Kua to te ra ki te rawhiti
He ra tee kitea
Ua te ua me he marangai
Ngunguru ana nga taitamahine e
E tumokemoke ana a Ngati Papatuanuku.....
kua pohara to tatou iwi i to ngarohanga atu
Tangi hotuhotu te Manawa, aue te mamae e kaikinikini nei
Moe mai ra e nga Totara me nga Kauri ki nga parirau manaaki a te Atua, moe mai ra....Ma te haere atu ka hara mai ano nga Totara me nga Kauri i waonui a Tane.

On the morning of the 22nd of June 2008 after the completion of World Peace and Prayer Day Week our elder Stan Kingi passed beyond the veil to carry on his sacred journey with his ancestors.

His kindness, and light and laughter and openness of sharing the wisdoms of our people will always be warmly remembered. He touched all who participated in this sacred ceremonial week and he imbued our efforts with support and unconditional aroha and manaaki.

As he falls so shall we who remain act as the sheltering supporting plants for the coming of the Totara to replace him...to carry on the aspirational work he embodied for the benefit of all the community.

During our ceremonial week of World Peace and Prayer Day 7 Totara of our community fell from matua Monte Ohia through to matua Stan Kingi.

It remains too early now to make any meaning of this - best for now to humbly acknowledge our great sadness at the loss and in time hope for hope to bring peace to our lamentation and time of mourning.

In the words of a teacher I respect who could not make it to WPPD2008...

Yes death is the door and also giver of life – what a mystery this is. To be able to face it emotionally is perhaps the healing that our world needs just now… May the depth of divine grace that lifts us to the eternal infinite life we see in Papatuanuku fill your heart with light immortal!

Those Totara who have fallen over this week have gifted us all the light immortal into which we shall grow and become...as we remember matua Stan and Monte and Lakota elder Irving and all those whose company passed onwards beyond the veil at this time of Matariki during WPPD2008 on our journey of living, loving and learning.

arohanui

Peace to all my relations

On behalf of all who participated in WPPD2008.

WPPD2008 acknowledges the major sponsorship and support of Te Whare Wananga o Aotearoa and Te Puni Kokiri.

WPPD2008 Also acknowledges the significant support in aroha that Ngati Wai gifted to the event and all participants in manaaki and maioha throughout the unfolding of the weeks conference.

One summer a long time ago, the seven sacred council fires of the Lakota Sioux came together and camped. The sun was strong and the people were starving for there was no game.
Two young men went out to hunt. Along the way, the two men met a beautiful young woman dressed in white who floated as she walked. One man had bad desires for the woman and tried to touch her, but was consumed by a cloud and turned into a pile of bones.

The woman spoke to the second young man and said, "Return to your people and tell them I am coming." This holy woman brought a wrapped bundle to the people. She unwrapped the bundle giving to the people a sacred pipe and teaching them how to use it to pray. "With this holy pipe, you will walk like a living prayer," she said. The holy woman told the Sioux about the value of the buffalo, the women and the children. "You are from Mother Earth," she told the women, "What you are doing is as great as the warriors do."

Before she left, she told the people she would return. As she walked away, she rolled over four times, turning into a white female buffalo calf. It is said after that day the Lakota honored their pipe, and buffalo were plentiful. (from John Lame Deer's telling in 1967).

Many believe that the buffalo calf, Miracle, born August 20, 1994 symbolizes the coming together of humanity into a oneness of heart, mind, and spirit.