I taku haerenga ki Āmerika
Nā K.M. Ihaka
Nā te U.S. Publication Service ngā whakaahua.
Ko te kaituhi o ēnei kōrero he minita nō te Hāhi Mihinare. I haere ia ki Āmerika hei kaiwhakataa mō ngā tikanga Māori e pā ana ki te pikitia nei, ki a "Spinster".
I Pōneke ki Ākarana
I te atatū anō o te Rātapu, te 8 o ngā rā o Oketopa 1960, ka ara ahau; he whakaaro nōku kia mahue pai tō mātou kāinga i a māua ko taku hoa wahine e ngaro atu ana ki Āmerika.
Ka titiro ahau ki ā māua tamariki e moe ana, ka titiro ki tō mātou kāinga, ka pā te pōuri ki taku ngākau. Ko ngā whakariterite kia ono nei anō wiki māua e ngaro atu ai engari i te mea kātahi ano māua ka wehe i ā māua tamariki, anō ki a māua e haere ana māua mō te tau.
Ko te pai o te ata nei. Mahana ana i te whiti mai o te rā. I te waru o ngā hāora kua poto mai te nuinga o ō māua hoa ki tō mātou kāinga.
Ka karanga mai tētahi o ngā kaumātua, "Me karakia tātou. Me tuku Hapa koe mō mātou i mua i tō kourua haerenga."
Ka karakia mātou, ka tukuna e ahau te Hapa a Te Ariki, ā ka mutu. Ka titiro anō ahau ki aku tamariki, ki aku hoa hoki, ākore noa iho te kai e heke i a au.
Kua tū mai anō he motokā i waho, ā, kua karanga mai te taraiwa, "E hokona ana te tāima. Haere mai, māku kourua e mau ki Rongotai."
I taku mataku kei tangi nui māua ki ā māua tamariki i mua i te tini tangata i Rongotai, ka mea atu ahau ki aku tamariki. "Kaua koutou e haere mai ki Rongotai. Me haere koutou ki te haerēre i runga i tō tātou motokā."
Tae atu māua ki Rongotai kua kī noa atu a reira i te tini o ō māua hoa Pākehā, hoa Māori. Ka mihimihi noa mātoa ki a mātou, ā, ka haere ki te inu tī.
Ka puta te karanga, "Ko ngā pāhihi katoa mō Ākarana me piki ināianei ki runga i te manurere, "
Ka wharirū māua ki ō māua hoa, ā, ka piki ki runga i te Viscount hei mau i a māua ki Ākarana. E piki atu ana māua i runga i te arawhata ka rongo māua i a māua tamariki e pararē mai ana. "Dad! Mum! Goodbye! Cheerio! Don't be long!"
Ko te mea tēnei i tino auē ai taku wahine ki te tangi. Kua hotuhotu noa atu anō kē a ia.
Ko te roanga he piki atu ki runga i te Viscount. Tata kore ana e tika te noho, kua tau ki Ākarana.
I Ākarana e tatari mai ana ngā whanaunga me ngā hoa. I reira anō ngā mihi mai ki a māua. "Haere atu, kaua e raruraru mai ki ngā mea o te kāinga. Haere atu ki ēnā pā mamao.
Whakawhiti atu i Te Moana-nui-a-kiwa. Haere atu ki te pā o Te Rangihīroa. Ko tā kourua, he tiaki i a kouma, ā, tae noa mai kourua ki te kāinga. Mā Te Atua kourua e manāki, e tiaki."
E whā pea hāora māua e tatari ana, ka karangatia mai, "Ko ngā pāhihi katoa mō Fiji me piki ināianei ki runga i te manurere."
Kua mea mai anō tētahi, "Mauria atu ahau i roto i ā kourua pāhi."
I Ākarana ki Fiji
He Teal Electra te manurere i rerea atu ai māua i Akarana Tino pai, tino nui,
tino horo tēnei wakarere. He peke kau ake, kua tae ki te rua tekau mano putu
ki runga.
Ka titiro iho ahau ki raro, ka kite iho i ngā whare, i ngā motokā, i ngā mea tinitini noa iho - ko te nonohi o ēnā mea katoa. Horekau a māua kīkī. Kei te tangi tonu taku hoa. Titiro muri tonu māua. Whakawhiti atu mātou i Te Rerenga- wairua, ka aroha iho au ki te kāinga i whānau ai ahau. Kore noa māua e kite mai i te ākau o Niu Tīreni, kātahi anō ka āta tau tā māua noho, ā, ka kōrerorero ki a māua. "Āe oti e haere ana tāua ki Amerika, he moemoeā noa iho rānei?"
