This is how it all started…
Sitting at the marae with my mum in the 1960s I picked up a bit of te reo, but not enough. I listened to my Aunty Mere speaking te reo with her Mum on the phone. I needed more.
I took Māori lessons by correspondence at Kaipara College in the 1970s, but without help it was a lost cause. I studied Māori at Canterbury and Massey Universities. I learned about the beauty of our language and I could translate complex waiata tawhito and old manuscripts collected by early European residents, but I still didn’t have the confidence to speak. Over time I lost what I had.
After many years without using te reo, I tried again, going to a class run by two lovely sisters – it reignited the desire to learn. I turned 60 and I knew it was now or never. I studied under some awesome tutors at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa for a few years. Levels 1-4 were great, but levels 5 and 6 went too fast for me. It became pretty and complex, but it wasn’t what I needed for everyday conversation. I looked for ways to address this….
Leigh Bosch
Teacher & Student
