My faith and family are foremost and I love to inspire and encourage through art and writing...
Books are available at: SSAB Apia, Samoa; SSAB American Samoa; SSAB Auckland, New Zealand or contact helenftauau@gmail.com (a.k.a. Helen Tauau Filisi)
This movie has been around since 2016 but I only got to watch it on Netflix this week. I would recommend this movie having watched many of Eddie Murphy's movies mostly in the humour genre but this movie takes a more serious look at what life can offer and also very different from the roles that I'm used to watching him in.
I'd say that the movie takes you on a journey through life and how sometimes people start relationships through circumstances that you would often not think to happen. I liked how, as a personal of colour, Murphy's character played a pivotal role in the lives of several people.
The ending might not be to everyone's liking but is more a testament to how often life does not always serve you what you are wanting or deserving and this movie ending is no different. A movie that gets you thinking about your important relationships in life...
Earlier this year, I joined an organisation called 'Inspiring the future Aotearoa' as 1 of 407 role models who make ourselves available for sharing our stories with school students.
If you are interested in joining or asking role models to attend to your school's event you just need to contact the organisation's website on: www.inspiringthefuture.org.nz
There's a lot of information on either logging in as a teacher or as a role model. Having been a High school English teacher in the past, I know that I would have utilised this resource as there were no resources like this around when I was teaching those many years ago.
What's also neat is that there is a huge range of speakers to chose from and it's an exciting opportunity for both students and teachers as well as the speakers to share their stories and to learn about different careers, businesses etc.
Looking forward to sharing my knowledge and some life experiences in the not too distant future for inspiring more youth into writing, composing, creating, researching, informing, painting, planning and generally making things happen...
Here's a Christmas wish for 2022, I can't wait until the borders open and the pandemic is under control and then those of us who are busting to travel to Samoa will be able to.
There's talk of next year being that year, as I have already missed two years of being there since September of 2019 with my family.
Our new aiga (family) home is still waiting for us to arrive as there's still a little more work to complete it and a whole lot of planned gardening that I had wanted to start but that's okay as we try and ride through the wave of this global pandemic and come out the other side with gratefulness, positive attitudes and big thanks to God for surviving.
I miss the fresh morning sweet air right next to the ocean and the noises of cocks crowing in the early morning. The smell of umu (earth oven) and the taste of so many Samoan delicacies that you can only get on the islands like sēa (sea cucumber), beautifully sweet organic mangoes and pineapples, pawpaw and vī (Samoan apples) etc.
This year marks our 20th Wedding Anniversary, with my beloved, where we went to an island just off the coast of Fiji (short 10 minute boat ride) called Sonaisali and had our sunset wedding there.
We returned on our 10th Wedding Anniversary with our then two children who had a swim in the pool (just as I had had with my dad on the wedding morning) and they loved it too.
We also returned on our 15th Wedding Anniversary with our children to Fiji and stayed at another hotel with lots of fun but had planned and booked to go back to Fiji for our 20th Anniversary but alas it was not to be.
Instead, we've spent it today with my family eating cake and having lunch together and later we're going to have a movie night and a dessert too.
The COVID-19 Pandemic has certainly changed many things for many people including the ways that we celebrate special dates and also makes me realise how we took for granted how easy it was to make plans and see it through but with COVID it's a whole new ball game and the rules are so different.
Today, there was an announcement that I heard through the media that the NZ government is planning to open up the borders to Australian vaccinated travellers with a 7 day isolation that doesn't need to be spent in an MIQ Managed Isolation Quarantine facility and could be at home. This is expected to start in January.
We were also given the information that overseas travellers could be welcomed in as soon as February next year and that's when I would love to travel to Samoa with my family to finally visit back home. Wow! what a long time to wait now but will be well worth the wait to be able to celebrate overseas again with family...
A new drink has made it's way onto NZ shores (well some time ago) but I only started tasting it this year. Known as bubble tea or Boba with many different varieties, colours and tastes.
It was my children who introduced it to me and we have a new local cafe and bakery that now offer the drinks with a variety of flavours to choose from.
The main ingredients seem to be ice, water, your choice of flavour and then little balls, pearls, tapioca or bubbles of flavour such as taro, blueberry, strawberry, honey, apple, brown sugar etc.
I'd definitely put it in the occasion range of drink as it can be quite sweet although flavoursome or like me you can always drink half and then wait until the ice has all melted before drinking the rest of it more diluted.
I was told by our youngest that the discovery of these types of drinks were quite by mistake as the ingredients were accidentally added (I think maybe the tapioca-like balls) but what started as an accident is now a lucrative business with many people buying these new types of drinks with many places offering them.
So if haven't already, why not give it a go? and see which taste you enjoy the most. Mine still is a variety of chocolate flavours with lots of ice that quenches a big thirst on a hot summer's day. It definitely beats fizzy drinks but that's my humble opinion...
It's day 79 of our National lockdown and this week I've also been busy with some of the teachers from our Samoan bilingual Early childhood centre to set up packs for children at our centre with some of the resources received from the Ministry of Education.
These will be distributed to families in order to support the learnings and home. So far they include bilingual books for children and also resource support for teachers and parents.
We're still awaiting a box of hard pack resources, from the Ministry, for our children and hopefully they're not too far away.
With our little ones, it is totally understandable that many parents have chosen not to allow their children to attend the centre because of the uncertainty of having their unvaccinated children in any public place that could bring about an infection. I am also of the same mind but equally there are parents who need to work or study and are unable to look after their children so that they trust the centre to do their best in caring for their children.
Therefore, the packs are for the children who are mostly unable to attend the centre and it gives them added resources to support them at home through reading books together, activity resources in spending time together during these unprecedented times...
