Changing the SCRIPT

‘I’m proud to wear a moko kauae. It highlights the intensity of my responsibility to shine a light on the value of our Māori language and traditions. It’s the birthright of all Māori women. I’m just taking my place. It’s the legacy of reclaiming our taonga.’

This month, psychiatrist Dr Hinemoa Elder celebrated her 55th birthday, and the milestone has brought up a raft of deep emotions.

In 1991, Hinemoa’s mother, Ina Bowman, was 54 when she died of breast cancer. At the time, Hinemoa was only 26 years old, with a daughter, Millie, and pregnant with her son, Reuben. Reaching the same age as her mother was when she succumbed to cancer is forcing the former TV presenter to reflect on her own mortality.

“I feel that this entire year has been a line in the sand for me,” she says. “I went through a period when I thought that I needed to prepare