Te Reo #1

I’ve bravely enrolled in a Te Reo course with Te Wananga o Aotearoa.  I say bravely because I’m not sure how/whether I will manage to do the work involved.  The course involves one three hour class per week, at a venue ten minutes walk from my home, and it’s free, all of which are great incentives.  However students are also expected to do another 33 hours of study each week, attend two weekend Noho Marae, and four one day Wananga.

Back in 2006 I did a Mauri Ora home-based course (72 credits) which also required considerable work, but I managed to satisfactorily complete in a shorter time than expected.  Over the years I’ve learned some Tikanga/culture but have never got very far with Te Reo/language, and I would love to be able to understand and speak more.  On this blog the most visited post each year is always my mihimihi (first posted in 2006, and updated in 2008 and 2011), something that still surprises me.

The weekly classes are in the evening 6-9pm, a time when my energy tends to be low, but I love that the venue is in Manchester Street within easy walking distance.  Even in winter 9pm is a time when I feel safe walking – little chance I’ll be taken for a street worker in Manchester Street.  I expect to be one of the oldest in the class, and appreciate that Maori culture values older people.

I went to an information session today – had dithered as to whether I would go and confirm my enrolment, but then I had a dream which indicated I would enjoy being part of the class, so I went.   The session was promoted as taking two hours, but actually took only 45 minutes.  This bodes well for anticipated time frames.

The commitment to Te Reo will probably mean I don’t have time or energy for any writing courses in 2020, but at least I should have some material to blog and write poems about.  I gather some students drop out during the year and wonder if I will be one of those?

The course requirements could be savage
but crucial when we learn the language