Aroha nulled us together Aroha pulled US together M. O

Tu Tangata, Issue 12, 1 June 1983, Page 35

Aroha nulled us together Aroha pulled US together M. O

I watched the other kids in my group talking and laughing quietly as we waited backstage for the competition to start. There were the usual jokes about not having to “wiri” because we were already shaking with cold and excitement and the quick hugs for good luck. I laughed as I heard Nigger saying how good she felt. “Not like last year,” she was saying. “I was really nervous then, but this year I feel really good”. That must be a good sign I thought, but it didn’t ease my nervousness. I was doing the karanga for us, the first for the night, I could feel my heart beating ten times as hard as normal, my throat getting dry and all the butterflies in my stomach. Constant reassurance from everyone in the group really helped, but I knew I would only feel better when I had done my karanga on stage. I couldn’t wait. We, Ngati Riatana, were the first group on for the Junior Competitions on Saturday night. I felt proud seeing our weeks of hard work finally coming to fruit. All of us, even the boys, helped make our tapeka and pari. The tedious

tapestry took so long that I didn’t think we would ever get them finished. I remember one pari where we had worked in pairs to get it finished. The repetitive singing of a waiata to perfect our actions and words; the late nights we had accidentally gone over our practise time because we hadn’t noticed time was creeping on and the fraying of tempers when we were tired were all behind us now because this was the real thing. The night wind was still blowing as Nga Karere, another Wellington group, came into the tent. As host groups we had had to help in the dining room, serving and waitressing. We were also billeted in rooms across the hallway from each other so during the Hui we had become friends. Now we wished each other luck for our performances. Both our groups were disappointed that we were performing one after the other (Nga Karere were second on). We had wanted to watch each other, not just to see the standard of competition but also to watch our friends perform, perform well. This seemed such an important part of the Hui. The making of new friendships, the reunion of old ones. I had met friends who I hadn’t seen since the last

hui at Palmerston North. The hours spent catching up on one year’s gossip were interesting and fun. So many times, I crept into our billet in the early hours of the morning because of the long conversations in the cafeteria.

Meeting my whanaunga was a really neat surprise. They had come down with a group from Tauranga, Te Puna, but because of our commitments our conversations usually consisted of “Hi. How are you?” or “Good luck” or “Catch you later”. Still, the aroha was there. This aroha had pulled us all together. I felt, our group came even closer together. The night everyone stayed up to watch our ace singer Steven sing in the Sacred Solo competition and how we all sat in a group on the bank watching the senior competitions. We were pleased with our performance. The encouragement and support from our families and friends, before and during the hui, was fantastic and most appreciated. We were even rewarded with three thirds and a second in the competitions. (Many thanks must go to Aunty Liz, our advisor). But to me the hui was a success because of the aroha throughout the weekend. What better way to celebrate the resurrection of Christ than to fulfil his words. “Love one another, as I have loved you.” Ana Tapiata