Te Mahi a Te Kaiwhakatere Waka

Ua fili e le tai se agavaa … whakamātauria ai e te moana te mana o te tangata haere moana.
Whakataukī Hāmoa

I ngā hapori o Poronīhia, he whakawehi nui tō ngā kaiwhakatere – kāre noa iho mo ngā pukenga, engari mo te mātau hoki. Me matua mōhio te kaiwhakatere i ngā kōrero maha mo te taiao. He hōnore nui tō te whiwhi mātauranga whakatere, ā, ko tā te kaiwhakatere he mahi, he tiaki, he tuku i aua mātauranga kia pai ai mo te hapori. Me hōhonu hoki ōna tikanga noho – me hūmārie, me whakawehi, me manawanui. Koia te matua o ngā kaihoe, māna hoki rātou e tiaki i te kino. He kaiārahi whakaaronui ki a rātou, i runga, i waho hoki o te waka.

Ka ngaro atu ana te kaiwhakatere me āna tāngata i te hapori, ka waiata kia tiakina rātou, kia whakatata hoki ki a rātou.

Lourdes Lepanemai me Josefa Napiailug: Ka waiatatia ngā kaiwhakatere nō Hatawara
He pouri, he ngēngē nō ngā wāhine o Peinripinong i te kore kite i a rātou, ā mātou tama. Ka hui ana ki te mesan eraw (whare tāne), ka rīria ngā tūpuna nā rātou te mahi whakatere i ako! Kua ngaro i a mātou. Ko te tūmanako ka kitea e ngā tūpuna ā rātou mokopuna ināianei ….. te karapoti i ā rātou me te rongo i te kakara o ngā mwarmwar (kura putiputi) … ngā tāne e pāinaina ana, e uaina ana. Kāre ahau e hiahia ana kia rua wiki tā rātou noho i runga i te moana!