Rangitane celebrates Matariki with kaumatua high tea

Kaumatua gathered for a Matariki Paramanawa (high tea) at The Hub on Thursday, July 30.

"Looking backward to move forwards is the way to go in these troubled times," was the message delivered to 40 local kaumatua by guest speaker Tania Riwai at a Matariki Paramanawa (high tea) organised by Rangitane's Te Kete Hauora on Thursday, July 30 at The Hub in Dannevirke.

Matariki was the opportunity for kaumatua to meet and consider what has passed and who has passed in the last year and to consider the future which is so full of challenges.

A splendid high tea was provided and many of the elderly caught up with friends they had not seen since before lockdown.

When the group moved into the auditorium they were first entertained by Te Kura Kaupapa o Tamaki Nui a Rua. Close to 50 young people from years 3-6 had come to perform what would have been their entry for Te Matatini – the Primary School's Kapahaka Festival - had it not been cancelled nationally.

It was a spectacular performance for energy and harmony which fascinated the audience. Perhaps just as heart-warming were the items presented sitting on the floor as the arrival of the guest speaker was awaited. These tamariki were word perfect and melodic as they presented waiata they do normally as warm-ups.

Members of Te Kura Kaupapa o Tamaki Nui a Rua performed spectacular waiata.

Guest speaker Tania Riwai – lecturer at Te Wananga O Aotearoa in Palmerston North - was delayed by traffic but was well worth the wait when she addressed the audience about the way forward.

She said the experience of lockdown made it a good time to reflect on what was important for the future. She asked what had become more or less important as people strove to cope with the restrictions.

She redefined the word aroha from love to connection, which is the way many groups including iwi managed to feed, care, cloth and connect their families. She noted this time the extended family groups connected by cell phones and IT when they could not physically, and are stronger now than for generations.

In effect it was going back to the communal days when family was the centre of Māori society and nature was looked to to provide basic needs.

"The very thing which sustains life – Papatuanuku – is right in front of our eyes and we just need to accept and understand it."

She pleaded with the kaumatua to spread the knowledge which was not new but temporarily lost to most Māori.

"It is the law of all indigenous cultures," she said.

Her vision was "to hear the story of the old ways ring out through the voices of our mokopuna as a guide to the way forward".

A similar Matariki Paramanawa was held in Pahiatua at the marae on Monday, August 3.