Speech To Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Trust
te-pati-maori
Fri Mar 02 2007 13:00:00 GMT+1300 (New Zealand Daylight Time)
Speech To Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Trust
Friday, 2 March 2007, 11:37 am
Speech: The Maori Party
Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Trust New Zealand
Support Group Co-ordinators Training Programme; Jet Inn; Auckland
Friday 2 March 2007; 9am
Tariana Turia, Co-leader of the Maori Party
I am so delighted to be here today, and I want to thank the National Convenor, Diane Vivian, for your generosity in inviting me to spend time with you at your annual training event.
In te Ao Maori, our mokopuna and our elders are especially cherished, so it is with great pleasure that I join with you, to acknowledge and congratulate you all on your commitment to our future generations
Your mission statement says it all:
Te Tautoko i nga Matua Tupuna, me nga mokopuna
Te Ao Mai rano, aianei, a muri ake nei
Supporting grandparents and grandchildren
Our past, our present, our future.
There is a famous photograph that I am sure you are all familiar with – of the late Dame Whina Cooper of Te Rarawa, heading the Maori Land March from Te Hapua, hand in hand with her mokopuna, Irenee.
The photograph captures the fierce spirit and passion of the kuia, a grandmother who at the age of eighty, led a land protest march from the far North to Wellington.
The March started out at Cape Reinga with only forty people. By the time it reached the Capital; it had gathered elders, brothers and sisters, children, Pakeha campaigners for justice; all in all over fifty thousand people took part.
Every day, Dame Whina would call out,te ihi, te mana, te tapu – maranga ra! It was an expression of hope – and also an expression of grief for the continued loss of Maori land.
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Over the month of the hikoi,Te Roopu o te Matakite, the slogan,‘not one more acre of Maori land’ (to be alienated ) was chanted; a catchcry which even today resonates with the spirit of collective unity.
And when the March finally reached Parliament, it was evident, a renaissance of immense proportions was underway.
Throughout all of that historic walk, Dame Whina was accompanied by her mokopuna. As the kuia gathered thousands of signatures on a memorial of rights to present to Ministers, the mokopuna watched on, observing, learning, living.
That image, that photograph, has been replaying in my mind this last week, as the stories have come in from Ngati Kahu in the Far North; from the Whenuakite Station in Hauraki; and this past Wednesday in Whanganui, as we gathered again at Pakaitore.
These are all sites of significance to our people. And at every site, there have been grandchildren playing, grandchildren singing, grandchildren present; as their grandparents assume the responsibilities and obligations that come with their role.
It has been a very strong picture in my mind as I have travelled here to the training programme for the Support Group Co-ordinators.
Just as that historic photograph evokes the companionship, the leadership and the strength of relationship enjoyed by grandmother and grandchild; your organisation speaks to me of a commitment for generations to learn from each other.
And I want to really draw attention to the important, indeed, extremely significant work you are doing, as grandparents raising grandchildren.
The use of the adjective – raising – conveys the vision and the strategic outlook you have all committed to.
In ‘raising’ grandchildren, you are pledging your support towards improving their lives; to lifting them up, to elevating them to a position of confidence and strength.
In ‘raising’ grandchildren – you are looking for movement; for progress, for success.
And with your aspirations raised, your goals set, the future is assured for you and your mokopuna.
But the greatest secret is that in uplifting your grandchildren, you may also experience great joy yourself.
I have looked over the sessions that you are undertaking in this two day training – and I have to commend you for the scope of your programme.
You have been dealing with abuse allegations; coming to terms with the challenge of budgeting; upskilling in parenting techniques; learning about anger management strategies; considering legal options for care arrangements.
Such crash courses in knowledge acquisition are, however, old hat to your organisation, if the updates on your website are anything to go by.
I congratulate all of you, in your commitment to learning – I was just amazed at the scope of material on your website, including how to keep celery crunchy by wrapping it in tinfoil; how to unstick a zip; how to access special needs grants for septic tank maintenance; changes in superannuation and the importance of sun safety.
I hope that in the midst of all of this amazing learning that you are also experiencing the secret of joy.
We have a saying in Maoridom,
'I puta ai te pai a tera whanau na nga manaakitanga e to ratou kuia.
You can see the positive results from that family
because of the good nurturing and care of their elder.'
The role you have taken on, in honouring the genealogy, the whakapapa of your ancestors by caring for their descendant, is of the utmost importance.
Through your generosity of spirit, your sense of manaaki, the drive to care for, to support, to nurture your grandchild; you are protecting and preserving the very foundations of your gene pool.
It is your dedication and determination to nurture the competency, the talents, and the mana of your own family members, that will ultimately create the greatest hope for our future.
It is a feat of some magnitude, that this organisation comprises over 45 support groups from as far North as Dargaville to as far South as Invercargill.
You are selflessly and consistently putting the needs of others ahead of your own; providing support and assistance to your own grandchildren; and to any grandparent who has taken on the privilege of being primary caregivers for their grand-children.
I wanted to really emphasize today the joy that comes with accepting the challenge of raising grandchildren, because sometimes I think we become so focused on all of our problems and difficulties that the simple pleasures can be overlooked.
I loved a comment from one of the grandparents in your trust: ‘I may not be rich, but my grandchildren are my jewels’.
George and I are raising a Princess of our own; our son’s five year old daughter, Piata. When I live in Wellington during the week, I live in a house with nephews, son-in-law and daughter, and grandchildren – the youngest, Amaru, is the older brother of Piata.
So through the daily experiences we share with Piata and Amaru in particular; I have come to understand some of the situations that are frequently described as traumatic or even stressful.
Our Piata suffers from the most excruciating bouts of eczema and her fragile little body has for too many nights, been screaming with the pain and heat of skin disorders. But even as the sores are weeping, Piata manages to smile, to give us cheek, to run away from us or to cover us with kisses and cuddles.
She has taught me so much about endurance; about survival; about strength. And in turn, I hope that the bountiful love that we have for her will always keep her warm.
In the families that you support – the 3294 families caring for their grandchildren represented in your membership – there will no doubt be, as there are with us, days when you simply feel too tired, too old, too worn out to feel you are making the difference.
And I guess if there is one thing I could hope to encourage you with, is perhaps an area that Delwyn Roberts from Age Concern will follow up with – that vital area of health and well-being.
The nation has been invigorated over the last few months, with the debate around the so-called smacking bill.
My own views on this issue is that the use of smacking is frequently the strategy of last resort, which comes when parents and grandparents are tired, or worn down, and have run out of ideas.
That is where our greatest hope lies in health promotion messages; in public education, in strategies and techniques which teach us all about how best to deal with conflict and challenge.
The Chinese have a saying – our health is our wealth – and I think that in the vital area of raising grandchildren, our greatest investment in our future is in ensuring our own wellbeing is a priority.
Finally, I want to encourage you to know that you are the source of unique histories and experiences which help your grandchildren to really know the essence of who they are.
Your happiness; your knowledge; your wellbeing and security matters to us, the Maori Party – because we know that it is through your leadership that the future of this nation is being shaped.
I wish you all well, in this, our greatest journey together, to make a difference in the life of a child.
Ends
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