My son, his wife and son are emigrating at the end of May. A sad time for us, of course, because we will miss them. But we know that we can fly out to see them in just 6-7 hours which isn’t too bad, facilitating a flight to them at least once a year and them to us at least the same. In the meantime, there is Facetime, Portals, Zoom, WhatsApp, even the old fashioned telephone!

I remember one like this! But today it’s more likely via cell or mobile phone.

But even back in 1950 when my mother got married there were very few flights. She got married in her home country of New Zealand, when most people would travel by ship. It then took 6 weeks by ship from New Zealand to the UK. Consequently, my mother, having married a farmer, didn’t go home again to see her parents and 5 other siblings for 12 years! She then went with us as children, me just 2 years-old and my sister just under 5. My parents must have been very brave to face 6 weeks on a ship with 2 toddlers!

But going back a further 100 years to the times of my novel, Waireka, Alister (who is loosely based on my great uncle) and his wife to be, nursemaid, Eliza, would have had to leave their families forever.

If you decided then to take up the New Zealand Company’s offer of a cheap ticket to New Zealand on a sail boat – this would be in steerage in the base of the ship – you would take at least 4-6 months to get there in very treacherous conditions. You might not even get there at all, but it certainly wasn’t a trip you would make again in your lifetime, or expect your family to make. You could certainly write letters but they too would take about 6 weeks to arrive by which time the news they contained would be old news.

I quote a scene in the book from the family’s last meal together :-

“Her father broke the silence by reminding Eliza to do the family proud and to write to them regularly and let them know how she progressed. Her Mama then, having finished her meal, passed Eliza a small silver locket, which upon opening she saw contained a small picture of her parents on their wedding day.

‘Thank you, Mama. It’s very pretty,’ she said.

‘Make sure you look after it, Eliza. It was a present to me from your father on our wedding day.’

‘Oh, then I cannot take it from you,’ said Eliza in horror, trying to pass it back to her mother. ‘It will mean too much for you to part with it.’

‘Take it to remind you of us, Eliza. We want you to have it,’ said her mother, handing it back in a determined manner.

Eliza’s Father nodded solemnly. It was the nearest they had got to declaring they might miss her. And it was in that moment she realised that she probably wouldn’t see them again and that if she should be fortunate enough to marry sometime in the future, this might be one of the only photographs to show her children and grandchildren of her parents.”

(Waireka: Sweet Waters pp 22-23)

You can find a copy of the paperback Waireka on my website on the shop page by contacting me, or buy the kindle copy via Amazon. The links are below :-