I am bicultural Maori and European. When my father was killed I lost a lot of my connection to Te Ao Maori and my maori side of my whanau. Learning Te Reo Maori is a way I can connect to my Whakapapa and understand a part of who I am. I am bicultural but not a person of colour, and it has bene hard for me to connect with all parts of who I am. To reconnect to a unique part of my Whakapapa and Tipuna is why I have been on this journey to learn the reo and tikanga of my ancestors.