Along with my three children, I reside in a small seaside village in the Moreton Bay region of Queensland, Australia. I am of Celtic and NZ Māori descent and have tribal affiliations to Te Atiawa, Raukawa, Kahungunu through my dad’s side, and Te Whānau-ā-Apanui, Ngāti Porou, Ngāpuhi, Kai Tahu through my mum.
Shadows of the Mind 








Ngā Atārangi o te hinengaro
Swirl, swirl through dimension and time 




Hurihuri ma roto i ngā āhuatanga me te wā
Speak, shout without rhythm & rhyme 




Korero, pararehe kore mata kore whiti
Coldness, blankness, whisper, murmur 




Mātao, ātea, kohumuhumu, kowhetewhete
With thunder bursts the heart 






Me ka papa ā te ngākau whatitiri
O child, sweet child 








Aue tamaiti, tamaiti atāhua
I abandoned you 








I whakarerea ahau i a koe
O mother, dear mother 







Aue whaea, taku ūkaipo
You have forsaken me 







Kua whakarerea koe i ahau
Tears pave the stone around me 





Taupokingia te kohatu ki taku taha e ngā roimata
The scratching you hear 







Ko ngā rapirapitanga e rongo nei koe
is the guilt inside 








Ko te hara i roto
The face you wear 








Ko te mata e mau nei koe
Is the bed of sorrow 







Ko te moenga o te pōuritanga
That pulls at borrowed years 






I kumea i ngā tau tuku mai
My heart is dim 









Maiangi taku ngākau
Clothed by withered skin 







Kakahungia i te kiri komeme
My fingers pull at... 








Kumea aku matihao i
The shadows of my mind 







Ngā atārangi o toku hinengaro
They laugh such a laugh 







Ka kata rātou he tumomo kata
That echo in the darkness 







Ka kō i te pōuri kerekere
And beat my eyes slam shut 






Ka tāngia aku kamo kia whakapā
I twist in pain 









Kowhiritia ahau i te mamae
My blood boils to anger 







Ka koropupū taku toto i te riri
Through bitterness my life drains 





Nā te kakatitanga ka heke iho toku oranga
The stillness a deafening silence 





Whakaturi te mūmū o te marire
With trembling lips 








I aku ngutu wiriwiri
I kiss aside madness 








Kihia e au ki te taha te porangi
And the shadows that it brings 






Me ngā atārangi i homai
I hammer out this death, wake me up 




Hamangia ahau tenei mate, whakaohoia ahau
Wake from the slumber, wake me up 




Whakaoho mai i te moe, whakaohoia ahau
Shake me from the dust 







Ruiruia ahau i te puehu
That covers my eyes 








I uhia aku kamo
Hear that beat, a different beat 






Whakarongoki te taki, he taki rereke
I want to walk to another sound 





Pirangi ahau ki te haere ki tētahi atu tangi
O child, life did shake a bloody blow 





Aue tamaiti, ka rūrū te oranga
It stole the frame and picture 






I tahaetia te kōpari me te whakāhua
Let sacred waters heal 







Waiho ma ngā wai tapu e whakaora
And write to your book 







Me tuhi ki tou pukapuka
And first chapter 








Me te wāhanga tuatahi
Comb the knots from your hair 




Herua ngā pūtiki mai o makawe
And gracefully let them fall 






Tukua kia taka whakatautautia
Shake your whaariki to and fro 






Rūrū to whāriki ki mua ki muri
And with its cleansing comes the morrow 



Nā te mā ka haeremai āpōpō
Brighter with each glow 







Me tōna mumura
Grass glistening upon the new day 





Kanapanapa te otaota i te rā hou
The sun comes to play 







Ka whiti mai te rā
The warming breath blankets a new seed 




Te hā mahana hei korowai mo te kakano hōu
Melting sadness into hope 







Ka rewa te pōuritanga ki roto i te tūmanako
Sweet melody of kindness and compassion 



Tangi roreka o manākitanga me āroharoha
These gifts engulf me 







Ka roromi ahau ēnei taonga
And in my light I stand 







Ka tū ahau i roto i taku marama ake
One hand raised 








Kua hikitia te ringa kotahi
To the sound of one hand clapping... 




Ki te haruru o tētahi ringa ki te pakipaki
This bilingual poem is about experiencing a life tragedy and whether we choose to fight or take flight. I talk
about the brink of depression and the ability to not collapse oneself in it.