Once, I painted an artwork for my mother with the whakataukī "Nau i whatu te kākahu, he tāniko tāku."—"You made the cloak, I made the border." It means that she and my father made the cloak—the foundation of who I am—and I added the border, the adornment, which is everything I've done with the life that they gave me. From my father, I gained strength and the confidence to meet high expectations: to lead, to stand. From my mother, I learnt organisation, resilience, and survival, to plan, to withstand. From my father, I learnt to say what had to be said and never apologise for it, especially when people did not want to hear it. From my mother, I learnt that people have feelings and there are different ways to say the same thing. From them both and a special connection I have with the goddess Mahuika, I have a drive, a fire that keeps me going through tiredness, pain, and disability. And if we're talking adornment, I'd like to think I bring a certain rainbow flair to the world—#PaintParliamentPurple.