Rangi | Māngere, Auckland

“My cousin who I am living with now – it was about a couple of years ago when my aunty passed away. She came down to a tangi, and we weren’t that close.

We didn’t even know that we were closely related, and when we did meet up, it made a really difference in you know, in whānau-wise, and I got really close to her, and that changed my life, because now, now she’s opening me up to her house, and that. 

I lost my mother last year, due to cancer, and I was looking for a place to stay, and out of all my family, she was the only one to put her hand up, and open up her house to me, and to be my next of kin. So, I really appreciated her doing that. She’s just different, because she’s got a different perspective on how to do everyday things in life that I didn’t experience. She’s been teaching me cooking and doing chores around the house, getting qualifications for a job, and yeah it’s basically those types of things. She’s just pointing me in the right direction and because I often suffer from mental health as well, so that’s another big challenge for me, as well. I’ve been diagnosed for years, and just trying to get myself back on track, just to get a really good job, and you know, just live life to be more healthier, too mentally.

Well I was living in a little town called Ōtaki, and that’s down by the Kāpiti Coast, and I grew up there most of my child life. That was where I went to school and everything like that until things changed and when my mother got sick with cancer, and when she passed away last year, I was living in Northland, and yeah things changed from there. I’ll just say, just be yourself and don’t be scared of the spotlight like me. I was once shy, and I’ve learned not to be shy. I’ve learned to be open. That’s something that I’ve accomplished. You know?  I’m not afraid for people coming up to me and wanting to interview me or wanting to do stuff like this.

I like to say to my cousin, thank you Cuz for all that you have done since I’ve lived with you almost a year today, and I love you lots, and can’t wait for what the future brings.”