I raro tata iho anō e rere haere ana he kapua mā; anō he wūrū hipi. I raro atu e hora ana te Moana-nui-a-kiwa. Hoki ana ngā mahara ki te Pakanga Tuarua o te ao; ki ngā kōrero mihi a ngā kaumātua ki ngā ope hōia, "Haere atu, whakawhiti atu i te Moana-nui-a-kiwa."
Koia nei taua moana. Koia nei te moana i haerenga mai nei e ō tātou tūpuna i runga i ō rātou waka i tō rātou hekenga mai i Hawaiki. Koia nei te moana e waiatatia nei, e pāteretia nei e ngā tini iwi o Aotearoa.
Kua ahiahi, kua tītaha te rā, ka rere atu māua i Ākarana.
I te ono karaka i te pō ka mauria mai he kai mā ngā pāhihi. Ko ngā āhua kai katoa. He heihei, he tio, he ngohi, he kūmara, he hua rākau, he purini, me ērā atu āhua kai. Pau mitimiti i a māua ēnā kai i te reka anō ra.
I te tauhōu ki te haere pēnei, ko ō māua kākahu ko ngā kākahu anō e mau nei tātou i te kāinga. He koti nui, he peka me ērā atu kākahu mahana. Nō te makerenga atu i Fiji ehara i tētahi āhua te wera. I runga i te manurere hei ā whakatikatika te mahana kia kaua e wera, kia kaua e kōpeke.
Tatū atu, ka mauria māua ki te International Lounge tatari ai i te manurere hei kawe i a māua ki Hāwai. Kei reira ngā hiahia katoa o te tangata. I te wera, kua unu taku peka me taku koti nui. Horekau i roa kua unu te koti poto, haerēre ana he hāte anake. He waireka kōpeke te kai. I pai, ā, kua pēke ngā ringaringa o te hāte, ā kua huia te hāte, haerēre ana he hingareti anake.
E tata ana ki te waenganui pō ka karangatia mai ngā pāhihi mō Hāwai kia haere ki te manurere. He Qantas Boeing Jet te waka mō mātou. Tino nui, tino pai, kānapanapa ana ngā wāhi katoa o te mea nei. E iwa tekau mā rua ngā tāngata e ō ki roto, i tua atu i ngā kaimahi. Piki atu māua ki runga, ka haere mai he wahine ātaahua ki te mau i a māua ki ō māua tūru. Ahakoa e heke ana te wera i a au hauangi mai ana te āhua o te tuari wahine nei.
"Koia ēnei ko ō kourua tūru. E rua nōu, e rua nō tō wahine. Mehemea ki te hiamoe kourua hei ā pēnei te tango i tēnei tūru kia rite ai ki te moenga. Kei raro nei ngā pera, ngā paraikete, me ērā atu mea e tūpono kourua ki te hiahia. Mehemea e hiahia kourua ki ētahi atu mea me tono mai ahau."
Ki te whakatikaina ana ngā tūru nei, anō he moenga mārika anō.
I Fiji ki Honululu
I te tīmatanga atu o te manurere nei, tūpou ana te kake. Ko te nui me te horo, mataku pai te tauhōu. Kihai i roa kua whakatikatika māua i ō māua moenga. Rite tonu ki ngā moenga hōtera nei.
Takoto kau atu ahau kua parangia. Oho ake au kua mārama i te ata. E titiro ana ahau ki waho ka puta mai te rā. Ohorere ana ahau i te putanga mai o te rā. Anō ngā kapua e toro ana i te ahi tino nui. Ka whakaarangia atu e ahau taku hoa. "Kia kite koe i tēnei mea whakamīharo!"
Nō te hāwhe pāhi i te waru ka tau atu mātou ki Honululu. Ko te tāone nui tēnei o Hawaī.
Nō te ata o te Rātapu ka rere mai māua i Rongotai, ā, nō te ata o taua Rātapu anō ka tae mātou ki Honululu.
Tatū atu māua, ka haere māua ki te tari whakatikatika tiwhikete me ērā atu āhuatanga e āhei ai te tangata ki te tomo atu ki te whenua kē, ki tētahi iwi kē
hoki.
Ka tika ēnei mea ka mea atu ahau ki taku wahine, "Me haere tāua ki te karakia."
"E karakia ana a kōnei i te Mane?"
