The weekend ahead

So tomorrow is the memorial day following the quake - day off work, but really not as exciting as a usual long weekend is.  I'm not going to the memorial at Hagley - too much this year with 3 kids and even though (saying this with a degree of with survivor guilt) we are relatively unaffected "out West" I have no desire to go near the city centre (even if its just Hagley Park), go on a bus or get caught up in traffic or be in a place with thousands of others - all those things and high rise buildings have little appeal.  It also feels a bit soon - but I guess this is a memorial for the people that lost their lives (not just in death but those still alive feel like they have lost much too) mostly - so now is a good time for that .  I guess next year it will be more of a celebration of how far we have moved forward as well as a remembrance - lets hope they make that fall on 22nd February though. 

Then on Sunday its the 20th March and this is the day Ken Ring predicts another big one - I don't really follow the guy but much has been said about this date it is definitely stuck in my brain and no matter how scientific and sensible you are you can't help but have a little niggling concern.  So I plan to be pottering round at home or maybe I should protest the fear that this prediction has fed and have a day out?  Picnic in the middle of a big grassy field anyone?

So after we have the memorial and then maybe another big quake what next?  Do we go full swing into demolition and rebuilding?  Do those that are really in dire straits get resolution first?  Is there a triaging system (like they have at the hospital) on people (in terms of their property and livelihoods) too as well as buildings?  If not there should be - I think if someone phoned and said they were ready to repair our house tomorrow, I would ask them to drop us way down the list.  I am quite happy to wait for another 5 years if it means those in desperate situations are dealt with first.

And what of the rebuild?  Christchurch has this enormously fantastic opportunity to build an iconic city and suburbs - but who will be the leaders that actually ensure this occurs and ensure widespread buy in?  Who will try and lead a uniquely kiwi build instead of trying to replicate overseas cities?  What works well overseas will not always work here.  Kiwis are unique and we want to stay unique, not to try and be molded into something we aren't. 

Meanwhile chaotic family life continues - everything seems to be a little dishevelled since the EQ.  Many of our routines have fallen flat and everything seems out of kilter.  Sort of similar to what happened when Mum died - a grieving process and adjusting to a new normal.  But we re-instated the treasure box in our house for the kids and a list of expectations for each day in order to get the treasure box and yesterday and today things have started improving markedly.  Now to get them all in their own beds...................now that might take a little longer...............still I can cope with that for now!  The sweet things the kids say and do make up for all the things you wish they wouldn;t!  Today I got a letter from Kate which said in part of it "you are wonderful Mummy" - made my day, oh and Adele finally did number 2 on the toilet which means no more cleaning up pottys or carrying them everywhere (until round 3 of course but i have a bit of time up my sleeves yet before that happens). 

And to finish - something that Mum always said "Things evolve naturally" and they do - its a great thing to always remember.

Here I am!

I've never been one to keep quiet in the corner.  I always have opinions and I like to share them.  But I always try to share them in a balanced way and listen to others too.  So I thought, hey, I really should have a blog.  No idea where this is going to go, but life took a curve ball for me, my family and every resident in Christchurch on 22nd February 2011 so life's journey just changed direction or took a curve at the very least.  But its all part of life's challenges and through all this we will get stronger.

My family got lucky this time - we live in a relatively unaffected suburbs and despite having slightly worse damage this time around it really has been put in perspective and can now be termed minor in the scheme of things.  My daughters school got lucky - though we didn't think so after 4th September when the school was wrecked and subsequently demolished but we now have a school in prefabs all on the original site which functions fine and the pre fabs were happy to bob around on their foundations in the latest Earthquake.  There are now many schools worse off and my daughters school will happily live with prefabs for a decade or more now I think.  Also none of us were in the CBD.  I think those in the CBD have a totally new perspective on the whole disasters, as to those on the "East Side" as its now become known.  But we don't always get lucky - perhaps I'll share those stories one day. 

So life carries on in Christchurch with a "new normal".  Many schools will return this week, we get used to traffic as bad as Auckland - no idea where that comes from given the reports in the paper suggest 60% of Christchurch residences are not occupied (perhaps that is an over exaggeration), the cordon slowly gets reduced, though its not open access, businesses reopen - often in new places but we now avoid high rises, car parking buildings and shopping malls.  There are no after school activities so we find there is less taxi driving and more time sitting around talking.  For many families they are farewelling loved ones and then adjusting to life without them.  Some people have left Christchurch temporarily, some will never return, others will still be asking the question whether to stay or go, those left behind and staying question the sense of those who have relocated to Wellington - perhaps those people forgot the even bigger fault line that runs straight under that city - its known and its big and their buildings are no better than those lost in Christchurch, but in times of shock and stress we all do interesting things :)  They feel safe and at the end of the day that is what's important. 

One question I ask myself, because unless we got an amazing job offer elsewhere, I don't think we are on the move, is what could I offer with my skills to be part of the redevelopment of the city?  I haven't figured that out yet, but in the meantime I am part of a busy working family hopefully bringing up 3 (hopefully) resilient kids who will benefit from the redevelopment of a better, safer Christchurch.  Wouldn't it be wonderful to have a sustainable, carbon neutral city as a legacy.......................a pretty big dream, but it takes a big dream to start big projects.