Kāhu ki Rotorua: Opinion: Full kete of courage, passion and pain needed to front up

OPINION: Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air

Ko te ngākau whiwhita ki te whare tapere.

Ka pau i ngā haora e tūwaewae ana, mai i te rā utu moni ki tetehi anō rā utu moni, koia nei te utu hāereere e kaha takahia nei e te mārea ki te ātea nui o Te Matatini.

Kai te rangi te orokohanga mai o taku haerenga kapa haka nei. E kake aeroperena ana i te waka taunga rererangi i Tamaki-Makaurau, ka hoki ahau ki taku ūkaipō, ki te hapū, ki taku iwi me te tini o ngā whānaunga tata. Ki tūā kai te tihi o Taranaki maunga Te Whetū Mārama e kapokapo kau ana he tohu aroha ki ngā morehu ki āna tangata.

Ko Te Reanga Mōrehu O Rātana te kapa

Ko Te Iwi Mōrehu te iwi

Ko ngā pou, ko Te Taepa Kameta rāua ko Te Oranga Tamou. Me whakarite nā e koe e hī ai tō wairua i mua noa atu i tō hāunga nā ki rō whare ā te ono o ngā hāora o te atatu. Toretore ana ngā kamo, he whakapakari tīnana te parakūihi.

Mā te ihi, mā te wehi, mā te wana e hoki mai anō te tangata ki tēnei tūāhuatanga, ki ngā hoa hangareka me ngā whāea kōhete e taka kai ana i te wharekai.

Te Rito journalism student Te Kakenga Kawiti-Bishara is on a kapa haka journey.

Kai te hamama te waha o ngā pouako, " KIA KAMAKAMA MARANGA MAI E TŪ – HAERE MAI”. Anā ngā kupu tōtō i a koe ki te papa haka he ahakoa kai te hia momi hikareti kē ngā pūkahukahu.

E kī rā, ko te tānga manawa tuarima kē tēnei, e hoa mā kāhore anō kia rānui.

Wheoi anō, anei tētehi āhuatanga wehi iti nei.

Ka paiakangia ngā waewae ki te whorō, e kī a nei he papa tū ā nuku, ka rere te wairua.

Kai reira koe e tū mataaho ana, e whakapiritahatahi ana me ngā kiri whānaunga, pokohiwi ki te pokohiwi, hope ki te hope, ka maringi kau ngā kupu a ngā pakeke. Māori noa ana. Kai te kori ngā hope, e hurahura ana wētehi, e aroarowhākī ana ngā ringaringa, e whetē ana ētehi, kai te pukana hoki wētehi – nō whea kē mai tēnei wairua?

Ko te wairua heke iho tēnei nō ngā tūpuna nō mai, nō mai, nō mai anō, ka puta ki waho ki a koe, te whakatīnanahanga o tēnei mea te tapere. Engari rā anō taku pātai. He aha pea te utu e ea ai tēnei āhuatanga ? Ko te utu hai hōmaitanga māku e koro mā hai nama i te aeroperena me ngā hāora totohe ā rori hoki ? me te utu i ngā noho marae? Ehara, he kōrero noinoi kau tēnei. Kāti ēnei pahupahu, ko te whāinga ko te pae tata, ko te pae tawhiti ko te tū ātāmira ki te haka e whakahīhī ai tō whānau, tō hapū, tō iwi me ngā tini tūpuna. Anā kē koia tēnei ko Te Whetū Mārama ki ahau.

Hours upon hours, payday to payday. Such is the dedication we as kaihaka put in, to prepare for Te Matatini.

For me, my journey to Te Matatini begins in the sky.

As I board my plane at Auckland Airport once again and jet off at dusk to return home to my people, I gaze out to the peak of my mountain Taranaki and find the Whetu Marama, shining brightly, a guide and beacon of hope for her morehu, her followers.

Ko Te Reanga Morehu O Ratana te kapa.

Te Reanga Morehu O Ratana is my team.

Ko Te Iwi Morehu te iwi.

The Morehu are the people.

Ko nga pou, ko Te Taepa Kameta raua ko Te Oranga Tamou.

The tutors are Te Taepa Kameta and Te Oranga Tamou.

You’re going to need that source of hope, before you even barge through the wharekai door at 6am, pikaru as, for whakapakari tinana. Man, it takes a full kete, of courage, passion and that burning pain - Ihi, Wehi, Wana - just to front up to your 39 mates and those busy aunties in the kitchen.

Crunch time, test time. “ON THE FLOORRRR” or “HAERE MAIIIII” are the most haunting words a kaihaka could hear come belting out onto the road, as we finish our last puff of cigarette. The fifth smoke break and it’s not even lunchtime yet.

Here’s where it gets strange, though. Your feet plant into the floor, he papa tu a nuku, and your wairua goes off into another triverse. As the wharekai comes to a silent halt and you’re shoulder to shoulder, a kapa haka, with your best mates, words of wisdom from the old people come spilling out without you even realising it. Hips start swaying, arms gain movement and eyes into the window of the soul come beaming out like quad lights. But you’re not controlling that, are you?

Your tupuna have been guiding you through this art form for thousands of years and you are the product they’re showcasing to the world, by utilising the tinana and wairua they have left on the earth.

I’d have to say though, our tupuna don’t reimburse you much, for all those flights, 8 hour car trips and noho fees.

But the real payment is the long-lasting ripple effect your stand on the big Te Matatini stage has on; you, your whanau, your hapu, your iwi and your ancestors.

The bigger picture, just what our Whetu Marama is.

Te Kakenga Kawiti-Bishara, Ngati Tuwharetoa, Te Ati Haunui A Paparangi, Tuhourangi, Te Iwi Morehu.