With all the turmoil going on at the moment, perhaps it's a good time to reflect on what’s important to us as Cook Islanders. Read and ponder.

A woman sits on the wharf with her line dangling, tempting the fish to bite. A man walking along sees the humble collection of tasty looking fish in the bucket next to her and stops.

He asks; “How many fish are you going to catch?”

“As many as I need for dinner.” She replies.

“You know” he continues “if you caught a few more than that, you could sell the extras.”

“I know. But, for what purpose?” She replies.

The man looks confused; “Well, then you could have a little bit of extra money.”

“I know. But, for what purpose?” She replies again.

The man’s expression deepens. “Well, after a while you could save up and buy a boat.”

“I know. But, for what purpose?” She replies yet again.

The man’s face drops further. “With a boat you could catch even more fish! You could even hire someone else to fish with you.”

“I know. But, for what purpose?”

His body reels back in offence. “With a boat, you could fish in deeper waters and with staff on board you could bring in even more fish and make even more money!”

“I know. But, for what purpose?” She replies, as she calmly adds a fish to her bucket.

By now the man is convinced the woman doesn’t understand anything! He leans down face to face to ensure she comprehends his great plan for her life.

“You see lady, if you had a boat and some staff you could catch more fish and make more money. Then with that money you could buy a bigger boat, and hire even more staff and make even more money! Then with that money you could keep growing your fishing operation until you had a large fleet of fishing vessels! Great big ones that can catch a year’s worth of fish in just one day! Then you could have even more money! Don’t you understand?”

The woman looks at him in his increasingly red face as she calmly puts another fish into her bucket.

She pauses for a second

“I know. But, for what purpose?” She replies.

“So one day you can retire and enjoy your life!” He screams at the top of his lungs.

She waits for the man to catch his breath. “And what then?” She asks.

Frantically he replies “Then you can do whatever you like! What would you do with your time if you didn’t have to work!?”

She covers her bucket, leans towards the man and says, “I would sit here on the wharf and catch fish for my dinner.” 

Jonny Knopp,

Ex-Apii Te Uki Ou.