Tikanga practise and SunnySunday's Māori priniciples - Denise's Interpretation

Kia ora koutou. Ko Denise toku ingoa.

Hello everyone, my name is Denise. I am one of the co-founders of SunnySunday.

Ko Zugspitze te maunga

Ko Isar te awa

Ko airplane te waka

Ko Bayern te iwi

Ko Muenchen te hapū

Ko Am Brunneck 7 te marae

Ko Oma Linda te rangatira

I am originally from Munich, the capital of Bavaria which is a province of Germany in Europe.

Munich, Denise’s hometown

I came to Aotearoa around 2.5 years ago via airplane and since then I am trying to settle in my new home.

Ko Opa Bernd raua ko Oma Lene oku Matua Tipuna 

Ko Andreas toku Papa 

Ko Mimi Opa raua ko Oma Linda oku Matua Tipuna 

Ko Diana toku Mama 

Ko Harry toku Papa

Ko Paddy rangatira.

Ko Denise toku ingoa.

I am currently participating in a Tikanga class (Te Wānanga o Aotearoa) to learn more about Māori customary practises and behaviours. I am still learning so this is me trying and I will be brave enough to own my mistakes. I think it is important that we get over our fear or be afraid and do it anyways. This is me leading by example and sharing what I have learned, trying to apply it to my life.

When participating in this Tikanga class we learned a lot about Maōri principles. I thought it would be nice to give it a go and share with you, which principles I think we are trying to achieve with SunnySunday.

Kaitiakitanga

Concept of guardianship, for the sky, the sea, and the land. Protecting and looking after the environment.

One of the main reasons why Kit and I run SunnySunday is because we felt we must take responsibility of the well-being of our planet. We might only be a small community group however coming together once a month on a (hopefully sunny) Sunday and do good together for mother earth felt like the right thing to do. A lot of small actions can ultimately have a big impact. So, we hope that each little beach clean, every tree planted or shared knowledge about composting will help to enable our planet to heal and thrive. This is why I think kaitiakitanga is one of the main principles that SunnySunday drives to achieve.

One of our youngest community members proudly planting a native tree

Whanaungatanga

Whanaungatanga is about forming and maintaining relationships and strengthening ties between kin and communities. Providing the foundation for a sense of unity, belonging and cohesion.

We put a lot of time and energy in SunnySunday and it all pays off when we can finally host an event or meet somewhere for an exciting day ahead on which we all do something good or learn together as a group. We are proud that our community is so diverse combining all ages, genders, and various languages. Friendships have formed and a SunnySunday is about connection as much as it is about learning and actions. We are sharing life experiences, laughs, food and bringing our family and friends together. SunnySunday is a safe space to be who you are and feel what you feel. Some days you might need a hug, a little distraction from the usual worries of life or just want to feel like you belong. SunnySunday is your place to be if you want it to. Because of that I believe that whanaungatanga is another one of our core values.

SunnySunday community learning something new side by side

Thanks for taking the time to read. I want to finish this with a karakia that I learned in my class today:

Mauri tu. Mauri ora

Tēnei te mauri ka tau

Ko te mauri o tēnei taio 

Ko te mauri o tēnei whenau 

Ko te mauri o tēnei tangata 

Tueia mai ko the MANA, ko te IHI

Tueia mai ko te WANA, ko te WEHI

He MAURI TUKUNA mai

He tama ATUA

He tama TIPUA

He tama TAWHITO

No ngā mana ATUA

Tihei mauri ora