A Day of Plenty

We started the day in our campground north of Auckland, where there are people living in tents, and not in a we're-on-vacation way. It's deeply disturbing. The new NZ budget focuses on well-being rather than the bottom line, addressing violence prevention and homelessness among other urgent issues. You can read more about it here.

One little guy kept rolling his face into the opening between the dark tent and ground to look at me. He would say "hi" with a big smile. I would smile and say "hi" right back. The whole family was in the tent overnight during an enormous rainstorm. The neighbor woman, whose tent at left was a place of meal preparation, was super friendly and welcoming.

 

Our caravan needed a couple of things fixed that Art couldn't do, so the nice people who rent to us arranged an appointment a couple miles away at an RV fix-it place. Peter the proprietor was all over it and we were out within two hours, hot water running freely.

 

Soon we were on the Southern Motorway, waving hello to Auckland proper and heading for the south of the North Island.

 

Here's boysenberry jelly from Nelson, at the top of the South Island. Pic's is known for its peanut butter, but a farm down the road from them grows boysenberries and so they started making jelly and, oh my goodness, this is deeply flavorful. 

We're feeling grateful tonight for gifts great and small.