“My name’s Jenny and I live in Sandringham.
Proud. This morning. Earlier, I felt proud that I am alive and well and still functioning, and I feel proud to live in Auckland.
I grew up in Gisborne, moved to Auckland when I was very young, went over seas as usual, came back, got a job as a secretary which was my trained profession, and then became a gardener, and I’ve been gardening for the last 40 years professionally and at my own house. Gardening is my great love.
I joined a group who do community gardening and we meet every week and have a lot of fun growing the vegetables, harvesting the vegetables, and mostly having the coffee afterwards that’s the biggest fun of all.
So I link with the community in that way but also I’m very involved with Sandringham just with neighbours and people passing, and I feel part of Sandringham. I’ve heard a lot about this living in the moment. I think I’ve always lived it in my own way I don’t want to sound smug by saying that, but living in the moment is something I’ve always done and I continue to do it and I find it works for me. I wish more people would do it, but there you go, it’s my secret to my own happiness, but that doesn’t mean that it’s right for everybody.
Some people are so involved in their own life and their busyness and their work that it’s very hard to be really involved in the moment, but fortunately I can do it. I certainly do. Sometimes I think people must look quite askance at me because I do stop and talk to people and I think sometimes people think that’s a bit odd.
When I talked to you and see that you reacted so well to that I was quite relieved, because you could have been very rejecting and thought that this woman was some kind of nutter, but she stopped to speak to me because it’s not something that people do readily. Also, I didn’t want to come across as flaunting my knowledge, but I am enthusiastic about the tree that we discussed, that I had no option but to tell you.”
