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The Manurewa High School
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The Routine By Cher' zelle Tuake
Winning entry in Year 12 Short Story Competition "Keep still," Nana said. Holding small handfuls of my hair she would twist, then twist, then suddenly yank my head back. "Ouch," I screamed pulling myself away from her. "Get over back here, and you better keep a still or I clip your ears," Nana replied in broken English. Oh how I hated getting my hair plaited from Nana, but it was the routine every Saturday morning. We were Seventh Day Adventist and had to wake up early to get ready for church. We would wake up when the sun was not even up yet. The only lights we saw were the ones in our house. We lived in the islands which meant no lamp posts outside, no driveways and no footpaths. There were seven children living with Nana and I was one of them. Three boys and four girls. We came from different families but we were all related to each other. "Wake those boys up now before you all get a hiding," was a very routine sentence Nana used every Saturday. Giving me no time to wake the boys up Nana would storm into the room with her broom made out of thin sticks and wack the three boys on the legs. Then came the next routine sentence. "Taviviki Kotou ete au Tamaroa. Kare to atu e tiaki ua is tatou ite is ra Katoa," she would say in Cook Island.
We laughed and would mimic her behind the walls. "Hurry up you boys the Lord can't wait for us all day,". 8 30 am would come. "Are you children ready now? Hurry up and start walking to church. If your clothes are dirty by the time you get there you will all get a hiding at the church". Then she would pause, "In front of everyone," she would finish as we all walked out the door. Walking to church was fun. It was the best part of the Saturday for us. Along the way to church we saw the other cousins and they would join our group. We would all take our time ambling to church. No Nana to annoy us or yell at us. It was just how we liked it. The journey to church would take at least ten minutes. It would be fifteen if we stopped at the shop. Eventually though, we arrived. As we came up the drive Nana would be standing at the top of the stairs like a primary school teacher watching her pupils entering the classroom. "You kids left before me and I arrive before you. Where have you been?" she would scream. Oh the shame! As we walked up the steps we knew what was about to happen next. Standing in a line one by one we got it. Yes, that's it a slap across the head and a clip on the ears. This happened to us every week. We always entered the church with other children laughing at us as they waited for the moment to happen. I would give them the eye and they would turn and whisper to someone else. The gossip that flew around the 38
church about us was evil. The ladies having their gossip ses about us made me want to flip The old men sitting in the front wo turn and stare at us in our disgr Was everything our fault? All children that had laughed at us k we would pay them back when had our classes. "Shame on you, you got a hid Tonga would sing. Then bang at the face Tonga was on the grou "That's what you get when you smart," I would say. "I'm telling your Nana," Tonga w whine. "Go ahead and I'll smash you school," I would follow. In the end Tonga never did tell that was his routine every week. After class we had to assemble in church. This was the part I hated most The sermon that was supp to last an hour but would last a w three hours "And God said let your heart be troubled," the Area would start and that is how it w Quote after quote after quote. Every week was the same. If think that was bad I'll tell you was bad was sitting next to N during the service. We we allowed to talk nor were we allo to whisper. Our backs had to straight, heads up and ears listen We each had a Bible, paper and to write down notes about sermon, all provided happily Nana. "There, study God's word I'll