Today has been a very busy with sorting things out at our Samoan bilingual Early childhood centre which has recently re-opened to support parents needing support in their childcare.
As well as also supporting our middle child in her NCEA National Certificate in Educational Achievement external art exams (level 2) Year 12 where she must provide a folio of her art work (Painting) that must be sent to examiners in Wellington.
The difficulty was that the Courier company that was selected to send folios were inundated with so many inquiries that when we went to book for a Courier drive to pick up the folio we were in a wait list of 137 callers and had to wait until it got down to our turn.
So I decided to go through a takeaways drive-thru 3 times whilst awaiting for the call. It was quite funny but we finally got it sorted and by the time we got home it was very quickly picked up and away it's gone to be tracked all the way to Wellington.
What's interesting about our middle child's folio is that I remember in my Level 1 art exams (those many years ago) that I had to provide a portfolio and I chose the subject of hands as my topic of interest. It's interesting to see that echoed in both my two eldests' Year 12 folios too i.e. great artistic minds think alike? (ha ha - no just interesting DNA).
Now there are external exams to contend with starting from 24th November and wishing for our middle child all the best in preparations and getting everything sorted in order to perform to the best of their abilities despite the pandemic and the Alert level 3 lockdown orders. Life seems to still go on...
If you haven't already been told, there's a new International Rugby team that's on the horizon called Moana Pasifika Rugby and it's currently looking for committed fans to join the movement.
My dad and my beloved are ardent Rugby fans with my both always watching and backing All Blacks games and Manu Samoa with great interest in International Rugby tournaments.
With this new Rugby team now given the go ahead to select players from all over the globe, it's going to make for a very interest future for Pasifika Rugby as many players have had to live and play in many other countries overseas in order to make financial gains for their families in not having such opportunities in NZ.
If you want to know more information and are an ardent Pasifika rugby fan then you should check their website: https://moanapasifika.co.nz . I'm considering to back them on behalf of my father and I'm sure many others will be interested in seeing how far this will go. It would even be more interesting if it changes the tide of Rugby in NZ as this has been a long time coming...
This is the last week of my work's fitness challenge that is an annual event where we get into groups of 5 people (including virtual players if players are hard to find) and then we get points for physical sports i.e. steps in walking, running, gym time, biking etc.
I've joined pretty much every years since working for the organisation and have always enjoyed the camaraderie and also the fun things that can happen.
However, this year has been very different as teams have had to connect virtually via phone, zooms and social media to keep up the spirits and encouragement.
I must say that I've definitely enjoyed it this year having added the virtual global challenges to the mix and virtually walking in places like London, Macchu Picchu etc. and it's made the lockdown a lot more bearable as well.
I'd definitely encourage these activities to any and especially if you're not too keen on going out to walk in your local neighbourhood with lockdowns that you can just dance your steps away. That has also made it more bearable as with having the Delta virus it's a bit disconcerting to walk outside your doors.
But these activities have been not only good for your health, fitness and state of mind but it has also been good for the soul, for me, in having music and dance as a part of the day. I'd highly recommend to all with your playlist and then 'Just Dance' (Videos on YouTube) around the room...
Now we are in day 68 of Auckland's lock down (currently in Alert level 3.1) and apart from doing my usual routine of looking after family/s, work, writing and dancing around with trivial pursuits, I also decided to log online into one of my favourite past time board games of Scrabble.
I found an official game and started playing a few weeks ago only to find that there were so many games involved in the one website and after trying out a few decided to stick to the one I know best.
The pic on the right shows me challenging someone called 'Dracula' as its coming to Halloween on 31st October. It was supposed to be a challenge of 5 games with 4 of which I won but Dracula kept adding to the challenge so I finally decided to end it at winning 9 of 10 games.
The special challenges are usually for frames around the 'avatar' or pic that you decide to have to represent you. I decided to use one of my artworks for my profile and have been playing people all over the world ever since. It's quite neat because I found it quite relaxing and when I get tired of it I just leave it and come back later or sometimes I go quick fire to finish a game in one setting.
I'd highly recommend this game for those of you who enjoy playing Scrabble (for free online). You just need to register yourself and then go for gold. Can't help that I was once an English teacher and so I try to challenge myself by not thinking about it too much and trying and finish my time as soon as possible.
So why not give it a try as you never know as you might even win...
Last week, I received my starter pack with the first medals for the virtual challenges that I started last month.
Starting with the London leg at 21 kms, followed by the Inca Trail at Machu Picchu for 33 kms and the final challenge of that pack was the Grand Canyon trail at 36 kms.
The medals are a wonderful artistic collection and I'm enjoying it so much that I've decided to keep going and have since finished other challenges.
It does mean get up and off the couch to do my minimum 5000 steps a day but then good days when I'm feeling energetic it's 10,000 steps and yesterday I was able to complete 15,000 steps. The neat thing is that I like to dance my way through by putting on loud music and then just going for it.
We also have an online presence in each of the challenges and there are people all over the world checking in and encouraging each other online and if you're really into Social media there's also a web page that many go on to share about their journeys and encouraging others.
I think the other thing that's neat is that because we're unable to travel outside of our country i.e. NZ's borders are closed due to the pandemic, this eases that situation by being able to virtually visit other countries virtually walk the different tracks or trails (which is good for the heart and the soul) and then receive a medal at the end.
So although I haven't physically been to the countries it's definitely something I look forward to being able to do in the near future when this pandemic is under control or even wiped out! This is definitely an activity that I would highly recommend to all...
Yesterday was a record smashing day for NZ with the Vaxathon that took the national total for one day to 130,002 jabs yesterday.
