Mōkai tuna
Nā Ross Ahuriri White
"Ētahi tamariki moumou kai ēnei. Kitea kei te matekai ngā iwi o ngā whenua o Inia me ērā momo whenua e muia nei e te tangata. Paipai noa iho ki a Boy rāua ko Kiwi te moumou i ā rāua kai!"
Ko taku māmā tērā ko Te Ara, pēnei tonu i te rekoata kua pakaru nei. Hoki atu, hoki mai. Hoki atu, hoki mai! Ko taua take tonu.
He mea nui ki a ia te kai i te mea ko te whānau tonu ki te whakatipu i ā mātau kai i Wharekahika, arā, ngā momo hua whenua pērā i te kūmara, te parareka, te kāpiti, te pī, te kāreti, te paukena, te merengi me ērā atu, tae ana ki ngā hua rākau. He kararehe anō ā mātau pērā i te kau, te poaka me te hipi hei patu hei kai. I tua atu he kau miraka ā mātau, i whiwhi miraka, whiwhi kirīmi ai mātau, me ngā pīkaokao hei kai, hei whakawhānau hēki hoki.
"Waimarie ana ngā kurī i ngā toenga kai a ngā tamariki nei". Ko Māmā anō tērā.
Ēngari kua waia noa māua ki ēnei ngunguru. Ko te hapa tonu tana tino wā amuamu i te mea he paku noa te parakuihi i ngā ata kua oma māua ko Kiwi ki te kura me ā māua tina. Ko te hapa te tino wā kai a te whānau.
Nā, i tētahi pō i a māua ko Kiwi e kai ana ka puta atu a māmā ki waho ki te haere ki tērā o ō mātau whare, ko te whare moe. E rua hoki ō mātau whare. Ko te kāuta te wāhi tao kai, wāhi kai hoki. I a ia e ngaro atu ana, kī ana ō māua puku ka oma māua ki te pere i ā māua toenga kai ki roto i te awa o Nukutaharua kia kore ai māua e rīria anō.
Hika! Pōrutu mai ana te wai i te taunga o te kai ki roto i te wai. Tumeke ana māua ko Kiwi. Tau ana ō māua mahara ka āta titiro atu māua ki te wai. Auē! He mea ngārara, mea pango, he mea kaitā e korikori ana i reira, e kai ana i ngā toenga kai.
Kā roa māua e titiro atu ana ka kī mai taku tuahine ki a au, "Boy, ki taku whakaaro he tuna te mea rā!" Ka āta titiro atu anō au. Āe! He tika tāna. Engari kātahi anō māua ka kite i te tuna he pērā rawa te mōmona. Ka roa atu tā māua titiro ka kite atu māua e toru kē ngā tuna nei. Ko te mea tuatahi i kite māua, koirā te mea tino kaitā, ko te mea tuarua he āhua paku iho, ā, ko te mea tuatoru te mea paku o rātau.
Ka mea atu au ki a Kiwi, "Tuahine, me tapa e tāua he ingoa mō ā tāua tuna. Māhau te mea tuatahi." Ka roa a Kiwi e whakaaro ana ka kī ake ia, "Boy, me tapa e tāua hei ingoa mō te awa mō Nukutaharua. Me tapa te mea paku rā ko Rua."
Mīharo ana au i te whakaaro rangatira o taku tuahine i te mea e ono tau noa iho tana pakeke. "Tino pai, tuahine. Kāti ka whakaingoatia e au ko Nuku te mea tino kaitā, ka waiho ko Taha hei ingoa mō te mea tuatoru."
Rekareka katoa taku tuahine. Ka kī atu au ki a ia, "Kiwi, kaua tāua e whāki ki tētahi atu tangata, kei pīhukatia e ngā pakeke ā tāua mōkai hei kai."
"Tūturu tungāne, e kore au e whāki."
Nā, mai tērā wā, ka rongo ana ā māua mōkai i a māua e pātōtō ana i ā māua pereti, e pere ana i ngā toenga kai ki roto ki te awa, kua puta mai rātau, kua kōiriiri, kua tūpou ki te whai i ngā kai. He mea rekareka ki a māua te mātakitaki i ā māua mōkai e kai ana, e korikori ana.
E toru rā pea i pahemo kātahi anō a māmā ka kī mai ki a māua, "Kei te pau katoa i a kōrua ā kōrua kai. Koinā te hāngai. Ka mīharo atu rā!"
