Posts by Leigh Russell
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The beach was deliciously empty of people. Just a few footprints to keep me company...
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On that same walk I took a number of photos of patterns in the sand. As I approached this one I wondered if it was a sheeps skull, but no, it's the remains of a bull-kelp hold-fast.
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Lovely pics, Lillith, and looking forward to having you here – you are missing such a lot! :-)
We have had a lot of chilly wind from the south lately. The misty streaks of blowing sand can be seen in this photo. I walked with my back to it – most refreshing in every sense.
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And lastly, on the subject of food: the children helped me prepare the plums which went into the pot on this occasion - it was free, windfall fruit which would have rotted on the ground if we hadn't picked it up. They then helped stir the pot, fish out the plum stones and after the jars had sealed and cooled sufficiently each of them took home a jar of delicious jam.
All this cost me next to nothing.
They moved away before we did. They were bright children, and I hope that something of what I shared with them will provide helpful reference points as they continue to grow and develop. I had such a wealth of this sort of care and support as a child, which is something every child should have.
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One more photo about housing construction: old food packets – which would otherwise have gone into the recycling – were the chief components.
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I can't imagine not being able to sew. When I was young I was fortunate to be taught how to sew as part of my primary school education, but without the help and inspiration of a dear family friend who had 'auntie' status, I may not have developed that capability. I was happy to pass on my enthusiasm, along with a little of my skill. There's nothing like doing it yourself to realise the value!
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I'm interested in housing and construction, as readers of a recent set of my articles will be well aware. A large portion of this I attribute to following my dad around when he was building.
As a young girl I experimented with housing design of more elementary nature, rather like this.
My young friends from along the road made good use of some old sheets and various pieces of furniture. You have to start somewhere!
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I've always love jigsaw puzzles, and still have a boxful which I browse through and make up from time to time. Some of these are from my childhood. I enjoyed making them up again - this time with the children. Problem-solving can be fun.
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Creative expression through art can be wonderful. I have a good stock of beautiful colour pencils which I got out for my young friends to experiment with. These pencils had been gifted to me by another artist some years ago. She knows who she is! :-) I was happy to share the love, as long as the children treated them with respect - which they did!
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This photo was taken when I was a youngster: bread and milk were delivered to the gate. (Note the complete absence of plastic.) These foods and other basics referred to as staples were heavily subsidised and therefore affordable to all. I remember when a pint of milk cost four cents, and it wasn't all that long ago. Now it's cheaper to buy soft drinks.
New Zealand used to be called the land of milk and honey. I haven't heard that reference for many years, and with good reason: we still have these commodities but they are no longer freely available in the way that they used to be. In a country with such a low level of population, wide open green countryside, good water supplies and more cows than ever before problems with food poverty are in my view both baffling and disgraceful - to us as a nation.
There has been discussion in the news recently about the plight of New Zealand children living in poverty. Bryan Bruce on his 'Inside Child Poverty New Zealand' Facebook page speaks eloquently on the subject. For those interested in an intelligent commentary on the subject I highly recommend it.
I am terribly dismayed that many New Zealanders blame 'bad parenting' for a situation which affects tens of thousands of youngsters, conveniently overlooking the care and opportunities they themselves are likely to have received in the past, as well as the economic landmines that abound in modern life a large portion of which are the result of the now absurd cost of housing in this country.
Children should never be blamed for the economic situations in which they find themselves, or be made to suffer the resulting deprivation. These children belong to all of us and if we want a good strong future for our country we must look after them and look after them well.
Everyone can contribute in different ways.
Living along the road from my previous home there were young children who didn't seem to have much to do, so I let them visit me and we did some nice things together....