It definitely was nostalgic for me as in the 1970s, 1980s and even the 1990s where there was a nationally televised fund raising for an important cause and a target with a 24 hour news feed.
Celebrities would come on TV endorsing the cause and there would be a lot of pledges from individuals and companies, groups etc.
With that same idea in mind, I watched the latter part of the show with lots of celebrity endorsements, prizes given away live on TV, free hangi etc. a real celebratory atmosphere with social distancing, masks and lots of support in towns all over NZ.
It was definitely a good idea and although there are still many who are still to get their first jab, many did take that bold step. It was also good to see that many Maori (indigenous peoples of NZ) were getting their first vaccinations also.
And as the nation is still in our Alert level 3 lockdown in day 61, we appreciate that soon with many people getting vaccinated that the relaxing of the lockdown levels may be just on the horizon. Many thanks to those essential workers who made it happen as well as those who took friends and family who would have otherwise not been able to make it yesterday...
Last week, I viewed a bill board that advertised this slogan "Fight for your whakapapa" which means genealogy in Maori and then again yesterday, I found this is the local newspaper.
It's an interesting advertisement that's been sponsored by Te Whānau o Waipareira which is an organisation that looks after the needs of Māori in particular, although they do support others in need of help. Whereby the organisation gets government assistance to reach out to the Maori community out in West Auckland.
One of the reasons that this advertisement has been viewed in many spaces is that there is a low uptake of Maori getting vaccinations as compared with many other ethnic groups including Pacific peoples.
The government is well aware of this and it was been stated on many media platforms as well about the low numbers of Maori getting vaccinated with the concern that this particular Delta variant of the COVID 19 virus could potential be very harmful to any of the un-vaccinated population but will especially affect the most vulnerable.
Hence this advertisement and with many more in conversations to come. Historically, there has been a distrust in the Crown or past governments who have harmed Maori in many ways by taking their lands under "legislated" laws in the past and that have discredited Maori culture with only recently allowing Maori schools to be funded and Maori tertiary organisations like the one that I am currently working in.
Many New Zealanders do not know the true history of New Zealand during the early colonization period where Maori had on first point of contact 100% Maori ownership but which has now dwindled down to only approximately 5% of all lands in NZ (2021 stats).
The NZ land wars during that time also saw the widespread slaughter of Maori whilst taking their lands. A sad history in many respects that is largely unknown in NZ and has not been taught well in schools in the past. However, that is set to change with the revised History curriculum that comes into affect next year with the requirement to teach local histories as well.
So that is why there is a huge mistrust of government declarations that have been detrimental to Maori even to the fact that at one time one philanthropic Auckland leader had a monument built on what was once called "One tree hill" in Auckland which was to be a memorial or commemoration regarding Maori in thinking that they may be wiped out.
That did not happen as Maori people are very resilient (similar to Pacific peoples) and have been working hard to keep their culture and language strong with many independent Maori schools teaching te reo (Maori language) from Early childhood centres now to tertiary institutions...
Earlier this week, we celebrated the 19th birthday of our eldest with an inter-generational lunch at her request.
Afterwards, we picked up desert through the drive through of Krispy Kreme as that's one of her favourite donut places to go to.
As you can see, they had a special 'Pokemon' doughnuts pack as well as their usual glazed and favourites.
I still remember when Krispy Kreme opened its first shop in Manukau (way before the COVID 19 outbreak) that there was a long line that first week.
Now that its made a name for itself in being found in many BP service stations across NZ, the novelty has worn off and the long lines aren't so bad except for the first few days out of lock down level 4, then there are long lines with contact-less pick ups through the drive thrus.
I remember being in Oregon those many years ago and buying my first 'Dunkin' Do-nuts' doughnuts during the late 1980s in Auckland having nothing of the kind. Hasn't Auckland now come a long way in that many of the fast foods that can be found in the US can now also be found in Auckland especially during our lock downs. Although, I'm not always sure that that's a good thing...
So far, so good, in since starting my fitness goal of 10 K steps per 5 day during the work week (and taking the weekends of Saturday and Sunday off) I've been able to keep to the goal. It's been neat in that my sister or youngest acts as the DJ and then I dance for an hour to some funky music.
I'd highly recommend listening or watching the "Just Dance" YouTube clips, make a playlist and then go for it. Another neat thing is that you don't have to go outside, especially if you are in lockdown like we are here in NZ in level 3 and you can dance in you bedroom, in your lounge or anywhere you want to.
Have currently danced some 90km according to my pedometer and virtual world tours that I'm going on and it's such fun when adding on these tours that quite take my mind off the task of exercising and makes it fun to get to the next pit stop or end of destination.
In fact, I've decided to do Pacer's 'Solar System' with 10 virtual walk that starts with small goals of walking around Mercury for 3 km's and later to the sun with it's 100 km's. Looks like this is definitely going to keep me busy and enjoying my time each day of over an hour for the next few months. A real blessing in these unprecedented times...
Loving these Pacer Virtual Adventure Challenge series in having now just completed the 33 km 'Inca Trail' in 3+ days, my second tour since first starting this week..
It's part of the Starter pack that includes the 3 challenges of:
1. London: 21 km
2. Machu Picchu: 33 km
3. Grand Canyon (USA): 36 km
Tomorrow, I'll take a break and then start again on Monday with a tour of the Grand Canyon. It's especially neat in that, for me, it's just about dancing to the beat of my own drum i.e. music playlist.
It's particularly special since not being able to visit these places and for everyone who's now joining these virtual tours during this COVID-19 lockdown times and the closure of international borders all over the world.
