Māhuru Māori is a reo challenge that started off in 2014 as a way of normalising the use of te reo in everyday life. Since then, people had been taking up the challenge to commit to use of reo Māori during the month of Mahuru (which sort of coincides with September).

The thing is to take a leap of courage to get better at it, put it our there and share it with others. Create an opportunity for the use of language. To nurture and keep it alive. 

During the time of Mahuru, we will be sharing with you stories of different journeys on Te Reo Māori from different sectors in our kura. 

May these stories inspire you and encourage you to take your own steps into your own reo journey! Today we will hear the story of one of our wonderful school parents, Sarah Best (rangatahi in classes 7, 10 & 12).

Kia ora e te whānau

Although I was brought up mono lingual I was lucky enough that my Dad took a course in Te Reo Māori. I was about 8 years old and he was one of those people who externalises their learning. He practiced his singing, chanting and saying Māori words and place names so regularly that I (and my brothers) can still join in now when he starts: “Haere mai e ngā iwi hui hui tātou, e piki ki runga ki tau…”

I believe I developed my relatively good pronunciation from that time. It helped that both my parents were active in the anti-racism movements of the 80s, also forerunners in the space of Pākehā training Pākehā regarding Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It was a given in our family that you respect Te Ao Māori and learn the Reo, and that there is also deep wisdom to be found in the journey - for yourself and for humanity.

I attempted to formally learn Māori at high school in 3rd form but my teacher rarely turned up (not uncommon in the ‘80s!). It was something of a wasted subject for me there unfortunately, and as a teen I lost interest.

Playcentre with my young children was when I kicked off my next Reo steps. One of the adult education courses focused on cultural proficiency and all my interest returned. I reignited saying “Kia ora” as my usual greeting: on the phone, in person, in emails or cards, and began growing my repertoire of waiata - with stilted accompaniment on ukulele. Playcentre local and national meetings were inspiring. The Associations were developing in their Te Tiriti o Waitangi journeys and there were some incredible wāhine to learn from and grow with. Annual noho experiences staying on marae with my children and Playcentre whanau made it fun and safe to learn more tikanga Māori among friends. My pepeha grew out of this time as did poi making and exposure to pōwhiri and the experience of whakawhanaungatanga (building relationships with people).

In 2019 I realised I’d been stuck on a bit of a plateau with my Māori journey so signed up for a free one year (Mar-Oct) weekly night course at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa. What a challenge, amazing people and many joys! I zhuzhed up my pepeha significantly and began to understand so much more about the underpinnings of the grammar. My vocabulary soared that year.

Sadly, mainly due to covid times, I didn’t continue into 2020. For now I’m regularly using a few Māori words daily in both personal and professional settings, and like to look out for new ones. They need to be used, practiced, else they evaporate in busy minds. We say a karakia before dinner often at home and most people these days know what I mean when referring to “going to the wharepaku”, or counting, or other day to day words.

I believe it’s best to have a go with something simple - kai, inu, haere mai, hikoi, moe... Use that word or phrase over and over again until it rolls off the tongue without much effort. Don’t worry about getting it wrong or it feeling contrived or tokenistic. Those are all just natural stages of any learning journey. The important thing is to start now.

We all - in Aotearoa - owe it to the indigenous people of this land to keep Te Ao Māori alive. We each can play our part by giving it a try.  

Mauri ora!