Kiwi Paradise : Who Shot Rock and Roll?

With classes over and the practicum still a few weeks away Erika (our director) decided to uses these next few days before our trip to the south island as a chance to explore two specific types of learning called problem based learning and project based learning. Problem based focuses on a real life situation (problem) and the students then use various problem solving methods to find a solution. Project based learning involves discovery and hands on activities that allow students to explore and investigate for themselves. It does not focus on a problem but instead it focuses specifically on acquiring knowledge. So she decided to take us museum hopping so that we could learn how to create a lesson plan around a specific topic without having to actually go on multiple field trips with the students.

For our first stop: Auckland Art Museum. A cool fact: it's free! This was actually a really neat experience. So you know how every art piece in every museum tends to look the same after about five minutes? Especially in the states because we know the history and our country is only a few hundred years old. Well, this museum was a different experience! They had Maori culture, European culture, modern art, a kids corner, and a hall dedicated to optical illusions! I found it really interesting to compare the American art that I have seen (just remember that I am no expert...) to the Maori and European art they had in the museum. Many of the Europeans enjoyed paintings and portraits of the Maori way of life, which reminded me of how people used to do the same things with the Indians back home because the people back east enjoyed seeing the "native" way of life.

Funny, because even though NZ and the US seem to be very different (and we are in some respects) our history and heritage are really quite similar. Both countries had native populations who were nearly wiped out because of white supremacy, both nations were under British rule at some point, and both nations are made up of a melting pot of cultures/peoples.

As part of our tour we decided to pay the $10 to see the special exhibit on display entitled Who Shot Rock and Roll (meaning photography). It was super interesting because photos covered the walls of famous people from Elvis, to the Beatles, to KISS, to U2 just to name a few. Some of the artists were captured at the very beginning of their careers before they even knew what fame and fortune was ahead of them. Funny because those photos showed the ultimate dream, right? I mean these people had/have it all- the women, the drugs, the money, the fame, the "perfect" life with no cares or problems. And yet, as we walked around looking at all of these photos not one of the artists struck me as being truly happy. Even the few that actually had smiling faces betrayed unhappiness and dissatisfaction. It made me realize then and there how rich I am when it comes to happiness. I'm not talking about the feeling you get when you've won something, or how you feel when you find out that you passed a class. Those types of feelings fade and fade quickly. I'm talking about a happiness that brings peace and confidence. One that seems to radiate from your very being and that does not disappear when life gets hard. I've come to realize that the best forms of happiness are the selfless forms where others come first. And of course (back to missionary mode...) the gospel brings a form of happiness that cannot be found anywhere else. It was a very interesting reaction to that exhibit... one that I wasn't expecting.