This morning I had breakfast at a friends place. They made pancakes and invited a few others along as well. There were kids flying around on bikes, fruit everywhere, and the biggest bottle of maple syrup I have ever seen.

But.

Everyone else has spent at least a year studying Te Reo.

Everyone else has been speaking Te Reo at home and/or in their work place.

I was way out of my depth.

I contributed very little.

Given that I’m hoping to drop into a full immersion course this year, it was a good reality check.

Because the reason I didn’t contribute much isn’t because I had nothing to say.

It wasn’t because I hadn’t learnt enough.

It was because I didn’t know how to speak Te Reo Māori with people. Because I had never tried.

It was because I was scared.

It was because I didn’t know where to start.

It was the most important experience I’ve had on this journey so far.

Here’s to being out of my depth, poorly equipped and freaking out.

The Reo Project | Day 143

Welcome to my little corner of the internet.

I believe that place matters.

Our connection to whatever little corner of the planet we find ourselves in, or choose to place ourselves on, matters.

I'm relentlessly curious and continually learning.

My interests are scattered across topics including property, strategy, acoustics, psychology, theology, systems theory, quantum physics and leadership. I read, listen, watch, and learn about whatever grabs my attention in the moment.

This is a learning experiment.

I come here to try to make sense of something I’ve come across, by writing about it.

I’m immersing myself in a new language.

I’m learning to speak Te Reo Māori, the language of the indigenous people of Aotearoa New Zealand and one of our official languages. After spending 2020 studying, I’m figuring out how to keep the journey going outside the classroom.

You’re welcome to follow along.