Week 5 Term 2 - Samoan Language Week: Fa’aāuāu le Folauga i le Va’a o Tautai - Continue the Voyage with Competent Wayfinders of the Ocean (May 30 - Jun 3)

Fa’aāuāu le Folauga i le Va’a o Tautai: Continue the Voyage with Competent Wayfinders of the Ocean

"As part of this year’s overarching theme of ‘Sustainability’, the Samoan community chose a theme that would reflect the journey of language revitalisation and maintenance as well as recognising the importance of having the right tools, good leadership skills, relationships and the correct medium (va’a) that is adaptable to faring the ocean and its elements" (Ministry of Pacific Peoples).  When the theme for Samoan Language Week was released this year I did not know how to interpret it (at the time). A week later, my understanding of the theme is a little more clearer based on my personal experiences over the last 2 weeks. 

A week ago, today, my Grandfather - the Rt Reverned Alapati Meatuai Tu'uga Stevenson, passed away surrounded by his family. As with any fa'alavelave (An event that is a disruption to your everyday life. The practice involves people contributing money to large occasions such as funerals, weddings and significant birthdays) I knew that my planning and preparation for Samoan Language Week had to be put on hold as my duty called - as as grandson and also as the son of the eldest son of my Grandfather. I had to put all of that aside and be with my family. In the two weeks that I have been in Brisbane to celebrate and honor the life of my Grandfather, I have had time to reflect on Samoan Language Week theme - Fa’aāuāu le Folauga i le Va’a o Tautai. This new voyage that my family and I have embrace and embarked on - a voyage tinged by grief and an overwhelming sense of gratitude and wanting to honor our patriarch's legacy - is one that requires a degree of resilience, focus, leadership and team work. I think about the voyage that my Grandfather journeyed - starting multiple churches in New Zealand (Auckland) and Australia (Sydney and Brisbane), his lifelong ministry along with his wife and family - that alone needed the right tools, good leadership skills that could help him adapt to the 'ocean' and it's elements. As a family, we all contributed our time and efforts in making sure that we honored our Grandfather. When one is involved on fa'alavelave - it is all hands on board and it is essential that everyone is involved (not just financially). The leadership in the voyage of a fa'alavelave is imperative - someone who is prepared, someone who knows and values the aganu'u, someone who can delegate, someone who knows the gagana Samoa - someone can lead with humility and dignity. No matter what the occassion is - whether it is a celebration or loss of a loved one - good leadership in any circumstance is needed.

 

At Tamaki College, the leadership team that organizes the Samoan Language Week celebrations includes Ms Dorothy Apelu and myself with the support of our new Samoan staff members (Mr Fiu Niko). Every year we celebrate Samoan Language Week at Tamaki College. This year's celebrations consisted of performances from our students and daily activities for our staff and whole school to participate in. In preparation for the event, I was in charge of getting our Samoan Group ready for a performance at KPMG for their Samoan Language Week Celebrations. Preparing a group for a performance is something that I do not take lightly and it is something that needs good leadership, patience and direction. I am very grateful to my colleagues - Ms Dorothy Apelu and Mr Fiu Niko - for adapting to changing 'ocean' and taking the lead with the team in my absence. As a school, we are finding ways to revitalize the Samoan Language through different mediums such as Polyfest, Samoan Language Week and the Samoan Speech Competitions. It is a journey and one that we have been on for over 10 years. There is so much beauty in the language and aganu'u and any chance that we get to embrace it, showcase it and learn it - we are all in. Much like the fa'alavelave that I was involved in for my Grandfather, our preparation for Samoan Language Week is one that needs the efforts of everyone at 100% and that we have good leadership that directs the entire process. 

Tamaki College Samoan Group 2022 @ KPMG SLW Performance May 30

Year 13 Totara House Prefect Maletina Niko @ ASB Samoan Speech Competition where she was placed 1st in the Year 13 Speech Category. 

I believe that the voyage to language preservation and the importance of maintaining the skillset and leadership in this journey - is one that we as a school are embracing every year. There is a willingness and desire there to not only preserve language but also celebrate it. In my own journey in this voyage to preserve the language and culture - the older I get, the more hungry I am to be a part of anything that is connected to my culture. At school I have the privilege to do this through working with the Samoan Group - which has been and will always be a highlight for me and something that I hold close to my heart. Personally, I am grateful that I have a family who are very much connected to the culture and language, I am grateful the leadership that I have in my family - in how they steer us all through whatever the 'ocean' and it's elements bring - I carry this with me in own family and in what I do at work. 

I dedicate this post to the love and life of my late Grandfather, the Rt Reverend Alapati Meatuai Tu'uga Stevenson.