By Nicole Hunt
2020 has been a bit of a nightmare. Matariki, the Māori new year, begins today on July 13th. It’s a time to reflect, remember those who have gone and celebrate new beginnings. We celebrate the Pākehā new year in December and see it as a chance to start again for a new year. What if we treated Matariki the same way? Photographer Nicole Hunt (Ngāi Tūhoe, Te Arawa) went to Karangahape Road in Auckland to ask people how they would reset their year.
Lou Burlington
How do you want to reset for Matariki?
After a hectic year I really want to work on mana maintenance and getting to a new point of understanding myself and what I’ve had to deal with this year and in years passed. And just what Matariki is about - rejuvenation and nourishment. I'm actually getting a new tattoo. I'm getting Chinese characters down my spine to honour my Chinese ancestry. It’s going to be a saying from an ancient Chinese female poet about nourishment. In the poem the verse says “I cultivate my character and cast my bitterness to the sea,” so it’s this idea of replenishment and starting fresh.
Are you doing anything special for Matariki?
I'm not doing anything for Matariki but if anything happens in the community I'm jumping straight on board!
Larsen Taylor
How do you want to reset for Matariki?
I want to consciously bring it back to whānau, to have us think about it. I feel like it really slips under people's radars. It's not as significant as other things. For me, it's a good time, especially this year, to consciously feed that back into my life as a Māori. To bring back the significance of it.
Are you doing anything special for Matariki?
It would be nice to share presence and kai with whānau.
Eddie Tahana Noble
How do you want to reset for Matariki?
I want to start by setting new goals. 2020 has been pretty crazy. I’m trying to start a new brand (@wateratsnz) and get ready for the new year.
Are you doing anything special for Matariki?
From what I know, Matariki is a time where you pay respects to those that have passed on. I usually celebrate it with family and a big kai.
Samara Alofa
How do you want to reset for Matariki?
I’ve been thinking about where I’m placing my feet and what kind of frequencies I’m drawing from. How I’ve been doing that is moving towards healers and nature and looking for wānanga. This new year I really want to be closer with elders. Especially with everything that’s going on in the world, I just want to learn and understand the things that I’ve had the time to understand that I don’t understand everything!
Are you doing anything special for Matariki?
I really hope to see my whānau for Matariki. I’m hoping to get a waka to go and see my friend Freddy.
Tuhoea Tuteao
How do you want to reset for Matariki?
Hopefully trade my bad habits for good ones and work on myself as a person. Remember that I'm not always right… Refresh as things settle after the pandemic here. Take a look back and think about what I can do better next time.
Are you doing anything special for Matariki?
I want to learn more about the importance of Matariki, talk to friends who know a lot about it and learn from them.
Tyson Shane Brown
How do you want to reset for Matariki?
I want to leave what’s already happened this year, as last year. Being Māori, we’ve got to look past what’s already happened and stay focused on the future. Especially this year, with Covid and everything. And… just doing different things in your life, whether it's small or big. Resetting yourself as a person, I think that would help.
Dylan Cook
How do you want to reset for Matariki?
As this time came up, it’s been a period in my life where everything’s been needing to be reset in a way. Now everything has kind of sprung into place and I’m ready to start a new chapter in my life with Matariki coming up. For me it's also been about acknowledging how privileged we are to even be able to have the time to re-evaluate things here. We’re lucky to be able to restart in Aotearoa compared to a lot of other countries. The biggest thing for me that I want to do in the new year is help my friends creatively because I realize how lucky I am to be surrounded by so many talented people. So, using the skills I have to help the people around me.
Are you doing anything special for Matariki?
I’m using this time to go home and see my dad up north.