Rangatiratanga

So it is Waitangi Day today and many people all over the country and the world are spending time today in their own special way.
What does it mean for me?
Rangatiratanga begins with me. It is about me taking control of my life and being the master of my own destiny. I believe our tupuna were all about this and were great strategists who made things happen in their lives whether it was to feed their whanau or taking a long journey by sea or land…they were always ready, always knowing where they were going and being very in tune with the environment while living their lives.
So I believe in order for me to progress forward I need to take responsibility for who I am and where I am going in my life. And for me this is about finding out who I am – where I have come from and undoing the effects of colonisation on my life and honouring who I am within. I can blame others for my circumstances or the way that my life is but ultimately I have a choice, to either stay in that place of being victim or taking that risk to move on.
When I look at my parents and the lives they have lived, I respect and honour their resilience to live despite all their circumstances. I also realise that the effects of colonisation on their lives have been huge, so ingrained that the thought of actually changing these effects for them is non-existent. But, it is still possible for me to progress forward, to honour who I am, to heal me and to ultimately have an effect on those around me.
I often think about how the world would be if we all took responsibility for ourselves to heal our past. How awesome would that be to be able to just let go of all the ‘stuff’ and really live? That is rangatiratanga to me…
koru hand painted rock
This kohatu is going to the sista Leanne today. Hard case when we first connected on FB she reminded me about when we were in school and how we used to do athletics together! I couldn’t remember her and she reckons its because she always used to come second to me! I think she is being modest!
Hope you all had a fab Waitangi day and Raggamuffin looked like a blast again yesterday in Rotorua – now looking forward to Matatini and Reggaelution here in Gizzy soooooon – yus!
Hei apopo – until tomorrow,
Jo x

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