Charlotte must have got a real fright from my shove, because before I knew it, she’d shoved me and I tripped backwards and fell over. As I was getting up she swung her fist and hit me on the cheek. Next thing, we were in a full-blown fight. Other kids were yelling, “Scrap! Scrap!”
Two duty teachers broke us up and sent the other kids packing. I started to cry then, and so did Charlotte. We got sent to the office and had to wait for the principal.
We didn’t even get to tell him our sides of the story. We just got a huge telling-off and warned that our parents would be very disappointed in us.
I couldn’t believe it when Charlotte mumbled, “Mine won’t.”
Mr. Arbuckle got a bit angry with her. “I assure you, young lady, they will.”
THEN Charlotte said, “I assure you, Mr. Arbuckle, they won’t. My father is dead and my mother is up north.”
Well, that stopped Mr. Arbuckle in his tracks. I’d forgotten that Charlotte lived with her aunt. He raised his voice then, and it got a bit squeaky. “Back to class, both of you, and no more fighting.”
It was embarrassing walking back into the classroom. We both went to our desks, got our maths books out, and pretended to be working. Well, I pretended, and I guess Charlotte did too.
I decided not to tell Mum and Dad what happened, but when I got home and looked in the mirror I had a huge bruise on my cheek and scratch marks on my face and neck. What a catty fighter that Charlotte is!
Everyone wanted to know what happened to me. I thought I was fine about it until I opened my mouth to tell them, and I burst out crying! When I finally got it out, Dad just shook his head. Mum was a bit wide-eyed and I could see she was shocked. Mr. Arbuckle was right, though—they were disappointed.
“Sometimes you just need to ignore things people say,” Dad said.
I sure wish I had.
Maybe tomorrow will be a better day.
OH NO, I forgot to see Mr. Carter about the speech competition. Oh well, it’s probably for the best. I don’t feel like speaking in front of anyone with my face all bashed up and scratched.
TUESDAY, 6 July
* * *
Tavita’s face has blistered, so Mum took him to the doctor today. Mum said the doctor told him off, and of course he bawled (Tavita, not the doctor). What a bunch of sooky-la-las we all are—one of us always seems to be crying.
Mr. Carter pulled me out of class to talk about the speech competition. He said I was lucky still to be involved, because of the fight. I wanted to tell him he was lucky I was going to do it, but I didn’t. He said I can talk about anything I want but it has to be a 5-minute speech. Holey moley!!!! That’s a long time to talk!
I was about to tell him I didn’t want to do it, then he told me there are cash prizes—and all I could think of was my go-go boots. The competition is ages away, in November, so I have tons of time.
WEDNESDAY, 7 July
* * *
School was cool bananas today. We had a guy come and teach us some Māori stuff. His name is Mr. Parker, and he was really fun. I think he’s related to Charlotte—he kept calling her “girl” and getting her to show us stuff. Charlotte was really good at it too. He taught us some songs and then we did a stick game. The sticks are called “rakau,” which means stick or tree. I liked the songs. The first one was called “Tutira Mai Nga Iwi,” which we all sort of knew. Here are the words:
Tūtira mai ngā iwi (all the boys say “AUE” here, it sounds like this: “oh-way”)
tātou tātou e
Tūtira mai ngā iwi (they do “AUE” here too)
tātou tātou e
Whai-a te marama-tanga
me te aroha—e ngā iwi!
Ki-a tapa tahi,
Ki-a ko-tahi rā
Tātou tātou e
(we sing it all again)
Tā-tou tā-tou e!! (the girls hold on to the last “eee” sound here)
Tahi, rua, toru, whā
kssss … hi aue hei (the boys or a leader does this bit)
This is what it means:
Line up together, people
All of us, all of us
Stand in rows, people
All of us, all of us
Seek after knowledge
and love of others—everyone
Think as one
Act as one
All of us, all of us
All of us, all of us!
One, two, three four
The “kssss hi aue hei” part is just how we finish. It sounds really good when we all finish this part loud and in time. We flick our fingers in the air at ksss he aue and then end with our hands on our hips at hei. Mr. Parker said it’s a good song because it’s about standing together and uniting as one, shoulder to shoulder. He told us it was written by a friend of his called Wi Huata, who wrote it to teach his children about supporting each other. Apparently they were at a family gathering at Lake Tutira, up Napier way.