It's been amazing to see so many people around the world on these races and each going at their own pace. I also enjoy the fact that you don't even have to leave the safety of your home as it's quite concerning with the Delta variant making its presence felt in NZ.
These virtual tours also serve as a neat distraction during these trying times as well as serving as a neat reminder of getting fit and moving as it's been so easy to sit and complete online work without taking many breaks.
So this comes highly recommended from me if you don't mind spending some of that saved monies to pay for the access online as well as to receive a neat fashioned medal at the end. Especially for those of us who wouldn't otherwise get an Olympic medal but would enjoy this time hanging out at home...
Since Monday, I've started a fitness regime which has been neat in competing in a 3 x Virtual Adventure challenge of walking/dancing 21 km's around London, Machu Pichu and then another.
My personal goal is to try and log on 10km per day through walking or dancing with the Pacer App. It's been fun so far as I've been able to dance my way through using YouTube videos of "Just Dance".
Plus I have the bonus of my youngest and younger sister joining in with the TV dancing as well. The neat thing is being able to complete the virtual walk etc. tours and then receiving a virtual certificate as well as a medal (if you register etc.)
So as with the certificate, I was able to complete the London leg of 21 kms and smashed it out in three days and now starting on the Machu Picchu one.
What's neat about these virtual tours is that it has land markings and tells about the history of landmarks and also some interesting facts that I would have been none the wiser. It only makes me want to go faster to learn more but don't want to overdo it and then sustain an injury.
So far, so good. Also neat to track my activity with a pedometer that then converts it to the kilometres that shows a virtual track around start to finish. Definitely a highly recommended activity if you're interesting in getting your fitness back up to speed and also with some rewards to boot...
Today, I got to watch the much anticipated new series of Netflix called "Reservation Dogs". Now I'm not going to go into the background with NZ's Taika Waititi as one of the Executive Producers as there's a lot of information already out in the Press but I did want to mention that it reminded me a lot of the 1990's NZ movie "Once were Warriors" that was a trailblazer in terms of Maori movie making coming to the fore.
"Reservation Dogs" is doing the same trailblazing as for some time it has been apparent to me as an 'Indigenous Scholar' (for a better term) in noting that there were many movies about African American experiences in the US but very little story telling was shown regarding Native Americans or First Nations Peoples of the US, Canada, Alaska or Hawaii.
This series begins to give Native Americans the platform to tell their stories and they're not like the often distorted stories of the early Westerns genre of 'Cowboys and Indians' written and shot by non-Native Americans. These stories are far more authentic of Native American film makers telling their own stories. It's also not the story of all Native Americans but it is authentic to those who wrote the stories from their own experiences.
I've only ever visited one Reservation in Seattle when I visited the US back in the 1990s and like many Maori had been displaced in many ways. This movie shares some of the attitudes and gems about their heritages, world views and attitudes towards them.
I'd highly recommend it to those who are interested in learning about contemporary experiences of Indigenous cultures (if you don't mind the swearing). In some places it may be a little raw but it is interesting and I'm looking forward to how the series unfolds after watching the first three episodes...
Ngā mihi atu kia koutou katoa i tenei wiki o te reo Māori. Nau mai, haere mai, piki mai, kake mai...
(Translation: Acknowledgements to you all in this week of Māori language. Much welcome to you...)
Yesterday, I participated with members of my online morning class in an initiative during our Māori language week celebrations which is from Sunday 12th September to 18th September.
Working at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa (Maori tertiary higher learning institution) has given me real insight and an appreciation of what NZ's indigenous people have survived through during colonization and with the revival of the language.
Our language moment took place yesterday at 12 noon when those who wished to participated were encouraged to enrol on the website and then take part in a reo (Māori language) activity be it a singing a waiata (song/s), saying a karakia (prayer/s) or whaikorero (saying speech/es) etc.
Our online class finishes dot on 12 noon and my chosen activity was to recite our usual karakia but another member of our class suggested a waiata of her choosing. So we did the countdown until 12 noon and then proceeded to sing our waiata of three verses and then finished our class with a karakia.
I took a photo of our class Zoom and then later uploaded it on the website as our registered activity. If I heard it correctly, I think the organizers were going for a record of over 2 million activities as last year there were some 1 million activities registered.
I haven't yet checked to see how it went but it was neat to play our part in participating and also in keeping the language alive. It's also neat because now I count it as my third language that I'm learning after my first language which is Samoan and my second language as English.
It's also been a real challenge for those of us who are non-Māori but who live in South Auckland to learn the language in being able to support our Māori cousins in their bid for 'tino rangatiratanga' which is self determining rather than the colonised view of assimilation.
But it is exciting to see our non-Māori news readers, particularly on mainstream news, learning and using Māori kupu (words) in their greetings and in transitioning between breaks. Even our Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has learned to speak in te reo (the Māori language) and is modelling to many NZ'ers that it is an important part of our heritage plus it is our third official language as well as English and NZ sign language.
Kia kaha Aotearoa - (translated) be strong New Zealand...
Last night, I got the opportunity to watch the new "Cinderella" Prime video with my lockdown family. It has been a much anticipated movie with lots of TV promos as the newest remake movie of Disney princess stories that have a European past.
The opening scenes of the movie included some interesting music drawn from the 1980s - 1990s such as Janet Jackson's 'Rhythm Nation' which happened to be my theme songs album during my Masters studies in the late 1980s at Auckland University (Geography Department). There was also the song by Freddy Mercury from Queen of "Bohemian Rhapsody".
The film set was interesting with a lot of people of diversity and lots of dancing. The main character of Ella (short for Cinderella) was performed by singer Camila Cabello with some beautiful singing throughout the movie. There were lots more 'stars' in the movie but I definitely won't spoil it for you.
