NZ...Epilogue...

It happened just two weeks before I left for NZ. 

"Dad has passed away..." My mom's words with a quivering voice on the phone brought tears to my eyes...
...which I'd never expected...

Canola flower fields along the rode to Lake Tekapo  

I had been thinking that I would never cry even if my father would die... 

Baby sheep in a farm near Christchurch

He was strict and demanded that his daughter achieved as he wished. When he was angry, his tanned face from playing golf always scared me. I spent my adolescent years rebelling him, and had a lot of arguments with him until I left home.

Tiny flowers in Ruth's garden

My father used to tell me, "If you learn English hard, you might have many chances to go to foreign countries."

But my least favorite subject was English in my school days.

From the top of the hill in Devonport, Aukland

 

After seven years of leaving home, I found myself practicing golf hard.

After twenty years of leaving home, I found myself studying English hard.

And now, I found myself wanting to see him and talk to him...

I might have been wanting to prove myself to him...

Finally noticed it after I've lost him.

   

Landscape go by from the car window

"Why don't you cancel the trip," someone said.

But I decided to fly to NZ carrying his photo with me. I wanted to take him to a foreign country where he wished to visit.

Morning glow from the hotel window in Aukland

I was impressed by the grandeur of nature, there. Majestic mountains healed my broken heart, and the still lake made me feel tranquil.

But what healed me the most was all the people I met there...   Deeply touched by their tender hearts.

I will never forget this trip...

そして　お花を贈ってくれたみんな

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