E hara i te mea

(Thank you maori.org's waiata people for the words in both languages).

E hara i te mea
It is not a new thing
No naianei te aroha
now that is love
No nga tupuna
Comes from the ancestors
Tuku iho tuku iho
Handed down through the passages of time
*
Te whenua te whenua
The land, the land
Te oranga mo te iwi
is the life for the people
No nga tupuna
Comes from the ancestors
Tuku iho tuku iho
Handed down through the passages of time
*
Whakapono tumanako
Faith and hope
Te aroha ki te iwi
Love to the people
No nga tupuna
Comes from the ancestors
Tuku iho tuku iho
Handed down through the passages of time

The search that most often finds this blog is "Karakia" because I once said that I've been looking for a Karakia for my Playcentre meetings. I would like to use "Let's work well and swiftly!" but in te reo. Tonight, instead of something along those lines I'm going to use E Hara I Te Mea, which we will sing. I think it's quite an apt starting meditation for a meeting of parents running a playcentre for the long-term good of their kids.

Funny, I've never thought of myself as en route to being an ancestor before.