Mairangi Notes #10 — 2026.06.12

MHJ

my mairangi

Issue

#10

2026.06.12

Yussi's Note

Busy Doing Nothing

Lately, things have gone a little quiet here — on the journal, the newsletter, and over on Instagram. Life with the children rolls on much as it always has, but with more on my mind these days, I keep missing the moment to sit down and post.I said, confidently, that I could carry both parents' share on my own — and it turns out that doing the work of two is harder than I made it sound. The days are busy in that quietly relentless way, busy with nothing in particular. For now, as a household of four, I'm keeping it simple: getting the children well fed, and not missing the school events that matter. And I'm hoping to fold a little more reading-together back into our days.

Main Story

Life in Aotearoa · 2026.06.12.

Season of Cross Country

A look at how New Zealand schools run cross country, from junior and senior start groups to children racing over grass and dirt rather than a sealed track.

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Lunch Box

MON

Week of Samgak Gimbap

Ten minutes. That's all a samgak gimbap takes — warm rice, a simple filling, and you're done. So this week became Samgak Gimbap Week. Same triangle, different filling each day, with just the morning tea swapped out. It's what I pack when I want the morning to feel a little less rushed.

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Campus Notes

TUE

Going Through What Goes Wrong

Life always keeps a surprise up its sleeve. Things rarely unfold the way I plan them. My placement, my thesis, my coursework — all of it has stalled at once. With so many pieces stuck on things outside my control, everything keeps getting pushed back, and lately nothing seems to fall into place.
But I believe that very unravelling is what grows me — that it opens up possibilities I hadn't noticed before. As much as I value the relief of things going to plan, I trust the patience and adaptability that the unexpected moments, the small and large failures, quietly build in me.

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English with Jin

This Week's Expression

“Can you help me?”

One of Jin's most-used lines lately — and she's good about adding what she actually needs. Usually it's a tricky bit of colouring or craft, or a snack packet she can't quite tear open on her own. The grammar isn't always perfect, but asking for help at all is the real progress. And sometimes she gets it muddled and comes over with "Can I help YOU, Mummy?" instead — which we'll happily take.

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Local Guide

Festival

Pacific Dance Festival 2026

A celebration of contemporary Pacific dance, on across June in South Auckland — the heart of Auckland's Pacific community. Artists from across the Moana — Micronesia through to Polynesia — come together across traditional, contemporary and street dance, with established, emerging and youth performers sharing the stage. Highlights include the Marewen Kiribati Youth Group (2 June), the Moana Showcase of new works from Aotearoa's leading dance companies (9 June), a Triple Bill on identity, migration and Melanesian womanhood (11 June), Wellington collective Shifting Centre: The Circle (15–16 June), and community movement workshops for Samoan Language Week.

📍 Māngere Arts Centre, with sessions also at Te Oro (Glen Innes) and Studio One Toi Tū (city)

✨

Winter Event

Winter Light Cathedral

A walk-through tunnel of tens of thousands of LED lights in Aotea Square, shaped after the arched windows of a grand cathedral. Soft and subtle by day, glowing gold after dark — the evening is when it comes alive. It runs from 5 June to 5 July 2026, open 5pm to 11pm and best enjoyed after dark, and on Friday and Saturday evenings between 6 and 9pm, neon-lit dancers perform inside. Entry is free with no booking — you just turn up.

📍 Aotea Square, 291–297 Queen Street, City Centre

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From the Archive

Little 15 Mins

I Want to Go Back

She grumbled that daycare only speaks English. Then, days later, she asked for her water bottle — in English.

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www.mhj.nz · Mairangi Bay, Auckland, New Zealand

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