I have a lot of catching up to do before this blog is really finished, and I'll get there, once I have a fully functioning computer to work with and better internet...but for now, I just have to say a big farewell to Aotearoa...it is a hard goodbye to say, and I almost can't believe that it has come time for that already, but tomorrow morning, bright and early, I will be leaving this beautiful country. I'll stop off in Aussie for a few days, then I'll be back in the Auckland airport for a few hours before I leave for the States. I was given a card by the classroom next door to mine which said that this goodbye was for an unspecified amount of time or something like that...and that is the kind of goodbye that I am having to say to New Zealand right now...I will return someday, but right now I don't know how soon or how far that trip will be, and that makes me more sad than I realized until it actually kind of hit me tonight that it is for real now. In honor of my last night in Aotearoa, I have decided to make a short list of things that I will miss from this beautiful country...this isn't necessarily in any order, but I'll let everyone order them as they imagine they would be.
6. Sweets...Ice-blocks (popsicles), Crunchies, Tim Tams, Toffee Pops, Hokey Pokey Ice Cream, Moro Bars, etc...so many sweets!!!
5. Beaches...although I haven't been to one in the sunshine for a while, I will just miss driving down the road and looking out to the ocean on one side, or possibly both sides, I'll miss the sunshine that comes with sitting at the beach and the tan that I have gotten while I've been here!
4. BYU girls and the Cutris...I know that most of these girls are coming back to Provo, just like me, but it will not be the same...with three going on missions and around 5 getting married this summer, it just won't be quite the same, but these girls are a part of my whanau now, and I'll love them forever! And the Cutris, especially the kids, are amazing! I will miss seeing Ti and Atti, but at least they aren't too far away from where I'll be living next year! (Sorry to my roommates, but you are being included here so that my list doesn't get too long, but you deserve your own number)
3. James Ahmu...seriously one of the most amazing people on this planet...I will miss being driven around, and led around by this guy...he is pretty cool! Those of you who don't know him, you should meet him! He has given us his e-mail for anyone that may be coming to visit, and he loves helping people have the best experience in his beautiful country!
2. My kids...I had no idea I could love a classroom of kids quite like I loved the kids of Room 4. Saying goodbye to them was so hard. Not only did I love that classroom, but I loved the one next door as well, actually I just loved all of Pomaria! I wish that I could just transport the whole school to the States so that I could teach there forever. I will never forget my experiences at Pomaria Primary School!
1. My baby girls, and the whole Joseph whanau...reading a bed time story tonight to Foo and Sizzle, was so great, but so hard to get through without crying...I love those two little girls, even when they told me every day that they hated me or that I wasn't their friend, I still loved them because they would say that and then later they would love on me and make it all better. The whole family is amazing and I am so lucky that I got to be a part of it.
So thank you Aotearoa, and more importantly thank you to the beautiful Kiwis that I have fallen in love with! I have so much love for these people and for this country!
