Bruce | Manurewa
“My name’s Bruce and where would I call home? Home is probably here in South Auckland. I grew up here and I consider it a little bit unique to anywhere else in Auckland because there’s a lot of culture that revolves around here.
Even the schools that I went to, my culture is embedded there, and so I feel like there’s a strong sense of tradition that comes with this area.
Well for me, I teach martial arts and I always encourage my students to really be courageous in the sense that it really should be used to enforce their character. It can really be applied because some of these students come from families that have domestic violence and all that kind of stuff, so I always try to encourage them to have bravery and have courage. To step up to the plate and improve themselves. Hopefully, that way they can gain a sense of importance in a way that they haven’t had at home.
I grew up here in South Auckland in Māngere, and what is important to me would be, to be honest. To be honest with yourself and where you are and to be true to how you’re feeling. The emotions that you go through, and that kind of stuff, because they really speak to you.
I’d say my family, and martial arts are what I value. I get a lot from martial arts actually, because it allowed, well when I was little, I wasn’t exactly a good student or a good person. So I feel like martial arts has allowed me to evolve to a level that allows me to gain self-respect and therefore, allows me to reflect that on other people, and to show that respect to other people.
We can gain a lot of opportunity from being brave. Stepping out of our comfort zone and really learning from the experiences that may make us feel uncomfortable. What I learned at uni, in one of their programs; is that you can step back into safety, or step forward into growth through courage and bravery. So I think that kind of idea should support people when they’re thinking about doing something that’s uncomfortable, they might need to be a little bit brave, or they might need to be a little bit courageous.”
