Discovering Yourself in New Zealand tells the story of how Pallas Hupé Cotter and her family embarked on an adventure in 2011 after her husband was offered a job in New Zealand. Pallas, a longtime news anchor, decided that she and her family would take the plunge and move halfway around the world, from Sacramento, California to Wellington, New Zealand. Pallas had long been moving at a frantic pace, working long hours at her job and being a wife and mother of two children. She realized it was time to slow down, reinvent herself and rediscover herself, so she embraced this move to New Zealand as her chance.
As Pallas says at the beginning of the book, “Life is about saying yes, walking through open doors, and getting involved, but it’s also about knowing how to downshift that allows you to reflect on your journey. Whatever the right gear is.” for you.”
Pallas learned to shift gears in New Zealand, where the pace of life was much slower, and this book is her invitation for the reader to shift with her. Discovering yourself in New Zealand isn’t just about how Pallas and her family discovered themselves; it is also about how readers can discover and reinvent themselves. Pallas uses his personal experiences as a springboard for readers to pause and reflect on their own life choices and the possibilities that lie ahead. Each chapter ends with Reinvention Questions focused on various topics to encourage readers to make their own life changes.
Pallas herself experienced many forms of reinvention after moving to the other side of the world. She learned to slow down. Instead of working a hectic job with long hours outside the home, she created her own home-based business; after all, New Zealand is known as the best place in the world to start a business. Pallas also jumped at the opportunity to become a public speaker, including giving a TEDx talk at the first women’s TEDx event in New Zealand. She also started exercising more by joining a women’s walking group. She even learned to cook.
The changes in culture that New Zealand offered helped Pallas to make many of these changes. He found out that he had to slow down because in New Zealand you don’t run in and out of a grocery store. If he went to the market, the vendor would make sure he tasted his apple cider before he was allowed to buy it. She found that people wanted to take the time to talk to her and she didn’t want to be perceived as a rude American for not doing so. She also discovered that many customs and traditions were different in New Zealand. Halloween was not such a popular holiday, but the Christmas season was really a time to relax, often on the beach, since it is summer in New Zealand during the festivities. And then there were all the funny language differences that she learned to understand and accept.
Also, New Zealand was full of fascinating things to explore. Pallas arrived during the height of the buzz over The Hobbit movies being filmed and released in New Zealand, so she experienced firsthand the influx of tourists seeking Middle-earth and all the commercialism and excitement that came with it. She also visited Christchurch to see how it was rebuilding after the devastating 2011 earthquake that left her feeling sober but also admiring the resilience of its residents. And she and her family experienced an earthquake in Wellington that left them shocked but grateful.
Throughout the book, Pallas highlights her adventures since moving to New Zealand with a series of full-color photographs that will delight and amaze the reader. They cover everything from costume parties and fashion shows to stunning scenery and family photos. She really had no idea how beautiful New Zealand was until I saw these photos. Sometimes a picture really is worth a thousand words.
When I finished reading this book, I wanted to see “Middle-earth” for myself. Who knows? I might even move to New Zealand at some point. But more importantly, I felt my eyes opened to the myriad of possibilities that life has to offer, but are so easy to forget when we get caught up in our daily routines. As Pallas makes clear, reinvention is possible whether you’re traveling or staying at home because there are always new things to discover.
At the end of the book, Pallas reflects on her adventure so far: after five years, she and her family are still enjoying their New Zealand odyssey, but also wondering what the future holds. Palla states:
“I feel grateful and blessed to have had this opportunity to reinvent myself. But I’ve learned that it didn’t really require moving to the edge of the universe. You can recreate your life and turn it into an epic experience by pushing pause and ask yourself, ‘Is this the life I want to live? What can I do to change it?” And don’t let anything stop you.”
I invite readers to pick up a copy of this book, explore their own possibilities, ask the many reinvention questions posed, and rediscover themselves. After all, it’s the journey that matters.
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