OCR Text |
Show 18 Although Roa was eager for his first trip to the great South Island to test his manhood in search of pounamu, he was grateful that they would wait until the next full moon before setting out. While all the young men had time to prepare and absorb more of their ancestral history from Wetekia, Roa exoecially needed this time for contemplation. He knew full well that when the excursion was accomplished, there would be another confrontation with his father over the Pakeha. Torn between loyalty and respect for his father and the nuiet urgings of his own heart, he was deeply troubled. Roa turned the bow of his canoe toward land, his Bay of Islands and its protective harbors. Tane, father of light, was weary. Ra, the sun, was a red ball sinking low into the sea and would soon cover itself in Tangaroa's waters. Its shining rays reflected on Roa's glistening brown skin. He paused in his rowing to look at his island country lying peacefully in the distance. It was shrouded in a long white cloud as It must have been when it was first discovered by his great seafaring ancestor Kupe. What brave men his ancestors must have been to venture upon the waters of the Sea of Kiwa and |