Veränderung, which translates to “Change” was a beginning for me. Divided by more than a monetary flight ticket from my family, the pandemic placed the possibility of a physical reunion at a greater distance than imaginable. An experience shared with millions around the globe, I held the privilege of digital communication as the only possibility, connected and open ended relations banned behind the sleek screen.

My grandmother, the last of her generation within my family, agreed to share with me more about her upbringing, from her childhood during the Second World War to her life as a woman who was always hard working, entering Marriage and Motherhood with a decisive head on her shoulders, lead by her catholic belief, charme, humour and rigidity.

The Second World War in the terms of younger generations whakapapa comes close to a blanket of silence. And looking back I believe that the silence within the conversations my grandmother shared with me, have taught me more than anything she said.