Maungakiekie

On New Year’s Day, 20 days (and another life) ago, my daughters and I visited Cornwall Park in Auckland. We recalled the first time we’d picnicked there when they were two and four years old – they are now 20 and 22! We clambered up the circular pathways that lead to the summit, through paddocks of sheep, skirting the archery area, where a lone archer was honing her skills. Half way up a rain squall forced us to take shelter under an olive tree. Then it cleared the way it usually does in Auckland and we proceeded to the top, encountering a traffic jam and scores of tourists. I noted again Sir John Logan Campbell’s grave and thought about his splendid gift of the park to the people of Auckland. We slowly walked around, pointing out landmarks and reminding each other of places we’d lived and the loveliness of the city below, where they both live and where we’ll be returning when our work in Ipoh is done.