Cuppa Words – “A Tribute to Howard Saunders” and “4.19AM”

WISE IS THE MAN WHO PLANTS A TREE KNOWING THAT HE MAY NEVER SHARE IN ITS SHADE

A TRIBUTE TO:

Howard Saunders [Howie] who passed peacefully on 7th November 2025

A mighty kauri has fallen. Howie always stood with his feet firmly planted on the ground and his legacy can be seen at Te Puia [Hot Water Beach], a place he loved and called home for over 60 years.

The native pōhutukawa planted at Domain Road car park, the reinstated wetlands at North end and the numerous beach and dune plantings, as well as the many private properties he worked on in the area.

Howie is with us all and his good work lives on for all to see and enjoy.

“A good friend Is, Hard to find, Hard to lose and impossible to forget”

                                    A friend, one of many …

4.19AM

when we both wake at the same time
in different beds
in different houses
in different streets
but are thinking of each other
and maybe trying to feel each other
the tarmac between us cannot separate us from each other
the night will connect us, each to the other
then maybe we can even get there,
in time with each other
and the seconds, the minutes, the hours, 
the breath between us dissolves
the sheets, blankets
walls and doors
the paths and roadways are nothing
and I am in your arms 
your breath in my ear
and we are with each other
connected to each other
by a force greater than each other
and it is mighty fine

By WORDsmith