Ko tēnei whakaahua o āku tamariki a Levi rāua ko Tahupōtiki. I whānau mai rāua i ngā tau 1994 me 2000. I tipu ake rāua i te reo Māori, i te ao Māori me ōna tikanga (kohanga reo, KKM and kura rumaki) mo te nuinga o ā rāua tamarikitanga. Ko Levi tetahi kaipūtaiao, e mahi ana ia mō tōna iwi o Kāi Tahu i te rautaki reo rauora ko "Kotahi Mano Kāika" te ingoa. I tāmokohia tōna matua i tōna mataora. Ko te mātāmuri, ko Tahu, tētahi kaiwhakanikoniko, he tangata i te ahurea Māori, kai mau rākau hoki. I tāmokohia tōna matua i tōna raperape me te pūhoro. Ko te ao tuatahi, ko te ao Māori. Ko te reo Māori tō rāua reo tuatahi. Ka tū whakahīhī au. While I am an adult learner of te reo Māori, we made a commitment to bring these two young men (now 31 and 25) up in te ao Māori. We only spoke te reo Māori to them for their first five years (as best we could), they are Kohanga kids, they attended KKM or kura rumaki also. They stand confidently in their Māoriness. And I couldn't be prouder. One a scientist who works for the iwi in reo revitalisation initiatives, and the other a graphic designer who works on many Māori art projects around the country. I hope our commitment to bring up our boys with te ao Māori and te reo Māori alive and well holds them in good stead as they journey through the next fifty years.