Footmarks for August:  

“The gift of simplicity”

I have just returned from our winter family holiday in a bach at Torrent Bay in the Abel Tasman National Park. It was just as wonderful as the summer holiday we had there eighteen months ago. We shared the experience with another family and even though there are always challenges of living communally it was also very enriching. The evening meal time was always a time of celebration and laughter.

We learnt games we didn’t know and shared books that others hadn’t discovered. There were theological conversations and impromptu concerts. Learning to accept differences and appreciate everyone’s need for their own space was ongoing.

Torrent Bay is a beautiful place. Everyday there was a feast. Some nights we had the whole bay to ourselves. As the days passed we became more aware of who were our neighbours. There was a family of quail who came to visit each day, a tui and bellbird who were very friendly. One night a ruru sang us to sleep. The most populous locals were the Oyster Catchers who left their little footprints all over the beach at low tide.

 Each day I’d wade through the freezing water to collect mussels for an entr￩e to the evening meal. We wandered everyday or just sat and soaked in the tranquillity. The children ran all around the Bay and never once mentioned TV or computers. They even had a mid-winter swim! There are no roads, and so no cars. There are no shops and so for a week I didn’t touch my wallet. There wasn’t  cell phone  coverage. And life continued on. The sky didn’t fall!

I enjoyed waking in the morning and from bed looking at the dawn across the sea. Then I would go downstairs and light the woodburner. I read more, and even used my fishing rod for the first time in ten years. I had a powerful sense of slowing down as we adjusted to a more simple way of life.

Simplicity is a real gift but I wonder how much we allow ourselves to really receive it? The challenge to all of us is to not rely on these away from it all experiences for our moments of simplicity, but to actively seek how we might allow it into our everyday urban lives. I cannot help but think that our lives would be much healthier and happier if we learnt to live in Torrent Bay in the middle of the city. By God’s grace it’s here if we look for it.

Mark