I didn’t even know there was a lake called Tutira. Maybe Christama and Stanpa will take us there when we visit them. If I ever go there, I’m going to sing the song to the lake.
Mr. Parker said songs or waiata belong to the people and groups who compose them, and we need to respect the people who wrote them by singing them well. He told the boys that the bit where they go “AUE” was okay, but he thought they could do better. When we sang it the second time the boys did their part really strongly and Mr. Forbes the caretaker came to see what all the noise was about.
The boys were pretty pleased with themselves and Mr. Parker gave them the thumbs-up and smiled. Then we learnt the rakau (stick) games. Mr. Parker had a whole set of rakau for us to use, that he’d made out of rolled-up magazines. We had to find a partner and then he went through all the actions, bit by bit. I was partners with Tania. I like working with her, she’s nice.
First, we just kept tapping our rakau to a beat, then we did some tapping to each side, then tapping our rakau on our partner’s rakau and then … things got crazy when we had to learn how to pass the rakau to each other. Rolled-up magazines were flying in all directions! What a laugh!
Once we knew all the actions and the order they went in, Mr. Parker taught us a song called “E Papa Waiari.” When we had it all sorted, Mr. Parker sang the song and called out the actions. I couldn’t believe it when Mr. Morrison said it was time to pack up. The afternoon just zoomed by.
When I got home, I made some rakau and taught Lily. Good fun! The boys wanted to join in so we made them some. Mum and Dad knew the song, too, so after tea we made more rakau and all did it together. Rawiri was there again, which was good because he knew the song too, and he could partner Tavita, and Lenny was with Ethan. The rolled-up magazines were okay, but some were fat and some were skinny so it made it a bit harder.
So Dad went out to the shed and found some old broom handles, which he cut into lengths for us to use. They were perfect and were all the same fatness. We did the “E Papa Waiari” song a few more times. Mum was really good at it.
Later, Mum made pikelets for supper. FUN night!
THURSDAY, 8 July
* * *
I took some of my rakau to school and used them at morning tea and lunchtime. Me, Tania, Colin, and his friend Walter. Mr. Morrison thought my rakau were great and said I should decorate them. Then he suggested that all the class should make their own and we could paint them. Dad was stoked that Mr. Morrison liked his idea.
After tea I saw Rawiri pull up in his mum’s car. I was thinking how cool it was that he can drive and that his mum lets him use the car. Next thing … I got the shock of my life when Charlotte Craig, the cattiest catfighter in the world, got out of the car!!! What??! Then I remembered that Charlotte lived with her auntie because her mum was up north. Rawiri had told us his aunt and cousin had something to do with the people who organised the hīkoi up north. That’s when I realised—OH MY GOLLY GOSH—Rawiri and Charlotte are cousins!
I rushed to my room and pretended to be reading a book. I thought I w
as safe there—until Rawiri and Lenny appeared at the bedroom door … with Charlotte. I guess she hadn’t figured out me and Lenny were brother and sister either. Her face went bright red when she saw me and she took a step back. I tried to act cool and said, “Hi,” and carried on reading. Lenny said they were going to the dairy and I could come if I wanted.
“Nah, I’m okay, thanks,” I said. Then Lily poked her head around the corner and said she’d go. And I didn’t want to miss out, so I suddenly said, “Oh, okay, I’ ll come too.”
I ended up sitting beside Charlotte in the car and I could see she had a scratch down her neck. I didn’t know I was a catty fighter too. It was my first fistfight—or should I say, “fingernail fight.”
“Who’s your teacher?” Lily asked Charlotte.
“Mr. Morrison.”
Lily looked surprised, and said, “Oh, so you guys know each other then?”
We both said, “Uh-huh,” and looked in opposite directions. I think that’s when Lily realised what was going on and changed the subject. She asked Charlotte if she liked the Bay City Rollers, and then we all started talking about our favourite songs.
