E tū ana mātou i te pae o te tau hou.
We stand at the threshold of a new year.
Kua taka te kiri tawhito.
The old skins have fallen away.
What no longer served has been shed,
not in haste, but in truth.
Ko te tau o te Nakahi i whakaako mātou
ki te tuku, ki te whakamāmā i te kawenga.
The Year of the Snake taught us
how to release, how to become lighter
without losing strength.
In that shedding, we were refined.
In letting go, we were levelled up.
Ināianei, ka anga whakamua.
Now we step forward.
Ehara tēnei i te tau o te tūmanako.
This is not a year of hope.
He tau tēnei o te whāinga.
This is a year of intention.
Ka eke mātou ki runga i te Hōiho.
We mount the Horse.
With clarity in our sight,
with steadiness in our hands,
with courage in our breath.
We ride with purpose.
We ride to the end.
Ko te poutama kei roto i a mātou.
The poutama lives within us.
Each step remembered.
Each ascent earned.
If another level is asked of us,
we are ready
lighter now, stronger now.
Whakakaha i te reo.
Strengthen the voice.
Not to dominate,
but to carry truth.
Not to fill space,
but to hold it well.
May our words rise from whenua,
be shaped by whakapapa,
and land with care.
Open the paths we have not yet walked.
Prepare us for the platforms we have not yet stood upon.
Let us arrive ready
clear, grounded, and accountable.
Haumi e, hui e, tāiki e.
Let intention be bound.
Let movement be guided.
Let this year be ridden with integrity.