As with many 21st century remade Fairy tales stories movies, the prince doesn't always rescue the damsel in distress and then whisk her away, after their marriage, to the distant sun setting horizon on a white stead. This movie's ending is no except...
Another one of the things that I've been really thankful for, during this lockdown level 4, has been the time to do the things that I usually wouldn't prioritize with work in tow and the many commitments that I have.
Today, I've been able to play around with some ideas that I've had for a book and using a new medium that my lil' sister introduced me to as Copic markers.
What's so neat about using these markers is that it gives another dimension to the art and also is much more bold in the variety of colours that are available to be used.
It did take some getting used to as I've been so used to painting in acrylics, having started in high school with oils. I've also recently enjoyed and understood using water colours having taken an art class at my workplace that helped me to understand the properties of water colour paints.
Now I feel more confident to try this new medium and it's brilliant in the way that I can apply it but it does take a little bit of getting used to its properties as an artist. It's also taken me some time to grow in confidence in order to be able to use it well with still a lot more development to come.
Looking forward to how this will pan out for future picture books as it takes the illustrations to another level with the developing books to come. I'll keep in touch, in this blog, on launch dates but at this time I'm just so thankful to have the time to be able to do what I enjoy as the silver lining to the lockdown...
A very big HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to all the neat Father's out there on this special day that celebrates those special dad's out there who give tirelessly to their families.
This also includes single mum's and grand mum's who can often stand in the gap if dad's aren't around for some reason.
I'm especially grateful for my dad and I'm locked down with our youngest at my parents' place this time round, it was neat to be able to share this special day with him.
We started with a cooked breakfast and then started on the lunch meal as our main meal of the day with fresh salad and freshly squeezed oranges/lemons for lemonade. Followed by dessert for later on and supper. We decided on the menu during the week with my sister and then the rest was easy to follow.
So grateful to God for my extra-ordinary dad who over the years has really mellowed from walking with God and having grand children. He pioneered building church foundations and a community and extended family leader (matai with three village titles) who helped to build a firm foundation for our local church and also one in Samoa. He is dedicated, a man of integrity, well disciplined and a leader role model whom I've learnt a lot from over the years.
I'd even go as far as to say that I have learnt a lot from his leadership style and much of how he worked within our church and within our family as servant leader, I now model his ideals in my leadership style as well. I've learnt from him about being decisive, walking the talk and being active in leading, questioning when needed and not being afraid to confront if need be.
I also learnt about working through consensus, being humble and having humility despite what my educational background might otherwise say. Not being arrogant or being people pleasing as you definitely cannot please everyone in decisions that have to be made and so much more.
A big THANKS to my dad who is my hero and role model and an even bigger thanks to my God who knew that I needed someone like him in my life of whom I could look up to and follow in his footsteps. Although, I don't follow in his footsteps with his love of watching the All Blacks (over the decades) and today which is another story...
Yesterday, marked another day in New Zealand's history of an act of terrorism that was wrought on innocent people at a local supermarket out at West Auckland.
It was understood, from police reports, that the perpetrator had travelled to NZ as a student some ten years ago and came to the attention of Police due to the information that he was sharing on his social media page. It was reported that he spent the last 3 years in prison on various charges regarding his shared information etc. on social media but then was released a couple of months ago.
Reporters discussed that he was under surveillance because of his extremist views that included violence against people. It's sad that there are people who through their ideology would look to harm or even kill other innocent people who would have been innocently going shopping during lockdown Alert level 4 at their local Countdown supermarket.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the 7 victims of the stabbings. Much of NZ is in shock that this could happen when people are trying to keep safe under our COVID 19 lockdown conditions. It's even sadder that a trip to the shops to buy groceries a few days before Fathers day could end up in a hospital care in having been at the right place but at the wrong time.
The perpetrator was shot dead on the scene but the devastation that he wrought on families and the trauma that many are going through now is felt as we also mourn the loss of one who died today from COVID 19 complications.
Life is precious and acts such as this only prove to bring people closer together than to tear apart...
In this first day of September or Spring in the Gregorian calendar, I've been doing doodling and sketching for a book that I hope to release by the end of the year. It's been a long time coming and just checking out some ideas to draw.
Last year, I took a break from publishing as with the COVID 19 outbreak, I thought there were more important things to concentrate on i.e. family and what the future holds.
This year, it's been good to have a break and now ready to consider several different books for editing and publishing in the next few months.
With this lockdown Alert level 4, now in it's 15th day, it's been sad to see what's happening around the world in Fiji with spiraling COVID cases and also what's happening with the hurricane devastation in New Orleans, USA.
However, Spring brings hope with bird songs in the early morning and daylight hours stretching out with our daylight savings times changing on Sunday 26th of September which happens to be our eldest's'birthday. Never a dull moment...
This weekend, in hanging out with my lil sis and youngest in our 12th day of COVID-19 lockdown alert level 4 (leaving our parents in peace) we listened to some of our favourite music and my littlest shared this as one of her favourite songs last year.
The song was particularly restful to listen to after having been masked up and dashing for an early shopping trip at the local supermarket (it seemed as if many people had the same idea) and it was good to only be waiting for some 15 minutes in a queue although it started 100 metres out on the road.
So now I'm drawing and listening to music on our lil' boom box. We're having turns listening to our fave songs (for me including the ones that I've just finished blogging on). Sometimes music can be cathartic or cleansing and this song was nice to listen to too...
