We hope you are well and the rhythms of the seasons are treating you kindly. Sometimes we come across small things that carry more meaning than its humble size would suggest. Things small enough to hold in the palm of your hand, yet carry years of memories, people and love. Our interactions these days are often rapid. We exchange things quickly. Messages, conversations, money, without pause to consider the deeper meaning of what is being reciprocated. However, some exchanges ask us to slow down.
A long time ago I received a pounamu pendant from my grandmother. It takes the roimata, teardrop form. It is small and not particularly ornate. It is beautiful to me. It is the most treasured thing I have. My grandmother was given this taonga when she sat on a district health board. It was given to acknowledge her work supporting Māori and rural health for whānau across the region. It was a different time and I gather there was a great deal of courage and challenge on her part in that space. I remember her as firm and determined. He kuia maia ia. Both her and my grandfather had a deep sense of service to family and community.
For our whānau they built the foundation for how we gather, how we support each other and how we serve others. I see so much of them in my uncles, aunts and cousins. Over time I have come to realise this taonga is far more than a piece of stone. For me it carries her memories, her characteristics, her mana. She was never afraid to speak her mind or challenge what needed challenging. In difficult times I often reflect on her and how she would have approached this or that. I don’t wear it often, and try to only wear it when I think it will enhance her mana. I know also that I am only a kaitiaki of this generation.
One day I will pass it down to a mokopuna yet to come. The stories and memories of her will travel with it too. I hope they too will be strengthened by her example. In te ao Māori, taonga are rarely just objects. They carry memory, knowledge, relationships and whakapapa. At Mākoha we cherish this aspect of gifting. How something given with intention can carry meaning long after it’s received.
Sometimes the most important part of a gift is not the object itself. It is the love, memory and connection it carries.