Tama Sāmoa

By Dahlia Malaeulu and Mani Malaeulu

Sione, Lima, Tavita and Filipo are high school friends, uso or brothers. They are part of a special letter-writing project that helps to start a brave new conversation, an open and honest talanoa with themselves starting with the words, Dear Uso ... Here they share the cultural challenges they face, and without realising it, their need to belong, to be accepted and the impact this has on their wellbeing overall.

Tama Sāmoa is not just a story of friendship, brotherhood and healing. Tama Sāmoa helps us all to reflect, reconnect and reunite in better supporting each other as who we are. It is also a story of self-discovery and hope for a new tama Sāmoa code to be created based on real talanoa and understanding.

Includes:
- Study Questions For Students
- The Tama Sāmoa Project:
A space created for fourteen Samoan male students and educators to share their own boys-to-men stories, lessons and journeys to help today’s tama Sāmoa, our tama Pasifika, to be better understood and supported in succeeding as themselves.

Contributing authors of the Tama Sāmoa Project: Isaac Sanele, Elijah Solomona, Simati Leala, Senio Sanele, Emmanuel Solomona, Aleki Leala, Okirano Tilaia, Israel Risati Sua-Taulelei, Saul Luamanuvae-Su'a, Atama Cassidy, Darcy Solia, Liko Alosio, Mikaele Savali, Dr. Sadat Muaiava

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dahlia Malaeulu
• Release date: Sep 25, 2021
• ISBN: 9781005787455

Dahlia Malaeulu

Dahlia Malaeulu is a New Zealand-born Sāmoan and passionate educator at heart.In 2019 she released the first books of the ‘Mila’s My Gagana’ series, a set of early Sāmoan language readers (Malia Shares, Lagi Spies and Mase’s Room) for pre-school and junior-primary-aged children. The series is a rich literacy resource for all children, families and educators in order to support and develop the learning of basic Gagana Sāmoa (the Sāmoan language).Ultimately, Dahlia would like to enable tamaiti to confidently and proudly succeed as Pasifika. This is why she is working towards creating accessible quality Pasifika stories and resources that reflect Pasifika values, languages, cultures and – most importantly – our tamaiti.

Book preview

Tama Sāmoa

Dahlia Malaeulu and Mani Malaeulu

First edition published in 2021

© Dahlia Malaeulu for Mila’s Books, 2021

ISBN 978-0-473-58544-0

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical or digital, including photocopying, recording, storage in any information retrieval system, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the publisher.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the National Library of New Zealand.

Editor: Sue Copsey

Gagana Sāmoa translator for Tama Sāmoa, the story: Makerita Feite Tago

Cover Art: Alex Mate Tuaoi

Cover Model: Lambros To‘omaga

Book Cover Designer: Liz Tui Morris

Tama Sāmoa, the story, is a work of fiction. All characters and events in this publication are fictitious and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The author also does not claim to be an expert in any facet of Samoan language, history or culture.

Made with the support of Creative New Zealand.

For our beautiful tama Sāmoa, Mason and Isaia – know that you both are at the centre of everything we do, we love you always.

For my father, Patolomeo Su‘e Malaeulu – for being my tama Sāmoa role model, teaching me how to be a leader and showing me how to keep the faith when standing in my truth. (M.M.)

For all our tama Sāmoa struggling to be accepted and valued as who you are – we hope this book lets you know that you are not alone, we see you.

Contents

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Contents

Samoan Proverb

Chapter 1: Sione

Chapter 2: Lima

Chapter 3: Tavita

Chapter 4: Filipo

Chapter 5: Mika

Samoan Proverb

Glossary

Tama Sāmoa Study Questions

The Tama Sāmoa Project

Being a Tama Sāmoa by Isaac Sanele

I’m the plastic one by Elijah Solomona

Teach me by Simati Leala

The Playing Field by Senio Sanele

Rise up by Emmanuel Solomona

Let’s Talanoa by Aleki Leala

To My Mātua by Okirano Tilaia

Hope by Israel Risati Sua-Taulelei

Disconnected to Reconnecting by Saul Luamanuvae-Su'a

How to be a Navigator by Atama Cassidy

Samoan Kiwi Teacher Q + A by Darcy Solia

The Pasifika Way by Liko Alosio

Journeying Between Two Worlds by Mikaele Savali

Tofi o Tamatane by Dr. Sadat Muaiava

Acknowledgements

About the artist

About the authors

Helplines & Resources

O fanau a manu e fafaga i fuga o la‘au, a o tama a tagata e fafaga i upu.

The offspring of birds are fed with nectar; the children of men are fed with words.

– Samoan Proverb

Sione

Dear Uso,

I’m only doing this because Sir said I had to before our first XV finals. I knew Miss Duncan had talked to him because he reckons it’ll be good for me and that it might help me to let off some steam. I thought that was what rugby was for but whatever Sir says goes really.

Sir says New Zealand secondary schools selectors will be watching and I just can’t miss my chance this time because last year I was ruled out. Well you know why.

It’s taken a lot for me to come back from everything that happened but I’m back and that’s all that matters, especially to Mum who was so sad about it all. But Dad on the other hand. Sole you know how he is nek level. I think he misses having someone to listen to his stories of playing with Michael Jones, even though there’s like no pictures, newspaper clippings – no evidence at all of him ever playing with him. Sole, do you remember that time when we showed him a pic online of Tana Umaga and he tried to tell us that he was the blurred-out guy running on the field? We just cracked up because we knew it was the water boy and we just couldn’t hold it in. Those were the good old days aye uso.

