Reflection written by Keawe Woodmore, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Knowing our past gives us a rudder with which to navigate the present, and without that past we are simply rudderless.
Herb Kāne
We arrived again at the familiar landscape of the Kapiti Coast for our third retreat. Against the backdrop of Omicron in the community and the theme of Vā Tagata, our challenge for the three days was to discover both space and continue to build connections in the hybrid (virtual-physical) settings of the retreat.
I arrived both enthused for the retreat but also feeling stretched due to the demands of my day job. In need of both space and knowledge, I once again found both, and my cup was soon overflowing once more.
The highlight of the retreat for me was Dr Manulani Meyer. A fellow Hawaiian—a Kanaka Maoli! This has to be the first time for me where there’s been another Hawaiian present, albeit virtually, and my own culture and heritage front and center in Aotearoa. Manu gifted us so much knowledged and I loved hearing about Aloha, Pono, and our own restorative process of ho’oponopono for addressing entanglements in the Vā.
I am starting to see the connective strands between the retreats as my kete of ancestral intelligence starts to fill, and things are starting to make more and more sense. I feel like I am being gifted the knowledge, the understanding, and the language to describe what I believe, how I feel and who I want to be.
While my journey under Tū Mau Mana Moana is only just starting, I cannot help but feel that I am well on my way to becoming an authentic leader—unashamedly Pasifika in the ecology that is the New Zealand Public Service. I look forward to the next retreat, Vā Hala as we focus on our own journeys and hearing those of our broader Tū Mau Mana Moana ‘ohana.
Tū Mau! Tū Mau! Tū Mau!
Keawe wrote this following Vā Tagata, the third retreat of seven in Tū Mau Mana Moana.
Tū means to stand, arise, be, to be upright in 48 of our languages – it is Austronesian in origin and one of our most ancient source languages. At its zenith, Tū or Kū is the archetype of humanity - of the god of war, of the realm of humankind.
Mau is in 47 of our languages and is linguistically categorised as Polynesian in origin. It refers to seeking, finding, persisting, holding on to, firmly and tightly. Mau is a well-known movement of liberation and a calling cry to reclaim power.
Together, these words create Tū Mau – to stand and hold, to be firm and seek. The approach and orientation of this programme is designed specifically for Pacific peoples seeking to lead in the public sector.
Find out more about Tū Mau Mana Moana here.