The Shell I Carried Home from the Other Side of the World

Someone asked me on Instagram last week where I'm originally from.

So I turned it into a guessing game. (No prize this time.) And most of you nailed it.

I'm a naturalised Kiwi. But I'm from the Philippines. I came over in 1996, after meeting a Kiwi bloke — now the husband — at a triathlon in Hong Kong.

Here's why I'm telling you.

Last year, I went home for a family reunion. And while I was there, I sourced one of my country's most loved shells. Capiz.

They come from the windowpane oyster. Flat. Thin. Just see-through enough to catch the light. They're named after Capiz — the province back home where they wash up in their thousands.

Filipino homes back in the day — when glass wasn't common — had these shells set in their windows. I grew up in my grandmother's house with that light.

So bringing these home felt like packing a little piece of where I'm from. It's taken me this long to make something out of them. (Because I'm usually distracted. Lol.)

But here they are.

Two styles. Only a few of each.

Happy Friday!

With sandy hands and a salty heart,
Rina