Pati | Māngere
“My name is Pati, I’m originally from down Tauranga. I’ve been up in Auckland for about nine months now. The best part of Auckland where we are is in Māngere. Quite a good place to be in.
I think just being in Auckland, you’ve got to be in brave. There’s a lot of ethnicity and a lot of things been happening up in Auckland, and so you’ve just got to be brave I think just to be around Auckland. Not brave enough to make you look staunch or anything, but just to be brave enough just to share with the community. The sort of braveness that you have, to sort of encourage kids just to do the right thing and take them through the right path. I think that’s bravery in this community. So, you’ve got to be brave. Got to be really brave.
I’m originally from Tokoroa. Rugby didn’t work out well, so I shifted to Tauranga for a better life and more opportunities as Tokoroa was just known as a forestry town. I’m very happy and glad that I shifted there because that’s where I met my partner and four kids. So our eldest now is 18 and we’ve been up here for nine months, and the kids love it up here.
You have to be brave in life to face all the negativity stuff. Being in this big city of Auckland, like I said before, there’s been a lot of things happening up here now in our inner city, and for us from Tauranga, being brave enough to come up here. I think it’s good for our kids to come here and learn what the city is all about, and learning different cultures as well. Just to teach them not to be fearful, not to be scared around Auckland. I’ve only been here a short time, but it’s what people think of Auckland that makes other people think of Auckland as I guess a gang-ridden city. But I think it’s just a multi-cultural ethnicity and I think Auckland is a great place to be, life here is good. It’s quite fast for me and my family, but we’re getting there. I guess if you’re not brave enough, then you might get some things chucked at you, I guess, you just got to be brave with whatever you do in life.”
