The Unfurling Frond tells your story of self-discovery and shares with readers your experiences with traveling, romance, and finding adventure. Why was this an important book for you to write?

This book all started in a graduate course when a classmate innocently asked, “What treaty, and why is it important?” When I went to respond, I choked up. I didn’t realize until that moment how deeply Aotearoa, New Zealand meant to me. How that big leap to move to the South Pacific changed my life. Also, in that moment, the grief of not understanding so much about the land, the people, the history, and the future of Aotearoa, New Zealand, when I lived there, sent a shock through my body.

That moment when I was asked, “Why is it important?” made me realize I needed to write about my experience, the whole lovely and messy journey of finding myself, learning about settler-colonialism, embracing feminism, and moving into a space of belonging.

What were some ideas that were important for you to share in this book?

At the end of the chapter titled “Awake,” I state: “I travel between my two selves, two moments in time, my histories, two nations’ histories – never knowing where I really belong” (127). I think that quote includes many of the ideas I share within this book. For example, the ways I move through the many versions of myself throughout time. My transnational life and marriage mean that I am always trying to find my place. The way I experience history and want to learn more in these spaces and be part of decolonization.

I recently listened to a podcast ĀIO: a road to peace, where Amelia Butler used the term “reindigenisation” instead of decolonization. And I just loved that so much. I think we all need to join in on this journey. I can recognize my role and place as settler and support and advocate for reindigenisation.

I appreciated the candid nature with which you told your story. What was the hardest thing for you to write about?

The spiritual side of this book wasn’t necessarily the hardest thing to write, but is the hardest thing for me to share. It is a part of myself I rarely share with others, even friends, and so the thought of opening myself up to reveal that with my readers is scary. However, I felt it was so important to my story and key to me embracing who I am.

The chapter that is written as a “Memorandum” was an emotionally charged essay to write, and I tried it in many different shapes and forms. After countless drafts, I realized I needed to use the hermit crab methodology to share that tender, vulnerable space inside me. Then it just flowed, and it was perfect – one draft and done. Sometimes, we need to open ourselves up to the transformation of writing, and the hermit crab essay helps in that space. (The Hermit Crab essay is a term developed by Brenda Miller and Suzanne Paola in their book Tell it Slant.)

What is one thing you hope readers take away from your story?

That life is a journey, and no matter where it starts, you don’t have to be defined by that place. We don’t always understand the “why,” but if we open ourselves up to the journey, it will take us on a wild ride. We can always learn, grow, and evolve. And that sometimes it is important to just say yes/go and see where the universe takes you.

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