In the rain

A sad day today. A friend and colleague arrived home on Friday to find that his partner of 25 years had died in his sleep. Today was the funeral. Because my friend had worked extensively with Maori services and is highly respected by the Tangata Whenua, they helped him with the arrangements for today. "Help" meant that a Tangi was organised by them, and held in the Whare Hui (House for meeting) for Manawanui (Maori mental health services). Maori protocol requires that the site of death is blessed to allow the spirit of the deceased to leave and travel north to Cape Reinga where it leaves to join other departed souls. P told me that has been done; they have supported him in his grief, as his family of origin is in the UK.

The ceremony was a mix of modern NZ funeral processes and the traditional Tangi. It was moving, and healing. None more so than P's memoir of his partner. He is not someone who easily talks of himself, especially in front of others. I salute his courage, and was deeply affected by his honesty as he briefly reflected on almost half his lifetime with another person. 

Today, it has rained persistently all day. Maori belief is that rain on the day of an important transition is a good sign, and so we were informed today. The Australian Magpie shown here appeared to also regard the rain as a positive, hopping about happily on the grass near the Whare Hui searching for food.