Make Matariki a holiday

Ithink New Zealand is on the cusp of something big; a new national day off work to celebrate our own national mid-winter holiday – Matariki. Okay, maybe that’s slightly pie-in-the-sky, but there is something brewing and I’m sure this will happen in the next few years.

I’ve come up with this on the basis that it took the UK about 100 years to fully get into the Christmas spirit with a national holiday, cards, crackers and presents after Prince Albert popularised the Christmas tree.

So, I think technology and general willingness mean Matariki as a major celebration will arrive here far more quickly.

Each year, the Matariki cluster of stars – known to astronomers as Pleiades or the Seven Sisters – rises in New Zealand skies. It marks the beginning of the Ma¯ ori New Year and starts on June 15 this year.

And I’m excited because it feels like critical mass is now being reached to turn this into a truly whole-of-New Zealand celebration. More and more Matariki events have been popping up from grass roots New Zealand for many years now. But more recently our major cities have also stepped up their investment.

Wellington’s got a smorgasbord of events this year, ranging from a new fire festival, Ahi Ka¯ , on June 29 to its annual fireworks SkyShow display, which has been moved forward from November.

Auckland’s got more than 100 events celebrating Matariki, starting from the end of June to July 22. Christchurch and Hamilton are also following along with a slew of city- and community-led events.

I think it’s well past time that New Zealand got more of its own celebrations. We’ve spent too long borrowing everyone else’s events.

New Zealanders can own Matariki. It links with our love of our land, our nature and our people.

And as you know, where the people’s focus goes so do the marketers and retailers. So, I’ve had a think about what an annual Matariki festival day might look like through a marketer’s eyes.

Just like Christmas, Matariki needs a central ‘‘hero’’. There are different stories about Matariki, but a favourite is that the constellation represents the mother – Matariki – surrounded by her six daughters. They all gather at this time of year to look back on the past and prepare for the New Year. Each of the six daughters has a specific role in caring for the planet and its creatures in the year ahead.

Food? That’s a no-brainer. To hunker down in a warm house, with food and family is a must. If the US has turkey for Thanksgiving, New Zealand will have no trouble coming up with its own signature celebration feast. I’m thinking it will centre around the traditional hangi-style of meat and vegetables.

If Christmas’ signature colours are red and green then Matariki will be black, or purple, and silver to reflect the night sky and stars.

Kites have a symbolic connection to Matariki as they are seen as a connector between the earth and heaven.

Forget Matariki cards; imagine kids making little kites at school, giant kites flying over major cities, mass kite flying events during Matariki.

Most importantly, we need the Government to pony up and realise that we all need a day off to celebrate and see us through the long, dark winter months.

I’m sure we’re at a turning point with Matariki and it will be fun to see how New Zealanders take this and run with it to create something that is genuinely our own.

Me, I’m off to make a kite.

Sue Allen has worked in journalism, communications, marketing and brand management in the United Kingdom and New Zealand.