BILLY HARRIS: KIDS IN THE COMMUNITY
Gabriella - Girl on the go a really busy day. Mum says I look like a luggage trolley when she drops me off because I have to take my school bag, trumpet, netball and ukulele that day. It’s actually quite hard to see me behind all the things I’m carrying! I have ukulele, then marimba, then trumpet, then rock band then in the afternoon performance band practice.”
It’s tough being the youngest of four kids. With a house full of noise and activity, simply being noticed can be a daily challenge. Gabriella Rocca has found a way to overcome the problem. To escape the shadows cast by her older siblings, Bianca (16), Matteus (14) and Valentina (12), the ten year old Ponsonby Primary student has become a whirlwind of activity, doing everything and being everywhere at once. Her sporting pursuits of netball, running, surfing and skiing are just the start. She also plays the piano, trumpet, tenor horn, recorder, guitar and ukulele. She’s in the school rock band, marimba band and ukulele festival group. And then there are her two real passions - which she’s had as long as anyone can remember - singing and dancing. There aren’t enough hours in the day for Gabriella, but the busier she is, the more she likes it, as she explains: “My favourite days of the week are Wednesdays and Thursdays. On Wednesdays I do crossing with my friend Mia at school, then I have my singing lesson, then Mia’s mum takes us to netball. I play wing attack. Thursday’s
Somehow Gabriella manages to squeeze athletics into her schedule, and she was chosen to represent the school in the inner city cross country and inner city athletics in the 100m, 200m and long jump. This year Gabriella passed her grade two recorder exam, which allowed her to achieve another ambition. “Our family has a tradition in year six that if we pass a music exam we get our ears pierced at Auckland Tattoo in Ponsonby Road. That was a big incentive for me. Now I’m learning grade three recorder. If I pass that, some friends say I should get a tattoo!” Gabriella and her brother and sisters are fortunate that their mother runs the Lewis Eady Music School, which teaches a whole range of instruments to over 1200 students across Auckland each week, including at Ponsonby Primary. Gabriella says, “When I ask Mum if I can learn another instrument, she thinks about it and then reminds me about all the extra practise I’d have to do. Then she usually says Yes!” It seems that despite her position as number four child and being short for her age. Gabriella has no problems being assertive. She was named sports captain for Ngarahoe House at Ponsonby, and chosen to go to a leadership conference a few weeks ago and listened to Jamie McDell and other inspiring speakers.
Even so, there’s no getting away from the hazards of having older siblings, particularly when one of them is a brother. “Last year I was running away from my brother Matteus because he was going to put ice down my back and then I knocked over Bianca’s double bass and the tuning pegs hit my head. I screamed but Mum thought it was just a ‘brother scream’ so she took her time coming to see what the problem was. There was a pool of blood forming on the ground beside my head so Mum said to keep lying down on the ground. Then Dad told me sit up because he said I’d bleed more if I stayed lying on the ground. Then someone got a tea towel and we put it on my head. We went to White Cross Ponsonby where the lady glued my head together. She said it might hurt but I didn’t feel a thing. We’re a musical family so I suppose if I’m going to get injured it might as well be caused by a musical instrument!” So with such a keen interest in such a wide array of things, how does one decide what to do next? Not surprisingly, Gabriella’s not sure. “I think it would be nice to be an entertainer but what I’d really like to do is combine singing with sport in some way.” How’s this for a possible scenario? The Silver Ferns are about to play Australia in a big netball match. Gabriella Rocca has the honour of singing the national anthem. When she’s finished she takes her place on court and helps the Silver Ferns to a great victory. PN
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94 PONSONBY NEWS+ July 2013
Nature Baby on Richmond Road were mystified when a mysterious framed artwork was attached to their exterior logo recently! Yesterday, when I arrived to take a photo, it had been removed. Nature Baby staff thought it was great, but are also delighted it’s gone now! No one knows who is behind this gorilla art! Is it ‘our’ version of Banksy!? PN
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