with forgiveness because how to they reconcile the pain they are experiencing. does forgiving make our pain null and void? I dont think so, but its about being able to move through that pain to a place where we are not held captive by it.

I encourage you to watch red dust sometime. It is food for thought on forgiveness and closure.

And now I will encourage myself to get out of bed, and get on with my essay.