Stars to the past

Last week, Clinton and I landed in Queenstown and drove 3 hours to Te Anau. At about 6pm, the sun had completely set and the road was completely dark, save our car lights. As we drove, Clinton and I kept trying to peer through our windows to catch a glimpse of the stars that seemed to be glittering above us...quite a difficult task when you don't have a sunroof and the car is still moving. The crescent moon hung in the sky tempting my imagination with images of jersey cows jumping it.

We finally decided to pull over somewhere after Kingston and before Garston ( a town with less then 110 people, shut off the car lights and jumped out to stare at the sky.

Imagine the pictures of the milky way in our third grade textbooks and that's what we saw. Magical. There were big ones, small ones, dull ones, bright ones, twinkly ones and fiery ones...a dark blue blanket with gorgeous swarovski crystals.

Clinton and I have only seen stars like this one other time in NZ. It was in Waiheke on New Years Day while camping with our friends on Shephard's Point. We love growing up in NYC and really wouldn't trade it in for anything else, but being able to see stars like this on the other side of the world really gives us a sense of connectedness with the earth, the sky and the history of people who looked up at them in the past.

It's not a coincidence that we were so mesmerized by the sky last week. It was Matariki, Maori New Year which is marked by the visibility of a particular set of stars (constellation Taurus) in the end of May till July.

Though we didn't know much about the meaning of Matariki, the energy of the sky seemed to compel us to acknowledge our blessings.

On our return home, I did a little research on Matariki (which is still occuring) and found this:

Heralded by the rising of the star constellation known as Matariki, the Māori New Year signalled a time for connecting with, and giving thanks to the land, sea and sky. It was a time for the community to come together to farewell those departed and acknowledge the year gone by. It was also a time to turn to the future, welcoming the new generation to the world and planning for the year ahead.

In addition Matariki was a time when people would gather to share kai, rituals, entertainment, hospitality and learnings.

While the pre-dawn rising of the star cluster Matariki is referred to as 'Te Tau Hou', the New Year, for many Māori the first new moon after the rise of Matariki signalled the start of the New Year celebrations, with the moon (Marama) being central to activities of harvesting kai and the start for all things new.

Historically, the star cluster was a navigational aid for Māori and an indicator of the upcoming seasons. If the stars were clear, it was a sign that the year ahead would be warm and therefore productive. If they were hazy and closely bunched together, then a cold year would be in store.

Matariki celeberations were popular before the arrival of the Europeans in New Zealand and they continued into the 1900s. Gradually they dwindled, with one of the last traditional festivals recorded in the 1940s.

At the beginning of the 21st century Matariki celebrations were revived and have become a special time of the year to respect the land we live on, celebrate the unique place we live in and continue to share and grow with each other.

I love the idea of respect, celebration, life, communion and growth...may you find all these aspects in your life, abundantly.