Who has changed your life?

Pati | Pōneke

After Pati (Sāmoa, Lower Hutt) broke his neck he struggled with his new life as a wheelchair user. An old friend showed up for Pati when he needed it most.

When I was at college, at Wainuiomata College, I had a friend, his name was Chris Takira. And he was a real cheeky guy and, you know, always had a big smile on his face and, and then just one day he wasn’t around anymore. And then I heard that, he’d gone over to the Petone Wharf and they’d had a day off from school, and a group of them had gone swimming, and he jumped off and hit the bottom and broke his neck and been in a wheelchair. So I never actually saw him again until quite a few years later.

And I saw him in the mall and I saw him, he was in a wheelchair and, and I suddenly felt awkward and I just thought, “oh, don’t know how I’m gonna talk to him”. Probably more than just a physical disability, but in the end, I avoided seeing him and meeting him and talking to him and, and carried on my way.

Ironically, after my accident, he was the first one to come round to my house. He would knock on the door, and my caregiver opened the door and then he came in and then he started telling me about, you know, what he went through and that we can get over it, and he just kept coming around and bringing other people and slowly started to help me, I guess, get over myself.

So, he’s Māori, and he’s since passed, but I’ll never forget him as being the one person that really helped to, influence me and turn things around for me.