This week we had a piano lesson with Mere, went to a Zone Conference in Tauranga with an adventurous shortcut home, did some mending with the Tarawera Elders, and started an extensive garden repair for a ward member.
Mere is one of my favorite people. She was born in Kawakawa in the Northland, to a large family, including over 20 natural and adopted children, of which she is the youngest. She is gentle and kind and a natural counselor, and she is the chorister for the Primary in the Fairy Springs Ward. She is musically gifted but wants to learn how to read music, so I found another keyboard online and she is practicing on it. Here she is laughing with the Fairy Springs missionaries Sister Perkins and Sister Brown.
The electronic keyboard wasn't too expensive, and is a much better instrument than the one I sent home with Pania.
Mere wanted to make sure she learns how to play before we leave New Zealand in early July. She was the only child in her family to have a non-Maori name: Mary Victoria Sadler Wharamate. It is customary for Maori families to name their children after they have observed what kind of a person the child will become. Mary's parents told her she would be a teacher some day, and gave her a Pakeha name, an English name. She eventually changed her first name to the Maori spelling of Mere.
Monday the Tarawera Elders came for dinner and a lesson in mending. Elder Watson had some shirts and ties that needed help. Elder Hubbard already knew how to thread a needle and sew, so he is assisting his companion.
Elder Watson with his repaired tie. Elder Marble is impressed.
Thursday we went to Zone Conference in Tauranga, which was inspiring and motivational, as usual. It is wonderful to be around the elders and sisters and the mission leaders, as well as the other senior missionaries.
Gisborne and Te Moana a Toi Zones
The Elders doing some role play
The Sisters at lunch with Elder Fermanis photobombing
There had been a lot of road construction on our regular route, so Google Maps recommended we take a shortcut home via Oropi Road, which runs parallel to Pyes Pa Road for about 28 kilometres. All the pictures of Oropi Road, below, were taken from Google Street, since I didn't dare let go of the seat of the car and hold the phone up for pictures. I hope the upholstery recovers.
We started out from Greerton pleasantly enough. There were some beautiful large homes and land holdings
It was nice too, that there was little traffic and no roundabouts. We should have maybe given it a second thought as to why no other drivers were using the same shortcut.
The Google satellite map showed hairpin turns, especially after you pass Glue Pot Road, but we've certainly experienced a lot of those in New Zealand, and it didn't faze us.
It also didn't surprise us that we ran into a single-lane bridge on the route, but we knew all about the Give Way signs with little arrows on them
It was only after we passed where Glue Pot Road meets Oropi Road that we noticed there was no longer a center line painted down the highway
This was because the road was no longer two lanes wide
When we came to the next single-lane bridge, it wasn't even marked because we were already driving on a single lane
It got a little scary when we came to part of the winding road that was more like a trench, without any shoulders to speak of. Fortunately we had said several prayers about driving to and from Zone Conference, and we didn't run into anyone while driving the trench
We did later encounter two cars coming in our direction at a fairly high rate of speed, around two sharp corners. Because they probably knew the road well, and because of Elder Rooks' excellent driving, we survived the encounters intact. It took me awhile to let go of the upholstery, though.
We were very grateful to finally see the sign where we turned onto Highway 36, Pyes Pa Road
Rotorua to the left, Tauranga to the right. We will probably stick to the regular road next Zone Conference, no matter the traffic.
In less exciting news, we went for a walk after a day of two inches of rain. The clouds on Tarewa Road were beautiful.
While walking on Old Taupo Road, Highway 5, we were waved at by the passengers in several cars, including the Fairy Springs and Tarawera Elders, on their way to have lunch at the Stake Center. This picture is near where the Utuhina Stream goes under Highway 5. We didn't explore any farther because it was muddy under there. Maybe another day.
We visited Chris K., whose garage has been flooding every time it rains. The two inches of rain soaked into all the carpet in the rooms behind her garage. She is getting a bid (NZ "quote") to dig up the drainage system, which she is afraid will cost thousands of NZ dollars. So, naturally, Elder Rooks said he would take a look.
Elder Rooks ended up digging a 14' long x 2' deep trench behind Chris' garden shed. Fortunately the soil was damp and sandy, a sort of fluffy yellowish subsoil. We put up camp chairs and gave Elder Rooks encouragement and moral support. He came home and slept for about four hours, and I have been putting hot packs on his left shoulder, because he went back the next day and dug some more.
Here is Chris taking pictures of her loaded plum tree. She has lots of birds eating plums in her yard, too.
So on Saturday we went to Bunnings, which is changing its name to Home Depot, according to Chris, and loaded up on PVC pipe and fittings. It cost a great deal less than thousands of NZ dollars. Elder Rooks always feels at home in these sorts of places. It started raining again, so we weren't able to do anything more today. Elder Rooks will need the help of the four Elders to dig a sump hole in Chris' yard next week. She is amazed and delighted and doesn't know what to say.
Our potato plants were starting to wither, so Elder Rooks dug up these spuds. We ate some for dinner and they are excellent.
Our cucumbers are growing fast, as well
I caught Mr. Pukeko in the back yard munching on yellow plums. He looks guilty, as usual, because he is.