This weekend I got to watch Dwayne Johnson's (a.k.a. the Rock) new Disney movie called 'Jungle Cruise' with Emily Blunt. I must say that I wasn't expecting it to be anything like it turned out to be as it certainly action packed.
It's interesting in that it is set in the early 1900s during World War I and it brings together different stories about a quest to find hidden treasure as in Aztec Gold in the Amazon i.e. the Jungles of Brazil. There's a little geography lesson in the places that they need to go to, to get to the treasure.
Without giving anything away (no spoiler alerts), I would definitely recommend this movie as a family movie during this lockdown period. It happily allows you to suspend your disbelief and takes the worries and cares away as it transports you to another time and place in the magic of Disney...
In locking down at my parents' place, my lil' sister has started her backing frenzy with making 'keke pua'a' (literally cake of pork) or steamed buns with a chicken filling as well as deep fried.
This time around I've decided to take it easy and have only started slowly in the lockdown alert level 4 baking. I've only just made deep fried panikeke fa'i or banana pancakes and chocolate pudding with some more baking expectations on the horizon.
On the flip side, my lil' sis' has made churros complete with chocolate sauce, cinnamon sugar and cream and contemplating to make fried doughnuts.
All comfort food and spaced out so that we get some time to recover as well as enjoying the time together in not being able to buy our usual baked goods from the bakery.
Making meat pies is also on upcoming menus with coconut buns and even dumplings that are both steamed and fried. I know, lots of calories that need to be walked off with lots of exercising needed from YouTube clips and outside walks away from the other walkers.
Sparing a thought for those who are sleeping rough and needing a lot of support this time around with the lockdown as we slowly head into Spring with warmer weather just around the corner.
I'm also aware that there are also many who have been affected by the virus with positive swabs who are isolated in their homes and trying not to spread the virus out to other communities.
I'm so grateful, as many others have said, that our government has taken a hard and fast approach as I hear/see news from Australia and the many who are COVID positive and some still dying from the virus.
It's a timely reminder for those of us who can, to be grateful for this time of being able to stay home with loved ones. To be kind, to be safe and to not take this time for granted. Perhaps for some, baking helps them to keep sane, be kind and to stay safe with the comforts of home and full tummy whilst the war is raging outside against the virus...
I've had some very interesting conversations over the past week regarding vaccinations and the concerns that many have over quickly made vaccines that did not go through the usual rigorous testing regimes of earlier vaccines that were developed over years.
Particularly for some indigenous peoples, the weariness of having to again be dictated to by the hosts or colonist communities who first brought viruses into their homelands has not been an easy conversations and poses dilemmas by decision makers as to what to tell their family groups.
I had a great grandfather who died in the 1918 epidemic in Samoa and I wrote a book about it but I never thought that some 100 years later, I would have a similar experiences in my own lifetime. The only thing that I know about him is his name, his village and where he was buried. Nothing else.
The decision to vaccinate was easy for me as I often visit my parents, who are in the Group 1 vulnerable category, and wanted to ensure that I had taken every precaution that I could to keep them safe as with my own family now that I am encouraging them to also get vaccinated.
My great grandfather didn't have a chance against the deadly virus that killed him. All of the arguments and conspiracy theories in the world will not help you if you catch the deadly Delta variant that is currently in our community and easily transmissible in being airborne.
If I lived remotely in a rural area, island or a space away from people then I would have the luxury of not vaccinating but as I live in a suburban centre where the virus has already infected over 100 Pasifika peoples in Auckland alone, then it is my duty to ensure that I do whatever I can for my family, my gafa (genealogy) so that the next generation survives.
I'm definitely not interested in the marches and riots that are happening around the world with anti-vaccers wanting their freedoms and many not wanting to be in lockdowns. However, they also carry the responsibility and consequences for their actions regarding the vulnerable people around them who could be infected due to their decisions.
I do believe that each person has to take responsibility for their own actions and decisions about whether to vaccinate or not but when you are putting other peoples' lives in danger then that's crossing the line.
To vaccinate or not? I don't really believe that we have a choice if we want our next generations to survive. I've called it an unnecessary evil that is life threatening and for me and we are privileged in having the 'choice' to be vaccinated or not. However, for me, it's not a choice anymore, it's a responsibility...
Here's another beautiful contemporary Samoan song that I picked up on Radio Samoa (1593AM) last year (and found on YouTube) in hanging out with my parents during the various lockdowns. It's sung by Livingstone Efu from the group Lani Alo.
The Samoan lyrics are thoughtful in sharing about the title 'alo i au faiva ia manuia' which translates as row/paddle to your fishing or metaphor for goal to do well. It continues by saying don't be down hearted with difficulties come.
It's a beautiful song about the Christian principles and values of Samoan culture about: about staying close to God; not giving up when this world brings about its difficulties; with advise to sons/daughters to take care of important matters and listen to the wise counsel of parents for a better future etc.
It would be nice if they also had an English version of this song for those Samoan youth who would benefit from learning about Christian and Samoa principles such as these. Often these songs are only heard in churches and hope it gets widely shared. There's so much that our diaspora (living away from the homeland) Samoans could learn and discuss from this song.
Here's my attempt to translate the lyrics for non-Samoan speakers (not including the rap). The official lyrics translation is on the YouTube clip comments:
Row/paddle to your goal to be successful
don't be downhearted when difficulties come
you'll be together with God in any path you take
My son, listen to me, to my words that I'm saying
Be prepared, don't go backwards to the goal that you've set.
This world is full of negative things
there are a lot of temptations to weaken your feelings.
This is one of my fave songs from last year that I started listening to in the first Alert level 4 lockdown. I discovered it in listening to my dad's and late granma's favourite radio station 'Radio Samoa (whilst hanging out at my parents' house as the lockdown levels came down.
