i can't believe that i have already been at gilly and greg's house for three days and i have only just now made the time to post a blog. let me summarize my days at this farm in one word: storybook. everything here is simply fantastic from the handmade bread every morning to the home brewed beer to the gorgeous dinners every night to feeding the chickens to weeding the garden to (trying) to ride one of the horses. gilly and greg are both so wonderful and incredibly generous and i fear that they will spoil me into thinking that this is how all the WWOOF farms operate. i can't believe that this is my life right now. i could not be more grateful.

robin and i got to gilly and greg's farm late on thursday evening where we were greeted by the shine family and malcom and lindsay, two recent graduates from virginia, and cups of tea and homemade wine. i fell into bed only to be woken the next morning to a snuggly warm robin in a room full of open windows to allow for the gentle symphony of rain and a black cat hiking the hills of my sleeping legs, who was purring for no apparent reason. perhaps the cat was happy to be in new zealand and on a farm. so am i.

one of the ever growing list of spectacular things about new zealand spring is that everything is the breathtaking green that screams out to the world of rebirth and growth! the hills here are so green and vibrant they almost can't be classified as just hills anymore, that they must certainly be alive, something more than just plant life, something to be used for a greater purpose than golf courses or a cow's lunch.

new zealand spring has felt so much like north carolina fall that it is almost startling in their similarity. the clear light that penetrates each inch of the world is out and about here. i always think that everyone and everything tend to look clean and pretty in this light.

our first full day here, robin and i cleaned out the horses stalls in the barn so that new batches of sawdust could be put down. i noticed throughout the course of the project that i was not using my muscles to perform this task, but rather was using by body as a lever or sorts to get the job done. unfortunately when you don't yet have the muscles capable of stall mucking, you use your body as a lever and then you get sore. muscles will come. all in good time. it was funny to me to step outside of my inner dialogue and listen to my brain try and command my arms to lift something. muscles didn't listen. i am loving going to sleep after feeling like i accomplished something!

yesterday gilly and greg took me, robin, lindsay, malcom, and two dogs to a beach nearby called bethels. we hiked through the new zealand hills to get to this stunning black sand beach that was crowded with bushy islands and caves and pristine nature. seeing bethels beach is one of those sights that poke fun at language. so often i find myself betrayed by our language, unable to truly express how much my insides feel light and happiness at certain moments, and going to the beach yesterday was another similar situation. i get so frustrated when i can't have enough shouts and stomps and squeals and hugs to say enough "thank you"s to this fantastic planet. where will i find those words?

remember god jokes? here is another CRAZY one. on thursday evening waiting to take a train out to gilly and greg's house, robin and i were reading in the waiting area where one tv was playing a golf tournament. without spending much time watching it, i noticed that none of the players were big names (which i know thanks to marc). at a commercial break, the sports announcer noted that this was the Greater Hickory Classic at Rock Barn Country Club. the SAME rock barn country club where i got friday night pre-SAT massages in high school. the SAME rock barn country club that is off of exit 130 when my house if off of exit 123. see what i mean? god joke central in new zealand.

not only have i found my second favorite tree in new zealand, but also my second favorite dog who lives at this house. her name is Tanzie, and she is a bit crazy. on our first night here, greg warned us that "tanzie worships stones." she truly does. in the way that most dogs fetch a ball or stick, tanzie fetches rocks that are half the size of her small head. i adore her. she's a whack-job, though.

i want to stop writing this because everyone is watching Pirates of the Caribbean and i want to do the same. a quick summary of all the other things i was going to type out: I AM LOVING EVERYTHING AND WANT YOU ALL TO COME VISIT SO I DON'T HAVE TO WRITE A BLOG ABOUT HAPPINESS. more later. apologies!

love,
maggie