Wanderer

April 02, 2018

Wanderer

Oh the wind in my hair
it sings my song
to be a wanderer and to go home

The words from the song Wanderer by Mogli have been playing in my ears the past few weeks and trailing my path back home to New Zealand. To be a wanderer and to go home. I am a wanderer and home is in many places. All my life I have been moving around and I still am. Some ask me if I am lost. Don’t you feel rootless? They ask.

Rootless? No, I feel stronger and more rooted than ever before! I stand with my roots on both sides of the earth - north and south - Sweden and New Zealand. 26 years ago I was born during a snowstorm in the capital city of Sweden. Stockholm hadn’t seen any snow all winter until the day of my birth on the 15^th of February. Growing up I always loved the story of Ronja the Robber’s Daughter because she was also born during a storm and loved the wild just as much as I do.

When I was four years old, mum and me hopped on a plane and moved to the other side of the world to the land of the long white cloud, Aotearoa, New Zealand. Mum married my Kiwi dad Steven and we ended up staying for 12 years. First we lived in the small town of Mount Maunganui, where I grew up at the foot of an extinct volcano commonly known as The Mount, or Mauao in Maori. After a few years, we moved inland to start an organic avocado orchard outside of Katikati.

Now I am back at the orchard and the avocado trees have grown so much. As a kid I loved growing up out here. I was always off exploring, climbing trees and swimming in the creek. On a clear night, the stars out here are just breath-taking. As a kid my dad and I would go out and lie on the trampoline with a blanket, watching the stars. Now there is a spa pool for star-watching and I must say – nothing beats sitting in a hot spa pool, looking up at the Milky Way!

Growing up, we often take so much for granted. Now, being back here again after being away for almost 10 years, I am seeing it all with new eyes and it is such a blessing, re-visiting sanctuaries of old and seeing the beauty of this land in a new way. I am so grateful to finally be able to reconnect with my family and with my roots in New Zealand.

In two days I will be visiting the South Island for the first time together with my best childhood friend Rachael. We will be renting a car and going on a little road trip! I am really looking forward to discovering a part of New Zealand that I have never seen before, and especially together with my dear friend and sister who I have known for over 20 years.

Here are some of the photos captured from these past few weeks in the North Island of New Zealand, mostly in the Bay of Plenty and the Waikato region.