It's sung by one of my parents' favourite popular bands in Samoa except that now it's the next generations who've taken up the mantle to carry on the legacy that was started by their family members sometime in Samoa during the 1970s.
This is one of their songs that incorporates some Maori haka aspects (my own personal opinion) i.e. he he ha! Even better to dance to with your best hula, contemporary or siva (dance) Samoa moves. Especially during these lockdown times. There's even a Cook Islands ukulele sound that you could put your cool Cook Islands dance skills to good use.
It even makes me laugh with word 'Auoia' as that's a Samoan expression whenever something seems to have gone wrong. I learnt that from my parents :) Hope this brings a spring into your step with Spring just on the horizon...
With the "Stay calm" posters, I thought to change it up as yesterday was day 5 in Alert level 4 lockdown. Our household decided to make sushi to whet our appetites.
I, personally, haven't made sushi in a long time and not since my children were in primary school when I remember making some for the shared lunches that they had.
But since schools have changed their food policies and there are fewer shared lunches plus the fact that my children wanted to take shop bought snacks, I didn't make large batches of sushi anymore.
This was quite a special occasion in not having made them in such a long time plus the fact that they are relatively easy to make, compared to the prices that you usually have to pay in the shops that cost quite a bit if you are buying for a family or a group.
We decided to make sushi with avocado, grated carrot, surimi and cream cheese because I had forgotten to buy other ingredients. Yum! I'd definitely recommend that you buy a sushi kit at your local supermarket which usually includes the main ingredients i.e. rice, vinegar powder, seaweed mats, wasabi (hot!), soya sauce and a bamboo sushi roll mat.
In fact, I'd quite forgotten how to roll the sushi to a compact size but after a couple of attempts, it got much better and the effort was well worth the wait. The pic above is a sample of some of the sushi that were devoured last night with the only missing - pickled garlic!
I even remember the first time I bought sushi at the University of Auckland, those many years ago, where I had lunch with some friends and thought that it was about time I tried it. When it came to the wasabi, I thought it was a type of guacamole or avocado and swallowed it whole! Wow! was I in for a ride. I ended up drinking up the coke bottle that I'd bought which probably just made it worse and couldn't believe what just happened.
So, if you are want to change it up a bit during lockdown and try something new to taste, you can order the sushi kit online with your choice of additional ingredients i.e. sliced cucumber, chicken, tuna, mixed veges etc. It's relatively healthy (depending on what you put inside) and your family might just thank you for it...
As I've now locked down at my parents' house with my youngest, for this level 4 lockdown, it's been neat to be able to be with them and catch up with my folks. It's especially been neat not having to worry about them in being in the same bubble.
In being at our second home, I've been able to catch up with some of the programmes that I usually don't get to watch unless I'm at their place. 'The Repair Shop' is one of those new TV programmes that I've enjoyed as it has a lot of good stories about heirloom pieces that are repaired by artisans.
You only have to watch one episode to see how popular it has become and I also read an online article about how many didn't think that it would be as popular as it is now. I think it's because of the stories that are behind why many come to the 'Repair Shop' to repair a variety of items that would be very expensive to try or do not have the skills to do by yourself.
The skills of the artisans (my word for the skilled craftspeople) are quite amazing with woodturners, leather workers, sewing machinists, engineers, designers, mechanical craftspeople and the list goes on. Just simple amazing reveals at the end too. I'd highly recommend it for inspiring crafts people...
Yesterday, before I even found out about a lockdown, I attended our Ministry of Education funded (Innovations workshops) a neat workshop on making 'Elei' or Samoan printed designs onto material.
What I discovered was our Aoga (Samoan bilingual Early childhood centre) had an 'upeti' or a wooden carved out panel with Samoan designs.
This was an amazing find as these are hard to come by unless you know of someone who can make these up or can source from Samoa where they are even scarce too.
What I like about this upeti is that children are able to use it and can view this important motif that is my particular favourite of all Samoan motifs.
It's the four leaf-life motif that I'm currently re-framing in the next 3 upcoming Samoan bilingual books that mention siapo or Samoan tapa for passing on this information for next generations. As I'll be framing borders that will utilize siapo or tapa patterns into the books.
So that one of the things that I'll be doing during this 7 day lockdown is beginning to frame up the artwork for all three books and seeing what it will look like. As I'll be changing up the media that I'll be using and moving into using markers. All thanks to my lil' sis' Maria for bringing me up to speed...
Today, I had to finish my class early as one of my adult students informed me that they had heard about a 6pm announcement that the Prime Minister would be telling us about a lockdown.
I, therefore, finished class early for my students to be able to listen to the announcement with their families and also for me to quickly return home and check on all members of my two households to ensure that all were accounted for.
Lockdown 4 basically means that each household must stay in their 'bubble' with minimal contact with anyone outside their bubble.
All schools will be closed, all takeaways and businesses must be closed with the exception of supermarkets, petrol stations, dairies with only one person from each household to go shopping.
The NZ government is taking this 'hard and fast' approach as today it was revealed that an Aucklander was found positive with their COVID-19 test. Across the ditch in Australia many states have had lockdowns but with many people not heeding the calls to stay home and people have been getting with this new variant and some even dying.
The concern is that this may be the first of many who have yet to be tested in NZ but have the Delta variant of the COVID-19 virus. This could potentially be very dangerous for our community and so the lockdown is for all of NZ for 3 days from midnight tonight.
Panic buying had already started in the early evening as soon as people found out but for my family, I decided to check stocks and await until tomorrow to pick up my shopping from the supermarket with an online order.
