My father was a teacher when we were young, and the Education Department liked to keep it's teachers moving. As a result, I have lived in many places in the North Island of New Zealand. Out of all those places, my fondest memories are of the Pohonui Valley. There was one school there, and my father was the one teacher in the school. Our first house in the valley had no power, and I remember my mother making her own soap. The valley was made up of "settlement blocks" that were allotted to...