When we got to the dairy we got a milkshake each (I got vanilla, my fave), then played a game where you had to say your favourite song, and whoever guessed the singer or the band first got a point. We sat outside at a table and Lenny brought some milkshake lollies which we used for points.
We chose 3 songs each. Mine were “Boogie Fever” by the Sylvers, “Deep Purple” by Donny and Marie, and “Silly Love Songs” by Wings. Lily chose “Don’ t Go Breaking My Heart” by Elton John and Kiki Dee (I love that one too), “Kiss and Say Goodbye” by the Manhattans, and “Rhiannon” by Fleetwood Mac. Charlotte chose “Only 16” by Dr. Hook, “December, 1963” by the Four Seasons, and “A Little Bit More,” Dr. Hook again.
I think the boys were just being jerks coz they chose songs like “You Sexy Thing” and “Let Your Love Flow.” Lenny chose “Disco Duck” and we all started to sing it and make the duck sound. So funny. Talk about laugh! The dairy owner told us off for being too noisy and said we had to tone it down. Lily ended up with the most lollies so she won.
We were having so much fun that I forgot Charlotte was a chump. Rawiri said a real test of whether an artist is any good or not will be if they’re still around producing music in 20 years. Woah! That would be a long time doing the same thing.
Then I remembered something. “Charlotte,” I asked, “are you related to Mr. Parker?”
“Hmm, dunno really. I call him ‘uncle’ but I’m not sure if we’re actually related.”
Rawiri told us that Charlotte lives with them because her mum’s up north (which I already knew from Charlotte’s speech). Lily asked Charlotte when her mum would be back, but Charlotte said she didn’t know. She saw her in October last year when she was here with the protesters for the hīkoi. Rawiri went on to explain that Charlotte’s mum had an important job helping to organise things for protest marches, so it was just easier for Charlotte to stay with his family. I wasn’t sure if Charlotte was very happy for me to hear all about her life.
I don’t think I could be away from my mum for that long. I felt a bit sorry for Charlotte when I heard that. Maybe that’s why she’ s mean sometimes. I remember hearing about the protesters on the news—tons of people from up north marched through Porirua on their way to Parliament.
“Is your mum an activist?” Lily asked.
“Kinda, I guess. Her job on the march was to help organise where the marchers would stay at places along the way. She reckons it was a huge job because when the hīkoi started there were fifty people, but by the time it arrived in Wellington there were about five thousand!”
“WOAH!” I said. “That’s a heap of people to feed.”
“Yeah, it was pretty exciting being involved in such a huge march,” said Lenny.
WHAT ON EARTH?! Man, I didn’t know Lenny had joined the march! No wonder he’d been so interested in talking about the hīkoi with all of us.
My brother is a PROTESTER. This is big news.
When I looked at Lily to see what she thought, she didn’t seem surprised at all. “You knew about this, didn’t you?” I said. She just smiled.
Lenny told us how he came to join the march. Rawiri had told him when the hīkoi was leaving Porirua, and Lenny stayed at Rawiri’s the night before so he could go. He said it was a far-out experience to be part of something so big and important. They walked right along the motorway! It took 7 hours. People tooted at them and cheered, but some people shouted out mean things. He said there was heaps of cool singing along the way. I remember watching this on the news and Dad shaking his head.
Lenny said he was blown away by the people who had walked the whole hīkoi. He said Dame Whina Cooper, the leader of the hīkoi, is around 80 years old. She didn’t walk all of the Porirua to Wellington part which Lenny and Rawiri joined for, but she was driven alongside to encourage people. Lenny reckons she’s such a good leader. He said that if the government hadn’t received the petition they brought with them then Dame Whina was going to give her “Dame” thingy back. Geez, that’s a bit rad.
When they got to Parliament it was 2:00 p.m. and there was a massive crowd of people to welcome them. There was even a Māori group performing and Lenny said the energy was electric as they approached.
I still can’t believe my brother Lenny is a protester! I feel really proud of him. It’s so cool that Rawiri and Lenny talk to us about this stuff.
On the way home we sang “Burning Bridges,” “Billy Don’t Be a Hero,” and “The Night Chicago Died.” I love those songs and I know all the words.
