The Coats Family Farm consists of 4ish hours driving time from Wellington, 4,000ish acres of land, cattle, dogs, good people and good food. This Easter was spectacular. Treated as a special guest the Coats gave me a grand tour or their property, Bach and home life. Check out all the things we did!
On a side note the country shuts down during Easter. Although New Zealand isn't particularly religious, they do "celebrate Easter," (by doing nothin. Uni was closed from Good Friday on to Tuesday. I returned to my school work on Thursday, and I will be paying for it over the weekend. Oh well. Time traveling the country is technically geography studies...right? Right.
Notes done on Good Friday:
Good Friday, all of New Zealand shuts down for a four day public "holiday." This strikes me as very odd, New Zealand is not a particularly religious state, why is Easter such a big holiday (the biggest after Christmas)? I had several errands to run on Friday, thinking this was the perfect time to do so since school is closed, wrong. Julia stopped me before I left to early to a lunch date, which was rain-checked because the restaurant was closed. Big bummer, I recived the text five blocks too late and found myself downtown Wellington, dressed up, hungry, and plan-less. When in doubt find a church.
By chance I bumped into a priest who had just finished his service (on my way to the soon-to-be canceled lunch). The Father informed me of a nice drop in drop out service taking place in the Anglican church next to the “Beehive,” New Zealand’s parliament building. Remembering this I wondered into the tail end of another service (in the catholic church next door), leaving still a bit spiritually hungry I meandered next door to the outrageously huge Anglican church, which was outrageously empty, and outrageously ugly. What kiwi’s do on this very stanch religious holiday is beyond me, they certainly don’t go to church.
The service was incredible, with the very reverand Frank Nelson, and reverand Jenny Wilkens leading the discussions on modern hymns.
With parliamentary leaders in the crowd of sober faces the reverand reminds us that if we are Christians we proclaim Jesus is, my way, my truth, my life. Then the reverands gently challenge us, “what is right and wrong, and who decided?” People of power, potentially the most powerful in all of New Zealand were undoubtedly among the crowd (due to the close proximity of the capital buildings). We all try to adjust our thinking, of course God is in power, but do we really believe this?
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