A new poem by Aperahama Hurihanganui, about the name of Aperahama and Abby Hauraki’s three-year-old son, Te Hono ki Īhipa (which translates to ‘The Connection to Egypt’).

Te Hono ki Īhipa

what’s in a name?

te hono – the connection
to your tīpuna, valiant soldiers
of the 28th Māori Battalion
Te Hokowhitu a Tū

te hono – the connection
to their stories, the history
their mischief and hard-case banter
the bond between young māori men
who lied about their age for an overseas trip

te hono – the connection
to their bravery, their triumph in battle
even the enemy remarked
“give me the māori battalion 
and i will conquer the world”

te hono – the connection
to the war heroes, like Ngarimu VC
to the last survivor, Koro Bom Gillies
who we tell stories and sing about

te hono – the connection
to the pain and despair
of māoridom who lost rangatira
of mothers who lost sons
children who lost fathers
wives who lost husbands
who read their handwritten letters
“i want to come home…kiss our babies goodnight” 

Te Hono ki Īhipa – The Connection to Egypt
to the El Alamein War Cemetery
the final resting place of your koroua
Private Jim Hauraki
of the A Company ‘gum diggers’
and Private Kapuaiwaho Hurihanganui
of the B Company ‘penny divers’

who live on in your name

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