I moved around a lot when I was a kid. In one house, me and my two sisters shared a bed and I slept at their feet. It was tough. We saw a lot of the effects of poverty: bullying, overcrowding, domestic abuse – even sexual abuse. I’ve tried to talk to mum about it but I still don’t really understand my childhood.
My sisters and I were our own support. They are a source of my strength. My oldest sister was like a mother to me. She changed nappies, she was our literally our pillow at night. She filled the shoes of a mum working to support us.
I realise now that I’ve closed the circle on that story. I’ve come back from my journey and now I’m able to give from a place of strength. That’s my ‘mau’ or my purpose: to serve and help people reconnect with their true selves. My hope is for people to understand their own ‘mau’, and how they can bring life through that understanding.
