A Journey to Joy

Words by Sian Fremaux EDITOR AND COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

Old Girl, Eve Macfarlane, (Boarder 2006 to 2010) is a go getter. A natural athlete during her time at Rangi, she participated in many sports including netball, basketball, athletics, volleyball, touch and cross country. However, it is her meteoric rise in the sport of Rowing that has seen her compete on the world stage; a sport she only took up in Year 12.

After three World Rowing Champs and two Olympics Games, Eve took a two-year break from rowing and went through a remarkable personal journey that has led to her becoming an author. She is also a Yoga Teacher, Massage Therapist, Artist, is currently studying permaculture and is again returning to the international scene as a member of the NZ Women’s Squad aiming for the Tokyo Olympics. As busy as she is, we were lucky enough to squeeze in some time with her to ask a few questions about all of the above and more: Eve, you picked up the sport of Rowing at Rangi, what lessons did you learn early on that have helped you in your career in the long run? Rowing at Rangi, I learnt the power of a team spirit, which still actually applies at the top level of the sport. At Rangi, we always had fun, encouraged each other, and built each other up. For me nowadays it is more important than ever to carry that through. When the pressure at the top end builds, I believe it is key to have that team spirit no matter what, to enjoy it and boost teammates up. “Are we having fun because we are going fast? Or are we going fast because we are having fun?” After the last Olympics you took some time off and during this period of time you were also diagnosed with depression, could you tell us a little bit about this time and your journey with your diagnosis? After the 2016 Olympic Games, my body and mind needed rest, so I listened to these signs and I took time away from the sport. During this time I fell into a post-Olympic void, I became extremely lazy with low energy, I lost all motivation, I didn’t even want to go outside, see people or do the things that I knew I loved, simply put, I was sad. I visited the doctor to see what was going on and that’s when I was diagnosed with depression. It took me a while to accept the diagnosis but the sooner I did the better. The first step was telling close friends/family, talking with a counsellor and then I slowly started to put focus into helping myself and made positive changes towards my wellbeing.

Scan thi s c o de to purchse ‘How We Got Ha pp y ’.

Co-authour’s - Jonathan and Eve

You’ve recently written a book with your friend, Jonathan Nabbs, called ‘How We Got Happy’ which shares young Kiwis stories of their recovery from depression - what moved you to create this book and what do you hope for those that read it? We created ‘How We Got Happy’ - Stories of Health, Hope and Happiness from 20 young Kiwis who overcame depression with the idea that through sharing each other’s stories and wellness tools in a positive, constructive way we would be able to help others to do the same. Sharing knowledge is powerful. We have come to realise it’s not a ‘one size fits all’ approach to wellness. So, with the idea of telling stories from a diverse group of 20 young Kiwis who have overcome depression we have the hope that anyone can pick up this book and discover something for themselves. The idea behind this book being a large hardcover coffee table book is that it means we can’t shy away from the topic; we want to spark conversation through this positive and proud book. We are a non-profit project with all proceeds from book sales going directly to The Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand.

You have had some incredible support on this project and have talked to some truly inspiring people, what has been your favourite part of the ‘How We Got Happy’ journey so far? The journey has been incredible so far. One of my favourite parts to the process has been working with the individuals who have shared each of their stories in the book. I was honoured to be able to listen, engage and write their stories along with fellow co-author, Jonathan Nabbs. Each individual has incredible awareness and understanding of themselves that I was constantly inspired by. Their honesty and openness were so warming to witness and a model for us all.

Another highlight of the project was the photography side, as an artistic character this was right up my alley! We had the incredibly talented Mark Hamilton work on the project with us capturing the true essence of each individual. You will feel more than you see when it comes to his work in the book, the individual characters and energy leap off the page! Being an elite athlete, you have already had an incredible career and you are also now training for Tokyo 2021. How are you looking after your mind and body through this time leading up to the Olympics? After experiencing depression, I have learnt so much about myself and what makes me tick. With training full time towards the Tokyo Olympic Games next year, I have adopted certain tools into my life to keep me well. A big one is that I take notice of my life balance allowing myself to have work and play. It’s important for me to have interests outside of my career. Understanding that I am more than an athlete and more than my wins and losses has been valuable learning for me. I like to think of my wellness as both external and internal. My external wellness is what keeps me well outside of myself, so my connections with my friends/family, living a simple life in our tiny house with my partner, looking after the environment around me, creating art and being able to do activities that bring me joy such as surfing and paragliding. My internal wellness is just as important, if not more. These internal wellness tools are the likes of my meditation, yoga, positive self-talk, and my favourite, breathing using the Wim Hof Method. These are the tools that don’t require external things to bring me happiness yet more from within, I think that’s where the real power lies. I am very excited as to where life may take me in the future, the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2021 are a wicked goal for me to strive towards. But for now, I shall be present and enjoy what today has to offer. I send my best wishes to all of the young women at Rangi, keep learning and keep loving!