What lessons has your life journey taught you?
Atutahi | Kirikiriroa
Atutahi reflects on feeling deeply moved when a Pākehā visitor spoke fluent te reo Māori at a tangihanga, teaching him the importance of not making assumptions and taking time to understand others.
“Ko te āhuatanga o te wā, i tētahi o ngā huihuinga tangihanga ka eke mai tētahi o ngā rōpū ki te tautoko i te kaupapa.
Kātahi ka tū au ki te mihi ki a rātou, kātahi ka mutu, ka noho. Engari i taku tūranga ka huri ahau i roto i te reo Pākehā, kia mārama ai tā mātou manuwhiri he aha nei ngā kōrero. Nā te mea ko te nuinga o ngā manuwhiri he Pākehā.
Hoi anō, kātahi ka mutu ahau, ka noho, ka tū mai tētahi o ngā manuwhiri — Pākehā anō tēnā. Engari i tōna tūranga, ka tū ia i roto i te reo Māori. Kātahi ka rongo au i tōna reo, ka tau mai te whakamā ki runga i ahau. Nā te mea kāore au i te mōhio kua matatau ana te tangata nei nā ki tō tātou reo.
Ki ahau nei, i te rongo o te tangata ki te kōrero tō tātou reo, ka tau mai te whakamā. Otirā, me te whakaaro rangatira ki a ia, nā te mea ka kite au i tōna kaha ki te puta i te reo. Ka kite au i tōna kaha ki te ako i te reo. Ka kite au i tōna wairua kia puta i te reo, ahakoa he reo anō tōna. Ahakoa ko te reo Māori, ko te whakamā i ahau nei, ko tōna mana me tōna aroha ki te ako i tō tātou reo, me te tū i runga i tētahi kaupapa aituā, me te kaha anō hoki ki te tū ki te whakatakoto kōrero.
Nō reira, mai i ērā āhuatanga o mua, kua tau nei ināianei ki runga i ahau, mehemea ka puta he tangata, ka puta he rōpū kei mua i ahau, ko te tuatahi kia haere ki te whakawhanaungatanga atu ki a ia, kia mōhio atu ko wai ia.”
TRANSLATION:
At one occasion, at one of our funerals, a group embarked onto the marae to pay their respects. Then I stood and acknowledged them, and once I finished, I sat down. But when I stood, I switched to English, so our visitors could understand what was being said, as the majority of them were Pākehā.
However, after I finished and sat down, one of the visitors rose to speak, he was also Pākehā. But when he spoke, he spoke in te reo Māori. When I heard his language, I felt a sense of shame. I felt a sense of shame. Because I had no idea that this person was proficient — that this person was proficient — in our language.
For me, when I heard this person speak in our language, I felt a sense of shame. I also had a profound sense of respect for him, due to his exceptional command of the language. I saw how determined he was in learning the language. I saw the spirit he brought to speaking the language, despite him having another language.
Even though it was te reo Māori, I felt humbled. I felt humbled by the dignity and love he showed in learning our language, as well as standing at a funeral, and he stood with strength, sharing his thoughts with conviction.
And so, from that experience, I’ve come to realise that whenever I encounter a person or group, the first thing I should do is take time to meet and get to know them, and who they are.
