In Maori culture there is this saying: ‘What is the most important thing in the world? It is the people, it is the people, it is the people.’
This message came across loud and clear when the College welcomed Bruce Simpson for a Thursday Thought with a difference this morning. The theme this term is Respect and the theme this week is Respect for 'Each Other and Those Around Us'. Bruce, who works with governments and companies all around the world and also works closely with the All Blacks and RFU, was invited in to speak to the pupils about being brought up amongst his tribes in New Zealand. He presented in the Lecture Theatre to Year 12 girls and boys, with the remaining year groups watching via livestream from around the school site.
‘Bruce the Maori’ spoke about Haka, the standing of the Maori people and how they use their traditions in everyday life. Haka is about one thing and one thing only - it is about unity and about people coming together and that ‘it is our oneness of thought that is our greatest gift’. Everyone belongs to tribes - everyone has family - and there is no reason why anyone can’t represent their tribe and their people, wherever you go, wherever you stand, and so how you are as a person not only represents yourself as a chief but also all your tribe as well.
Bruce spoke about the importance of the tā moko facial tattoos, which tell a story about ancestry and identity and how all the designs mean something to the Maori people and to their family and they carry them with pride. Wherever they go, their ancestors are standing on their shoulders and they remember how they are meant to be - behaving like a chief and being the best you can be (and this is not necessarily just being the best).
We learnt about how in Maori culture women are sacred and are far more important and more powerful than their men, having a huge amount of standings in their communities.
Tribes use Haka, a ceremonial dance, to acknowledge each other, for example when children are born and when people die and at funerals. It is also used by the All Blacks rugby team and as a Maori, Bruce is proud that the team use the Maori traditions to drive them forward as a team. Bruce then got the Year 12 pupils on their feet and taught them a Haka about being strong and together raising up the people of Shiplake.
Bruce ended his talk by saying “Your whole life is ahead of you and what you do and the choices you make are the things that are really going to make you and define how your life is going to be. And the way we treat each other, particularly our young ladies, are the things that are going to drive us forward as a people, all of us.”
A big thank you to Bruce who illustrated the importance of ‘the people’, the respect given to women in the Maori culture, and also energised all the pupils and staff for the rest of the day.