Remember when we were kids? You used to come over after school and we’d tackle out the front with that flat rugby ball then we decided to put on our boots. Islanders equals sport. Sport will get us and our ‘āiga out of the hood. So pick a sport and be good at it. Rugby it was. We were such serious guys aye.

Luckily we’ve got Lima to keep us relaxed. I think I need more of Lima in me. Then there’s Filipo who keeps trying to bring me back to the Polygroup and all the Poly hub stuff, but I haven’t really been turning up because it just reminds me too much of you. Tavita has been helping me out though, catching me up on the items. He’s doing okay I think. I wish he wasn’t so quiet and nice all the time. I told him that he should speak up and not let people walk over him. Maybe it was a bit much, but he needs to man up, he needs to hear it straight, right? I don’t know how he’s just la-di-dah about life, like we’re in our last year of school. What’s he going to do next year? I asked him and then he just shut down and started doing his thing where he nods and shuts the world out. Then Lima did his usual, coming to rescue him with his jokes.

I do feel for Tavita because he has no outlet at all really. Lima’s got his jokes, Filipo’s got his girls or had his girls I should say and I’ve got rugby, taking it out on the field. It’s like that’s where I need to be – the man. The older I’ve got, the more rep teams I’ve made, I kind of realise that the world wants more of this from me, sometimes more than myself I guess.

But as a tama Sāmoa, I can’t let my dad down. Or my mum. Even our whole ‘āiga … Just anyone who’s ever helped me to get this far. I can’t disrespect them by just chucking it all in. I have to keep going because of them. And most importantly for you uso,

Sione

Dear Uso,

Sole Ms Brown was talking to me today about how you were an awesome Pasifika leader for our school. Then she told me the school was getting a new trophy in honour of you to give out at the school awards at the end of the year. We both agreed, saying that you would have been the first fifteen captain this year, if ... Well, if you were still here.

I always knew you were better than me but it just made me work harder. So in a way you’re the reason I’m a good rugby player.

I still remember our first season together. I was such a dick uso. I still feel stink even though you forgave me. I was such a fiapoko guy trying to impress Jeremy and the other tama Pālagi in the backline by trying to take you out from behind. They thought it would be funny.

And uso I just got stuck.

Do I listen to the captain and his crew? Of course I do because I ain’t no pussy and I wanted to be where he is. The captain. At the top of the food chain because I’m sick of us being looked at as poor, dumb, wannabe Islanders. I wanted to be captain to show them and what?

An Islander can be the first-ever captain of this school and lead us to victory. You were the one who said that to me.

Then I screwed up.

I made the wrong choice and I snuck up behind you bumped you off. Then I told you to harden up like I was joking, making sure Jeremy saw that I did what he had said. Then you picked me up and dumped me. I deserved that, I was pissed off but I definitely deserved it. I had betrayed you uso. But then you helped me back up.

Jeremy and his boys cracked up too yelling out, ‘Is that how you treat your ew-so?’ I apologised straight away and then we walked off the field and you reminded me that we are the only Islanders on this team and that we need to have each other’s backs because if we don’t have each other we have nothing.

But now that I’m the captain, I have to have my own back without you uso. It sucks but I’ve just got to keep reminding myself of this sometimes, that’s all.

Sione

Dear Uso,

Miss Duncan asked me to speak at the assembly for the juniors next week about being in the first fifteen and I showed her what I’ve got so far. She really liked it and said that I should be a writer. I just smiled and thought yeah, the real world doesn’t believe us Islanders can read or write plus writers don’t get paid so yeah no thanks. Lawyer or All Blacks is all that my dad accepts, sorry.

Anyway uso I actually think you’ll like it and I wonder if you remember this day:

As a junior I didn’t know what was going on, which was like most of the time. The bigger senior boys were in charge. They had much louder and way deeper voices than us skinny newbie high-pitched-voiced boys. Some of us were still going through puberty, but not me of course. The seniors were shepherding and organising us into a tunnel. It felt like we were forming an army. We quickly formed a line of guards as commanded by our generals, fit for royalty.

I remember looking at the never-ending line of grey and white stripes, wondering if we were even school boys anymore. What was coming? I thought to myself. More importantly, who is coming?

The line of bodies steadied and then silence fell over the line of soldier students. The click clack of boots echoed from the concrete courtyard. They were coming. Closer and louder. Clapping started. Got faster. They appeared. Human goliaths. School Gods. I even noticed the grey clouds had cracked open to let the sun in on them as they made it to the field.

By then the tunnel of claps had erupted into cheers and I joined the frenzied crowd that turned into a mob that was ready for battle. I had never seen anything like it. These 22 boys were our leaders and we were going to war.

The chosen 15 finally took their positions on the field but the sideline formed an invisible barrier that we in school uniform could not pass. Then just like programmed soldiers from behind our mob the siren sounded, Taringa whakarongo! Kia Mau!

And automatically we responded with, ‘Hiiiii!’

Our school haka evoked a powerful spirit that lifted us. In that haka we were one. United to be stronger, together against our enemy on the other side of the field. I now understood why the senior students were so hardcore about us learning the haka. It was for days like this.

For us commoners the field was not our arena. It had to be earned and no one could pass unless you were chosen. From that moment I knew I wanted to be chosen. And that I would do anything and everything in my power to …

Then I can talk about all the school stuff, extension classes, training … but I won’t mention the family and church responsibilities because most of these Pālagis won’t get it, thinking our cultural duties hold us back. But if they really knew, they would know