Whakahoki mihi paku atu ana māua, me te whakaaro tonu: engari rā, e Mā, mēnā e mōhio ana koe!
E hia wiki nei māua e whāngai ana i ā māua mōkai ka kī mai a Kiwi ki a au, "Tungāne, kua mōmona rawa ā tāua mōkai. Me mutu pea tā tāua whāngai i a rātau mō tētahi wā poto, kei hemo noa nō te kai te take."
Ka whakaae atu au. Koirā tonu te āhua o taku tuahine, ahakoa he tamariki noa iho he pakeke ngā whakaaro. He Paraire te rangi i whakatauhia e māua tēnei take, ā, i te Rāhoroi tonu o muri iho e whakahaeretia ana e ngā pakeke tētahi hākari i te kāinga. Ao ana te rā ka putaputa katoa mai ngā whanaunga me ngā hoa. He kai, he unuunu, he waiata, he whakangahau te mahi. Ka haere ngā mahi whakangahau, ka heke iho ō māua pāpā kēkē ki te wāhi o te awa unuunu ai, waiata ai i raro i ngā whiro. He wera hoki nō te rangi, ā, he wāhi marumaru tērā.
I a rātau e unu ana, i te kai tonu rātau. He tēpu hoki i mauria ki te awa. Ngā momo kai katoa i runga i te tēpu, he mīti, he pīkaokao, he ika, he kina, he pāua, he kuku, he hua whenua tae atu ana ki te hua rākau. Ko mātau ko ngā tamariki i waho, i te pātiki e porohianga ana, e whakahaere tākoro ana.
Ka haere te wā, he aha noa rā ka titiro ake au ka kite i a Kiwi e oma mai ana ki a au, me tana pōnānā hoki.
"Boy, Boy!"
"He aha te mate?"
"Ā tāua mōkai! I kite atu au i ētahi o ngā pakeke, ngā tane, e haere ana ki te pere i ā rātau pereti toenga kai ki te awa. Kei te mataku katoa au mō ā tāua mōkai, kei pōhēhē ko taua ērā ka puta ake. Ka pīhukatia."
Nā, kua pōnānā ko au ināianei. Tere tonu tā māua oma atu ki te awa. Te taenga atu, uru tonu mai te pōuri ki a māua, arā, i tōmuri rawa tā māua omanga atu. Kua rongo hoki māua i ngā umere a ngā autaia rā.
"Hika! Ka mau te wehi o ngā tuna nei! Inā te rahi!"
Ko tētahi o ō māua pāpā kēkē tērā e umere ana. He tika tonu te ohorere a Kiwi. I pōhēhē ā māua mōkai ko maua ērā e pere toenga kai ana ki te awa, ka puta ake.
I te kitenga o ngā pakeke ka tīkina e rātau ā rātau pīhuka ka whiua mai ā māua mōkai ki tahaki.
Kei konā noa māua ko taku tuahine e tangi ana, e oma pōrangi haere ana ki a pāpā rāua ko māmā, engari kāore i taea te pēhea. Kua patua kē ā māua mōkai, kua tīmata kē ngā nanakia rā ki te pāwhara.
Ka tangi atu māua ki a māmā, "Auē! Māmā, ā māua mōkai, a Rua, a Nuku me Taha. Kua noho noa hei kai mā ngā autaia rā. Me te mea nei kāore i rawaka ā rātau kai i te tēpu. "
"Tamariki mā. Ahakoa kei te aroha atu ki a kōrua, nā kōrua tonu i rapa tō kōrua mate. Mahue te whāki mai he mōkai tuna ā kōrua, ā, i te whāngaihia e kōrua ā kōrua toenga kai ki a rātau. Me noho tēnā hei tohu ki a kōrua a muri ake. Kauaka e mahi huna."
Muri iho ka huri mai taku tuahine a Kiwi ki a au, "Mōhio koe tungāne, o ngā kai katoa i runga i te tēpu rā, kāore he tuna i reira? I whakaaro au he tohu tonu pea tērā. Engari i mataku au ki te kōrero atu ki a koe, kei heipū ka hua taku mataku. " Me pēhea rā te whakautu atu? Ahakoa tana tamariki, he pakeke tonu taku tuahine, ā, he matakite pea ngā whakaaro....