Ko Ruapehu tōku maunga
Hoea hoea te waka ko Mahuhu ki te rangi
Ko Toka Toka te Maunga
Ko Kaipara te Moana
Ko Waihaua te Marae
Ko Te Uri o Hau te Hapū
Ko Ngāti Whatua te Iwi
Ko Pearl Henry tōku ingoa
Pearl Henry
Ngāti Whatua
I wrote the song I performed for Tūmanako when I was in rehab in 1983.
I knew I could play the guitar and sing, so I rang my mum and asked why she despised me, her response was “I never hated you, I was afraid of you”.
Once I hung up the phone, I was overcome with emotion of all the hurt I had caused in my whānau and that is how this song came to be.
I did not have the words at the time to apologise to my family and the only way I knew how to express this was through my waiata.
I was asked to share these experiences as part of Tūmanako – as my unique and authentic self.