To many it is just an ordinary day - especially to those who read this blog from overseas.
But today marks an incredible day in New Zealand's growing up, growing into itself.
22 February 2011 was the day yet another earthquake hit Christchurch, our second largest city - or it was.
But this time, unlike Sept 4 2010 or the Boxing Day quakes of 2010 or the June 2011 quake or Christmas Eve 2011 quakes, this time people died.
185 people died during or as a result of the 22 February 2011 6.3 earthquake.
'Only' a 6.3 in some ways, but the g force involved was apparently unparalleled in previous records.
Buildings crumbled, people's lives ebbed away and others lives crumbled.
Pictures of the buildings and streets look like nothing I expected or thought to see in this country. They look war-torn, and feel like they belong somewhere else.
Over the past 18 months those brave, hardy, incredible people of Christchurch have endured over 10,000 earthquakes. Thankfully today, it seems, Mother Nature has been a tiny bit sensitive and left them alone.
Today I had to explain to my youngest why flags were flying at half mast (sadly it was again as they did for the anniversary of the Pike River mining disaster which NZ also endured in 2010) and the surreal images of people standing stock still in public places, as if in frozen animation, for 2 minutes silence at 12:51pm - the moment when the quake struck.
We all say Kia Kaha Christchurch, we all stand with you, thinking of you, caring about you.
But what does that mean and how can it actually help?
I know I can't imagine the heartache, disruption, distress, tears and at times abject misery of those who have lived through this. The reality of swarms of earthquakes through the night waking the household and distressing children, the patchy power and water, the roads like a ski run with all the things to avoid can only be known to me through the pictures and accounts of those living it.
It has been a hellish year for those living there - and very definitely the country's thoughts, prayers and hopes are with you all. I can only hope that that does mean something, does support in some way.
But what good if any can come from this?
Christchurch will rise, phoenix-like from the ruins, the dust and the pain. But the gaps - in people's lives and also in the nation's history with the loss of so many many heritage buildings and churches - will be huge and far reaching.
I think the country has learnt and is developing on and through this experience.
We are a more mature and supportive country. There may be compassion fatigue - but not when it comes to our own. I know people have grumbled in the past about the costs of sending teams of people to assist other countries in their disasters - but not now. Not after we had hundreds of Australian police sworn in to help Christchurch, teams of fire-fighters from Australia to help in the aftermath and particularly the very rapid response of trained and ready international USAR teams. USAR are Urban Search And Rescue - and that rapid response of both our own around the country and those around the world are responsible for the fact the death toll wasn't higher.
As a country we are learning that, in fact, nowhere can consider themselves safe from seismic disasters and so we had better plan.
In addition to a new, strong, beautiful Christchurch which will rise, there will be a change in the way we build all around the country. This all on it's own will save lives and give some meaning to the horrors Christchurch have lived through.
But on a much smaller, local scale, we can stand with Christchurch by learning their lessons and being prepared. Here in Wellington the reality of a major earthquake is a fact of life, like LA or San Francisco. People are supposed to be prepared. Most of us are complacent - but not any more.
We personally have our basic earthquake supplies anyway.
But it is talking to Cantabrians which lead to a lot more practical thinking on my part.
Now everyone has a torch by their bedside in case of emergency - earthquakes throw a lot of things around and injuries can occur in the dark as you rush to panicked kids.
After post earthquake discussions we now have the key to the back garage door taped to the underside of a shelve in the kitchen. The earthquake supplies are in the garage - and the main door is electric.
People found that electric doors wouldn't open without power. Ours at least has a manual override - so long as you can get in there. People found roller doors got warped and wouldn't open - but we can hand crank it with great effort from inside and so should hopefully be able to get the car out.
In the aftermath of the February earthquake people found petrol stations had power for pumping petrol but no eftpos as the phones were out. So cash was needed to fill the car - which you needed to get more water supplies than you could carry a fair distance. So we have a small store.
Parents I know commented on difficulty in getting medication and specialist formulas for their children after the quake. The roads were difficult and the supplies coming through were those needed urgently for everyone. I know people were pooling resources of things like hypo-allergenic formulas to keep everyone going until supplies could return to some semblence of normal. So I have 5-6 cans of T's Neocate Advance in our supplies. That's several weeks worth for him.
I also have a small supply of N's ADHD medication.
Not only does the idea of a hyped, panicked and unmedicated child fill me with horror, I can't imagine how I'd stop him running through the broken glass, crockery and contents of the pantry!
This supply was very hard to build up as there is no dispensation apparently to get extra supplies of a restricted drug so I only hope I have enough to get him through. Many parents commented that prescriptions were difficult for a good few weeks - doctors' offices might have been closed due to damage, the roads closed or the doctors busy helping the injured. If you don't get to see your usual doctor you can have problems getting a script if they can't access some kind of computer system.
But a photocopy of a script for your regular medications is a good idea.
And so these are ways as well that we can stand with Christchurch, make their suffering not be totally in vain. Learn the lessons so that when, as is inevitable in this beautiful but moving country of ours, it happens again - it isn't so agonisingly catastrophic.
There are aspects of a disaster we cannot alter - but let us be prepared in the ways we can be.
Let us learn from the examples of Christchurch - and may they and those who died last year be always in our thoughts.
We can't change it but we can learn from it.
Kia Kaha Christchurch. Your path in the past 18 months is simply unimaginable but we are with you and bolstering the Cantabrian spirit.
Rest in Peace all the souls who perished - 22 February 2011.
