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Celebrating Matariki 2023
Matariki is a time to come together to celebrate the Māori New Year, a time to reflect on the past year, to share kai and waiata, and also to look forward to the future and all it will bring.
Our Matariki Celebration last Wednesday was all this and more as our families were welcomed into the centre by Vicki, followed by a karakia from Wi (Hukarere's Husband) to bless our kai. What a delicious hākari too as our families brought in dishes from their own cultures and of course there was our popular pumpkin soup too. After we had eaten it was time to venture out into the playground for our tree-planting ceremony.
We had chosen a grevillea as not only is it fast-growing but also is especially attractive to native birds which we like to encourage. There were lots of eager helpers to dig the hole and plant our Matariki tree which was followed by a karakia and waiata from Wi and Hukarere. A very special moment indeed.
Time for one last song and Tutira mai nga iwi sung with gusto by the tamariki with Hukarere and Alyssa on ukelele. Thank you to everyone for making our Matariki 2023 a huge success, it was a lovely evening full of aroha, kaitiakitanga and manaakitanga as we showed respect, generosity, and care for each other and our learning environment.