Now matter how difficult life can seem, there is always something to feel grateful for. Practicing whakawhetai (gratitude) can have a huge impact on your health and happiness. Author Hira Nathan (Ngāti Kahungungu, Ngāti Tuwharetoa, Ngā Puhi) has created this inspirational, bilingual gratitude journal, based on the Māori holistic approach to hauora (health) to help us all.
This beautiful hardcover journal allows plenty of space for people, both tangata whenua and tangata Tiriti, to note the gratitude you feel for each of the four dimensions of hauora: taha tinana (physical), taha hinengaro (mental), taha wairua (spiritual) and taha whānau (family).
Throughout the journal there are plenty of whakataukī and quotes in both te reo Māori and English. He's also left space for ngā murakehu (ramblings) to allow readers space to explore further.
Nathan originally self-published a journal to allow him to practice his te reo Māori and gratitude practices every day. This full-colour, new version opens it up to a whole new audience. The journal uses te reo Māori throughout, as the language, as Nathan says, is ours to embrace. Whether you are fluent or have no understanding of the language at all, the journal is still useable. Nathan ensures the concepts and ideas that underpin the journal are well explained. Translations are also included to scaffold users at the beginning of their journey.
The journal also does not demand you to do things, while many will make gratitude part of their daily practice, Nathan leaves the template open to fit in with your journey.
Stunning illustrations by Huriana Kopeke-Te Aho (Tūhoe, Ngāti Porou, Rongowhakaata, Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi, Ngāti Kahungungu) flow through the pages. They are bold and beautiful, echoing the themes within the book.
This gorgeous bilingual journal provides the perfect opportunity to celebrate you and the amazing things in life, to live a more grateful life. Nathan offers up a scaffold to a more rounded and holistically healthy mindset in the embrace of te ao Māori.
Reviewed by Rebekah Lyell
Allen & Unwin