What gives you hope?

Hata | Whāingaroa

Hata reflects on his dad’s happiness in his final years, finding peace and fulfilment through nature, positive connections, and doing what he loved.

“I just have no regrets when it comes to my relationship with my father except for the lack of time.

When he was here [in Raglan], he was living life with a happiness that wasn’t there before. And I think it was because he did the things that he loved alongside the things that he had to do. He was spending time in nature. My dad was in the surf – you ask anyone- probably 350 days of the year. No matter the weather, he didn’t even wear a wetsuit. Just that connection that he had and to see that kind of enhance his life for the last years that he was with us.

I just got to see the true happiness that you can have when you put yourself into the right environment and you’re spending time with people that are really open to having positive relationships.

I miss him. And I’d give anything for like five minutes with him. But I just have so many amazing experiences with him that I don’t miss him so much. And I can’t, it’s hard to put that into words because, of course, you miss your parent who’s passed on, but man he gave me everything.

It was a special situation when he was here, somewhere he loved and where he adored the people because it kind of bled out into his interactions with everyone and then back to us as his kids. I just feel super lucky that I got to experience him in a place where he loved and his life was in a good spot.”