Dear New Zealand,

I just thought you should know that I think you are the coolest country in the world. When I began my journey to your shores I was naive enough to believe I knew something about you. I knew the name of your capitol and the date that you became a nation. I knew you had mountains, sheep, and rocks and a giant extinct bird called a "moa". I knew every little unimportant detail and I can't thank you enough for setting me straight on the issues that are more "vital" to life. For example, thanks for teaching me that when I go shopping for jade, I need to look for the word "pounamu" and when I shop for clothes, I need to actually pay attention to what its made of because there is a farmer somewhere benefitting from my search for quality. Thanks for proving to me once and for all that fruit flavored milk is NOT nasty and that jars of jelly-like soy sauce called "marmite" definitely ARE. Thanks for showing me that "biosecurity" is worth the hassle and that, although my country is much larger that you, we should still treat it as though every single tree, seed, and invasive species makes a big difference even if we can't see the changes here as quickly as your fragile ecosystem might. Thanks for literally taking me to the edge of a volcano and then to the belly of a deep, cold cave. Thanks for proving that I CAN eat fries without ketchup (as long as they are made from kumara). Thanks for the memories and the lessons and prepare yourself, New Zealand, because I WILL be back soon.

With awe and admiration,
Brixey