As for the rest of the week, I won't be going to work and will be working from home and catching up on all manner of things that need to be complete. I'll also be Zooming in different meetings and keeping in touch with my loved ones at my other household to ensure that everyone is safe.
It's a timely reminder to check on our loved ones, our neighbours and the elderly or most vulnerable to ensure that they have support systems in place. Also looking after our pets is really important as they too need to be taken care of in these trying times. So stay safe out there and take care...
Yesterday, I attended a memorial service for an elder in our church who passed away during our August 2020 COVID-19 lockdown, as there was a community outbreak of the virus and the lockdown was to stop it from spreading further.
During that time, the family was unable to have a family service with the usual rituals associated with funerals within the church.
As a result, the family was only able to have a restricted funeral service and the church was unable to be there to support them and many found out about it after the funeral had been completed.
A year later, the beautiful memorial service that I attended, was a time that the family was able to have a family service with church members and share in memories of their late mother, grandmother and great grandmother, church family member and friend.
It reminded me of the fragility of life but also how to a single mother and a widow for 40+ years was able to bring up her three young children surrounded by the love of her family. She was able to leave in peace with her descendants mourning at the loss of one who lived, loved and laughed. A fitting memorial post COVID-19 lockdown with treasured memories for all...
Early this week, I attended a community workshop meeting on the proposed light rail that may run through Mangere Town Centre - a 10 year initiative with a development plan being pulled together.
I was running late in driving over from an appointment in Papakura. However, upon pulling into the carpark, I was surprised to see that few cars were parked outside at the local hall.
Upon scanning the QR code and entering into the workshop, I could see fewer than 10 people from the local community and that was quite sad to see.
Upon further investigation, I heard that there had been earlier forums and discussions that had taken place but for me it was sad to see that there was not enough representation.
It reminded me of the forums that I had been a part of when I had worked for the Ministry of Education contracts in the late 1990s where few community representation would be seen at the meetings. However, I've learnt since that it's best to work in community partnerships where links to community members are already set up i.e. schools, churches, sports clubs etc.
The good thing was that I was able to learn a lot more about the project and that its at the early stages at the moment in trying to make up a business case for the route that would likely link the airport to Auckland city with major stops along the way at Mt. Roskill, Onehunga, Mangere Bridge and Mangere Town Centre.
This could help support a much needed face lift at the Mangere Town centre and also could open up more job prospects within Mangere. The link would make it much easier for people to commute via train to the city as its currently difficult to travel to Uni for which our eldest changed from AUT city campus to the Manukau South campus.
However, it's also about working with mana whenua (our tangata whenua or local indigenous people who wish to protect the local area) and to ensure that he carbon footprint is as reduced as possible with the use of locally sourced flora for the setting as well as keeping the character of the local community.
I'm also advocating for local groups that I'm in sync with to bring their voices to the table in having a say in what they would like to see in the near future and in the local community regarding this new initiative.
It's exciting but also important to see that it supports the local communities positively with collaborative planning and design which could bring about some very special outcomes for the local community as well as for local businesses.
Check out their website to submit your thought via an online form on the website: https://www.lightrail.co.nz/ and share it with your networks https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/AKLLightrail An interesting start so far...
Yesterday, I spent some time at a local Papakura library catching up on some work, in a quiet space whilst awaiting for a family member.
I found it to be a very large space with bookshelves on rollers that, I guess, could be moved around a lot more easily. It has a very interesting feel to it as it's situated on the second floor of a complex.
There was even an upright piano that's situated close to the library that could be heard being played by a local. Such a different vibe with a variety of community members accessing the resources at the library.
Close by on the other side of the library entrance is Papakura museum of which I've taken one of classes to. It has artifacts and photos of some of its history as a farming community with some market gardening. There was also an area of remembrance to those who had served and fought for the country in the two worlds.
Interestingly enough, they also had an photo exhibition of the Tokelau community in recognition of climate change. There was also video footage and a resource book for those interested to find out more about the island atolls nation.
It was good to have been able to spend some time there in that it reminded me of how different South Auckland communities and townships are, in the resources that they have and also in the 'feel' of the communities. Definitely one that I will visit again soon...
Today, I was listening to some music and came across this beautiful waiata/song by my all time favourite Maori male artist, Stan Walker. He has such powerful and controlled vocals. A real gift from God and this song just transports you to another level.
The lyrics are as follows (below) as shared on his YouTube comments board by 'Megan'. These are not easy words to sing about in knowing what so many Maori have gone through in the dispossession of their lands (confiscated and stolen), the colonisation that's happened in NZ and disheartening in how as indigenous peoples of NZ, they have lost out on so much.
However, this song paints another picture of pride and strength. A warrior people with much to look forward to and Stan inspires many through this beautiful song. Gave me chills just listening to it with my eyes closed... Enjoy!
He kākano āhauI ruia mai i RangiāteaAnd I will never be lostI am a seed, born of greatnessDescended from a line of chiefs,He kākano āhauKi hea rā āu e hītekiteki anaKa mau tonu i āhau ōku tikangaTōku reo, tōku oho-oho,Tōku reo, tōku māpihi maureaTōku whakakai marihiMy language is my strength,An ornament of graceKa tū ana āhau,Ka ūhia au e ōku tīpunaMy pride I will showThat you may know who I amI am a warrior, a survivorHe mōrehu āhauKi hea rā āu e hītekiteki anaKa mau tonu i āhau ōku tikangaTōku reo, tōku oho-oho,Tōku reo, tōku māpihi maureaTōku whakakai marihiMy language is my strength,An ornament of grace,An ornament of grace,An ornament of grace,An ornament of grace.....