Oh, and guess what? Lenny said his boss is looking for more kids to do milk runs and asked Lily if she wanted one. I told him I’d do it, but Lenny said you have to be 14. Bummer. Lily said she didn’t want to coz she has loads of babysitting. I wish I could do it, I want to earn my own money.
SATURDAY, 10 July
* * *
Lenny asked if I wanted to go to the flicks with him and Rawiri. Charlotte’s going too. I felt a bit nervous about it because, although things have been better between me and Charlotte, I don’t know if I want to go to the movies with her and be “best buds.” But the movie was Logan’s Run and I really wanted to see it so I said yes. It was such a good movie too—tense and exciting, and very futuristic.
We hung out at our house after the movie, and Rawiri told us one of his friends from the hīkoi was coming to Porirua. His name is Tigilau—they call him Tigi (“Tingy”) and he’s an Islander. Lenny said he’d met him too, after the hīkoi. Tigi and some mates stayed and camped on the steps and in the grounds of Parliament. Tigi and his wife have a little baby and he camped there with them! Man, I bet that was hard work with a baby.
“Do you think your dad would like to meet Tigi?” Rawiri wondered. We said probably not because we don’t think Dad believes in the hīkoi and stuff like that. Lenny said that Tigi is a “Polynesian Panther,” and that he and some of his mates are coming to talk to Rawiri about becoming a Panther too. Have to say I’ m a bit worried about this. It sounds like Tigi’s in a gang and I know Dad and Mum won’t like Lenny hanging around with a gang. I hope Lenny doesn’t get in trouble.
WEDNESDAY, 14 July
* * *
We got a new kid in our class today. He’s from Samoa and his name is Jonathan. Mr. Morrison asked Colin to look after him. Luckily he speaks good English (Jonathan I mean, not Colin). He joined our rakau group so the boys had to figure out how to do rakau with 3 people. They made up their own routine. When Mr. Parker came to do more Māori stuff with us, Mr. Morrison told him about the rakau my dad made. Mr. Parker really liked them. “Ka pai,” he told me. Then he showed us some patterns we could use to decorate them and told us what they mean.
I think I’ll use the hei matau (fishhook), coz it means prosperity or good fortune—so maybe it’ll get me a job. Mr. Parker watched our rakau routines and said we’re doing great. Mr
. Morrison said maybe we could show our routines in assembly. NO THANKS, Mr. Morrison, I’ve had enough of doing things in front of people! But of course we have Colin in our group and he loves showing off so he was keen as anything.
“How about we give Jonathan a chance to settle in before we ask him to get onstage in front of the whole school?” said Mr. Morrison.
“It’s okay, sir,” Jonathan said. “I don’t mind.”
He’s a good sport. Tania and I told the boys they can do it.
THURSDAY, 15 July
* * *
Mr. Morrison is reading us a chapter book. When he got to a bit where someone was beckoning to someone else, he asked who could put “beckoning” into a sentence. Jonathan (the new Samoan kid) put up his hand and Mr. Morrison picked him. Jonathan said, “In the beckoning, God created the Earth.” We looked at each other to see if we thought Jonathan was serious and then everyone in the class burst out laughing. Mr. Morrison couldn’t hold it in either—he put the book up to his face but we could see his whole body shaking as he tried to hold his laughing in.
Jonathan must have realised what was going on and he started to laugh as well (thank goodness). Mr. Morrison kept trying to apologise to Jonathan but every time he opened his mouth, all that came out was a sort of wheezing sound and he had tears rolling down his face too. Every time Mr. Morrison thought he was okay to carry on reading, he would crack up again. It was nearly lunchtime so he just shooed us outside.
Our group had lunch with Jonathan and told him what beckoning meant. He’s such a good sport, he said he was happy he gave the class a good laugh. After lunch Mr. Morrison said sorry to Jonathan and hoped he hadn’t hurt his feelings.
“It’s okay, Mr. Morrison,” Jonathan said, “if you ever need another laugh, just beckon me over.” Haha. How cool is that. I can see Jonathan’s going to be popular.
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