Margaret Poynton, a member of the Wellington Cathedral whānau, has been stationed as a Women and Children’s Worker in Papua New Guinea for a number of years, providing support to the Bishop and their wider community in the Diocese of Dogura, in Milne Bay. She has shared recently on the way things around her are quietly chugging on after the lockdown lifted for them, “some things however remain the same: the roosters continue their daily ritual of waking all and sundry, the sunrises and sunsets continue, the frogs and geckos still visit, and creation tells me that all will be well and that I am part of something much bigger than myself.”

Margaret’s weekly routine shows the consistency of a faithful life, as she holds Bible studies and discussions in her home for Sunday School teachers, youth, men and women, the Bishop and a handful of clergy across the week. Once a month on Fridays, Margaret goes into town – a much longer trip for her than most of us. She wakes up at four in the morning to be on the water at five-thirty. Health and safety restrictions this year have meant that there is often a longer wait for the bus to Alotau, “on the bus and in town face masks are required, security at stores ensure that hands are washed, and at the bank our temperature is taken.” She returns to Dogura late into the evening those days, sometimes even staying over in town and going home the next day. Saturdays often involve a walk to wash in the river with her young friends, and at the end of the week, Margaret hosts Sunday School: “we have a fantastic children’s ministry where the children are the liturgists and the ‘adults’ are the vergers making sure everything happens at the right time.”

Another consistent routine of Margaret’s life in Papa New Guinea is walking about the community one to two times every week, as well as visiting the small hospital each day to offer prayer and celebrate the new babies born. She says that a range of people come to visit her at home as well:

• some to tell stories

• some come for company

• some come with problems

• some to use the sewing machines

• some for spiritual direction

• some for overnight accommodation

• some are young children (4-5 years old), others youth and older people.

Margaret even has non-human visitors coming to her; in September “the chickens discovered that they can nest on the upstairs balcony – needless to say I’ve provided madam with a cardboard box. The next chicks should be ready to hatch in about a fortnight’s time.” She followed this the next month by saying “the family has expanded: during clergy week we welcomed five new chicks into the world just outside my bedroom door. May they soon be able to get up and down the stairs without human assistance.”

Despite the landscape of this year looking different for many, the underlying heart of Margaret’s time in PNG has been the same: a persistence of presence, showing up consistently for the women and children she serves, and continuing to support the Bishop as required. In holding Margaret and her service in Papa New Guinea in your prayers, she asks that you pray for:

• Holy Name Secondary School as they seek to address issues of funding and student welfare

• Diocesan Health workers as they continue to undertake community health awareness about Coronavirus, TB and HIV Aids in villages along the 300km of coastline and into the mountains

• For the weekly cycle of Bible studies that they would become part of normal life here on the Plateau.

By Holly Morton