"He Rātapu rā tēnei, ehara i te Mane."
"Ha. He Rātapu ka haere mai tāua i te kāinga inanahi. Pō mai tāua ki Fiji, ao mai i te ata nei, hoi, e Rātapu tonu ana?"
"Āe, e Rātapu tonu ana. Nō tāua i te tari ināianei ra ka kite ahau e Rātapu tonu ana."
"Haere mai rāpea tāua ki te tiki taxi mo tāua hei mau i a tāua ki te whare karakia." E ohooho ana ahau ki te kōrero atu ki ngā tāngata o reira, engari me whakamāia hoki ka tika. Ka haere atu ahau ki tētahi tangata ka mea atu, "Kei hea te wharekarakia o tēnei tāone?"
"Ka nui te tawhiti atu i kōnei."
"Kei hea ngā taxi?"
"Taxi? I think you'd better take a cab."
Ka mauria māua e te taxi ki te Cathedral o Honululu. He whare tino ātaahua. Tatū atu māua i te taxi, kua raruraru anō māua i ngā moni. I tō māua kūare anō rā ki ngā moni o tērā kāinga.
E tū ana māua e mīharo ana ki te pai o te wharekarakia, me te kakara hoki i te tini o te putiputi, ka haere mai tētahi wahine. I kite mai i taku kara minita.
"Tēnā kourua. I haere mai kourua i hea?"
"He tauhōu māua nō Niu Tīreni."
"Koia rawa. Ko ahau ko Mrs Kennedy. He wahine ahau nā te Pihopa o Honululu. Haere mai kourua ki taku taha anō noho ai."
Ka tomo mātou ki roto i te wharekarakia, tata mate ahau i te wera. Nā te mea he wharekarakia, tē unuunu ai ahau i aku kākahu.
Ka mutu te karakia ka mauria haeretia māua e Mrs Kennedy kia kitekite i Hawaī. Ko te pai o te motokā, he Cadillac, ahakoa te wera o te rā, hauangi ana a roto.
I tae māua ki Pearl Harbour, te wāhi i mahi kinongia e ngā Tiapani, i hou mai ai Āmerika hei hoa mō Ingarangi, i te whawhai nui tuarua o te ao. I reira ngā manuao i mau, e totohu ana ētahi, e takoto tītaha ana ētahi, e waikura ana ētahi, ā, e pirau noa iho ana ētahi. Ahakoa kua roa noa atu te mutunga o te riri, kei reira anō ngā mea hei whakamahara mai i te kino o tēnei mea o te whawhai.
I tae anō māua ki te museum i reira nei a Te Rangihīroa e rangatira ana, i mua atu i tana matenga.
He tini ngā mea whakamīharo i kite māua, ka hoki māua ki te taunga manurere. Koia tēnei ko tētahi o ngā taunga nui o te ao. E tau mai ana, e rere atu ana he manurere i ngā meneti katoa o te rā.
Tae atu māua e tū mai ana he rōpu Māori o Hawaī e waiata ana, e hura ana, e whakangahau ana. Ko te papai o ngā āhua o ngā kōtiro e tū mai ana i roto i ō rātou piupiu. He kōtiro taitamariki anake. Horekau he kuikuia. Hāunga anō te papai o ngā āhua, i te papai o ngā reo, me te ngāwari ki te hura. Ka pai anō ngā waiata o Hāwaī, me ā rātou kanikani, mā rātou anō e waiata, e mahi. Kī ana te taunga i te tangata. Ko tētahi mea rerekē, ko nga kākahu o ngā wāhine - kōtiro, kuia. He kākahu tino roroa katoa. Rite tonu ki ngā kākahu o ngā wāhine
hapū nei.
I mau ai rātou i ērā kākahu nā te wera. I kōrerongia mai ki a māua ko ngā kākahu hauangi ērā.
Bishop Museum, i reira nei a Te Rangihiroa e rangatira ana, i mua i tana matenga
Ko te manurere hei mau i a māua ki Amerika nō te United Airlines. Tino nui, tino pai anō tēnei. E iwa tekau ngā pāhihi, e rua ngā karāihe - karāihe tuatahi, me te karāihe tuarua. Riterite tonu ngā tūru, engari ko ngā pāhihi e haere karāihe tuatahi ana hei a hoatu noa atu he waipiro mā rātou horekau he utu. E kore te tangata e hiakai, kua mauria mai he kai.
Horekau he raruraru tae noa rātou ki Amerika, ki Los Angeles.