Kuoa rongo ake au…
Akakoa iti noa te kuru pounamu
He taonga tuku iho kia kaha, kia toa, kia māiai, kia mataara
kia manawanui
I have learned…
A thoughtful note to someone you’ve avoided
Saying sorry will go a long way

From Words of a Kaumātua by Haare Williams, edited by Witi Ihimaera

Dr Haare Williams MNZM has been Dean of Māori Education and Māori Advisor to the Chief Executive at Unitec. He was General Manager of Aotearoa Radio. He set up a joint venture with the South Seas Film and Television School to train Te Reo speakers as producers and operators in film and television. He has worked closely with iwi claimant communities and was responsible for waka construction and assembly at Waitangi for the 1990 commemorations. He has published poetry, exhibited painting and written for film and television. He was a cultural advisor for the Mayor of Auckland and is Amorangi at the Auckland War Memorial Museum.
