A TOUCHING NOTE FROM WAITANGI DAY

In the letters to the editor section of today's Wellington Dominion Post

I can't resist putting this one out on the web.  Phil Mitchell reminisces about a charming Waitangi Day experience.

Waitangi Day had me pottering along the beach at Otaki with my two-year-old son, Flynn.

At the mouth of the Waitohu Stream two Maori men were dragging a flounder net through the surf.  The net became tangled.

"Need a hand?" I asked.

"Kia ora, bro," came the reply from the smiling dreadlocked one.  I helped untangle it, while Flynn played with two-year-old Hone.

The drag was completed, with a good haul of flounder.

We stood on the beach chatting while Hone proudly displayed the catch to Flynn.  Both boys inspected the fish closely, periodically squealing with delight.

Eventually it was time to go. "Take a couple with you, bro."

"You sure?" I said.  "Plenty there," was the reply.

We wandered back up the beach, Flynn carrying a flounder and grinning from ear to ear. "Bye bye Hone," he called.

The Treaty of Waitangi was never mentioned ...