2023 was a little quiet on the Aho front, wheels still spinning but more on autopilot than in gear. My mind and ngākau were occupied with our whānau, our tamariki, the choices we make and those that are made for us and beyond our control.

I spent much of last year walking to and fro, to and fro to our local kura in what may have appeared peaceful, but the energy I carried simmered and seethed. 

It was within the first week that our ever observant kōtiro stated matter of factly, “Māmā, at this kura, I’m not Māori or Indian. At this kura, they teach us to be Pākēhā, so I’ll just be Māori and Indian at home, or at the marae, or when we go back to India now…”.  Continue reading

This is a cautionary tale about sowing seeds of trust into an institution that has Māori window-dressing (metaphorical, not that they were using our window film :) ) 

Not entirely dissimilar perhaps to the critique of non Māori businesses who mis-appropriate Māori names for financial gain. Window dressing. Enough of a taste to get you through the door, but nothing beyond the superficial.

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So 2023. Is going to look a little different and I plan to learn a bunch of new skills, both in business and in creativity, but also, and crucially, to strike a better balance as a Māmā in this very fleeting season.

This year, it’s my mission to run Aho as Pakihi. Still authentic, still true to our kaupapa. But just a little less entwined with my own creative meandering.

I hope to apply the business learnings to Aho, and savor the creative processes within the walls of our Kāinga.

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One of our most frequently asked questions is this:
“I’m Pākēhā, but love your products. Is it ok for me to purchase this for myself or as a gift, or is this cultural appropriation?”
I’ve thought many times over about trying to answer it, and always stumble with the idea that whatever I write may be somehow construed as the definitive definition of Appropriation vs appreciation.
But finally, after many scrapped drafts, I thought I’d offer you my own thought process. 

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“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.”- Annie Dillard.

Each day, a small but definitive act of resistance against the tides of capitalism, consumption, more, more, bigger, growth, profit. And a gradual leaning in toward time, space, movement, observation, creativity and presence. Continue reading

One of my goals for the year was to commit writting and blogging more frequently. In part, to build a deeper relationship with you, but also, to create a discipline of the act and art of writing. Something I greatly enjoy- but leave for so long that I forget, until I return to it months later and rediscover it... Continue reading

There's a tension I’ve found, between being a Creative or Artist, and a business owner. Between process and outcome. Some musings on how to dance between spaces, and work arounds I'm building into life.

 

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The other night we shared a photo of Willow Jean Prime wearing our Manawa Titī dress that was captured in connection to the Waitangi commemorations. She was standing next to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.

And to be honest, I wasn’t prepared and hadn’t fully anticipated the reaction or some of the backlash that we’d encounter by sharing the image. Continue reading

The summer break also gave us time to put in the research to a corner of our business that has been sitting increasingly uneasily with me.

As my interest and knowledge of gardening and composting has grown- so has my hunch that perhaps the ‘Home Compostable’ courier bags we have been using aren’t all they’re marketed to be.

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All of our paper packaging is made from 100% cotton, created from the waste generated in the production of ours and other cotton products. We visited this incredible initiative during our visit and were blown away by the way technology  and innovation is being interwoven into this recycling scheme that runs entirely off solar electricity generated onsite with a completely closed loop water system. Continue reading