My hometown

On www.oldfriends.co.nz I keep reading that many of the girls I went to school with in Whangarei are “enjoying being a Mum.”
Whenever I’m up north I’m tempted to run down the street,
past the old library,
past where DEKA used to be,
screaming “a part of me will always be connected with this place.”
Since I’ve left Whangarei a lot of development has happened at the town basin.
A couple of months ago I walked along the waterfront with Grandad.
He kept asking me if he could pay for me to have a ride on one of the tourist boats.
I kept laughing, patting his old brown arm and saying no.
He’s got Alzheimer's so it’s not his fault.
He asked me “so, when are you going to do something amazing, like get engaged or have a kid?”
After that we had a coffee in the sun and watched the boats.
A perfect childhood summary
in one grown up afternoon.