A wonderful world
FROM PAGE 7
under the beds, tree-huggers, vote catching, human blood line pontification, faulty road maintenance, etc.
Recent world history and problems seem to follow the last 5000-plus years of human history with its lack of realism and human greed. This has affected all the mixed races in our world, as it does society here today.
The Ma¯ori named every plant, tree, river and lake. They named the fish, birds and insects, mountains etc, and yet today there are sixth-generation Pakeha who can’t pronounce common Ma¯ori place names. Sad, but their loss.
English will always be the main language of New Zealand, as it’s essential for science and the business world we live in. Most excellent Ma¯ori speakers have mastered both languages, as have an increasing number of Pakeha. Even taking the first few steps in te reo will make travelling around New Zealand more interesting.
I know one old lady who is learning Japanese. Good on her.
Christ said the important thing was love for our fellow beings, and that in God’s sight all were equal, prince and commoner, ariki and slave. Pity more don’t get that . SAM McHarg
Kerikeri It is increasingly convenient to dismiss the glory of nature as we all scurry about finding our place in the world. And as the days pass by we often remain somewhat ignorant of the beauty that is displayed before us.
On Saturday, having had a busy day culminating in getting a feed of tuatua at the 90, I decided to sit and watch the end of the day on the beach about 8km north of Waipap Ramp, alone save for my dog and a seagull or two.
As the sun approached the horizon, unhindered by the clouds that often fringe the skyline at this time of year, it became clear that we were to be presented with the spectacle of the sunset uninhibited, a rarity to be appreciated during the current season.
The sun did indeed set, in predictable fashion, and as it was slowly consumed by the horizon we were treated to a bonus — myriad colours thrown across our cirrostratus cloud-speckled skies. Beginning with yellow and orange, evolving to pink and. finally. a burst of purple haze. It was truly a sight to behold.
But the show was not over. As darkness slowly consumed our place the night was lit by billions of stars, unseen during weeks of cloudy weather. The Milky Way, our home galaxy, proved to be the star of the show, with its magnificence splashed across the cosmos.
With the absence of moonlight during those early moments of complete darkness, we were privy to an amazing spectacle, the brilliance of the stars dominating the night sky. Wow.
As Louis Armstrong once so poignantly pointed out: “And I think to myself, what a wonderful world”. SCOTT COLLINS
Waipapakauri