i'm struggling on very little sleep today. i didn't manage to sleep til about 4am last night & was up by 7.30. the insomnia was probably a combination of a too-busy weekend & stuff going on at the hand mirror. i'll possibly have more to say about that at a later date. just at the moment, when i'm feeling very tired and cranky, it's probably not a good idea.
the good news is that i've managed to catch up with a lot of the volunteer work that's been such a huge burden on me. there's still some more, which i hope to get on top of over this week. and then i need desperately to slow down. not sure how i'm going to make that happen exactly, but it certainly does need to happen.
in the meantime, while i'm having my little moan about my life, i remember the people of christchurch who are struggling yet again. while mayor bob is trying to put a positive spin on things (and i know he absolutely needs to do that, to keep up morale if nothing else), life is really tough for so many people in that city. businesses are really struggling, people are finding it difficult to cope and there have been significant numbers leaving the city.
of those numbers, migrant and refugee communities have definitely been on the move. i guess it's because they are already used to packing up and starting again in a new place, so leaving seems more of a favourable option. also the fact that they don't have the deep roots, that local connection, quite as strongly as people who have lived in a place for many years. for myself, the thought of permanently leaving hamilton seems like an impossibility. i am so deeply rooted here, and feel such a strong sense of belonging to the place, that i couldn't think of calling anywhere else home.
regardless of the length of stay, the people of christchurch have had an extremely difficult time, and they have been in my thoughts all day.
2 comments:
Immigrants are just as deeply rooted in the society they have come to as people born there!
yes, but it does take time to settle, find your own space, develop relationships and really put down roots. i'm not saying they aren't committed to the place they go to, just that they may not have had time to establish connections at various levels.
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