Burnt

            Imagine driving a boat for the first time. You look around and find yourself surrounded by crystal blue water, sails whipping in the wind, a breeze blowing gently across your face, a handsome skipper standing closely by, watching your every move. This was my experience on our dinner cruise in Auckland. Ask any one of my classmates, however, and you may get a different story, one something along the lines of: “that was terrifying” or “I thought we were going to die.” The point I am trying to make here is how important perspective truly is.

            The day before the cruise, I made the decision to walk around the Sky Tower on a yard-and-a-half wide pathway, 630 feet up in the air. Some may say that was a crazy decision, myself included, but after meeting my tour guide I quickly changed my mind. Sam was teddy bear like, gentle and fun loving, and made walking around a giant building in the sky seem like a normal thing to do. Perspective changed.

           Doing these two things back to back made me wonder even more about the stories we have been reading and the fact that we never truly get the Maori’s side of things. We often talk about whether or not they were violent or not, or the true meaning of their greetings projected towards the Europeans. While we know (hopefully) not to immediately believe everything we read, I think it is easy to often

assume or ignore how the Maoris actually felt simply because there is no written proof.

           Today I read a story written by Tracey Slaughter titled “Consent.” It is about what consent truly means and how easily the lines can be blurred between what is allowed and what is not. So it was then that I began to wonder how much the Maori people truly consented to giving up their land. Did they know what was about to ensue? Did they know, or could they even imagine how taken advantage of they would become? It may be unfair for me to assume these things, in fact, it is unfair, but it is what I have thought about. Perhaps the Maoris knew not to trust the Pakeha, but let other intentions get the best of them. I may not find these answers, and there may be many answers, but from my perspective the Maori were treated unfairly. Yet still, to this day, they remain strong and thriving, perhaps not so much as before the Europeans arrived, but still embracing the heritage and strength their people undoubtedly have. From my perspective, and likely from the perspectives of many historians, the Maoris are a vastly different sort of people. They exist because of their defiance; their defiance to embrace a culture that wasn’t theirs, and to remain strong to their own beliefs, values, and ancestors. They would not be pushed aside or forgotten or taken over; they made a treaty, though misunderstood, to get what they thought they deserved. And to this day, they are still fighting back for the land they lost.

            The main character in “Consent” is in control for the entirety of the story, until the end. She is tricked and beaten and raped, sad and terrified, broken. For all we know, the Maoris felt sad and terrified and broken too; but the good news is that they recovered. They bounced back and became the strong warriors they were consistently described as by Europeans. They embraced their culture and ancestry; from all perspectives, they are strong.