(LIGHT, JAZZY THEME MUSIC) Captions by Kristin Williams. Edited by James Brown Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2020 (BELL TOLLS) (GENTLE MUSIC) (SIGHS) How you been? How are you, bro? Good, brother, thank you. Yourself? Yeah, it's been good, eh. Mm. I get my hair cut once a week. My barber's name is Filipo. We call him 'Lipo' for short. How's the business, anyway? Yeah. It's going good, brother. Yeah. Just coming up to the busy season at the moment. All the winter and the cold, eh? Lipo is more of a listener. It's like, when we get a haircut, you know, women they gossip and they talk and this and that. Well, this is our chance to do that, and it's like a... like a sort of counselling session. Like, I offload to him. I mean, it's nothing heavy and deep. It's just tane stuff. You have a catch-up and a korero. My wife and I, it was our 14-year anniversary last week. 14? 14 years married together, and she got me a nice little gift. I have bought Francis a watch. I know he loves it, because it can stay with... you know, he can hand it down as an heirloom for our tamariki. She's still angry cos I haven't got her anything yet. But I've been waiting for the right time to get it. And I'm wondering if I am getting anything, to be honest. (CHUCKLES) She likes... She likes motorbikes. What? Motorbikes. Does she ride a motorbike? No, she likes the look of it. My wife loves bikes. She loves the big Harley Davidsons, you know, the roar, the sound, possibly the leather attire. (CLEARS THROAT) You know, all of that, she likes. Mm. What are you gonna get her ` a Davidson? Oh, no. (BOTH CHUCKLE) Uh, she probably would like that. Can I imagine Francis riding a motorbike? Is he a tough-looking motorbike person? (SCOFFS) No comment. (SNIFFS, LAUGHS) I'm not really good with anniversary gifts. I should be better. But this year, I want to go all out, and I want to blow my wife's mind and show her that I may have missed some past years, but this year I'm making up for it. (GRACEFUL MUSIC) (POIGNANT MUSIC) Today, my wife and Fehi are uplifting Mrs Judith Blundell from Middlemore Hospital. Whaea Judith passed away from liver cancer. It is a bit of a shock for the family, because it almost happened instantly for them. The family were waiting for a biopsy, and then she passed away as they were waiting. And we are here, Judith. We are here, dear. Winston's gonna take very good care of you. At the hospital, I was informed by bereavement care that Whaea Judith had donated her eyes. And so at the embalmers, there will be a special form of embalming. So, the whanau, actually, they said yes based on... give her back in a way that her eyes are still in position. Yep. Winston is confident that we can return her to the family as normal and as natural as possible. In the Maori and Pacific Island cultures, we don't often donate our organs, just because of the belief that we've been born into this world with our whole tinana ` our whole body ` and we shall leave with our whole body. All right. Thank you so much. No worries. See you, fullas. See ya. We'll see you guys later. Bye. I do think it's beautiful that Mrs Blundell and her family have agreed to donate her eyes for someone else who may, benefit from this and gain sight, so it's such a beautiful whakaaro. (GENTLE MUSIC) Bill, I just bought this bike for my wife. OK. Oh. Yeah, I call it a bike, a motorbike. Some people would call it a scooter. I found this bike online, on Trade Me, and it was a pretty good deal. I think there's gonna be two things my wife will be happy about ` the price and the look. Now, the guy that owned it, it dropped on the ground and it got a bit of scraping here and there. Oh. Not bad. I know, but that's OK. It's not bad. But I was thinking, you know this on your van? Mm-hm. Are you able to cover this? Wrap it up in stickers? Yeah, no problem. My vision for this bike is to have it look like it's really fast, and, you know, I just want it to be really, really... quite sexy. Um... Maybe just matte black there, there and there. OK. Not the muffler, cos it'll get hot. OK. And then there, and there, just all there. Matte black in there. OK. And then on this word here, 'Tangihanga Rider', just along there. You know? OK. 'My wife and I were in the Cook Islands once. 'We were on a scooter together, and she had her arms wrapped around me and she said` You know, she grabbed me and she loved it. Like, I sit here. And then my wife sits on the back. Oh, OK. Mm. It's feels really romantic, right? (CHUCKLES) You got it. (LAUGHS) And that is the reason I bought this, so that we could have that feeling back, and hopefully she can see that's what I want for us both. Hi. I'm Jelena Dokic. I've lost over 30 kilos on Jenny Craig and I feel amazing. Join today with a free 8-week membership. Cost of food additional. Call Jenny Craig now. 0800 502 302. * (SLOW PIANO MUSIC) Have you` Has family or whanau discussed what day you're looking at for the funeral? Friday. Friday? That'll be the 17th. Today I'm meeting with Dave, Mrs Blundell's husband, and their daughter, Kellie, along with Kellie's best friend, Chonaire. You say you're from Hokianga? Fa! Neighbour, right? Yeah. Too good. (CHUCKLES QUIETLY) 'This family is so lovely.' They're very, very loving and open. So, there's going to be a convoy of bikes? Yes. All right. (CHUCKLES) Yeah. That sounds neat, eh? Yeah. Dave tells me that he and Judith are part of the Harley Club. No, she'll be singing in the... (CHUCKLES) ...in the coffin. Yeah. She loved the noise of the Harleys. Well, I don't know many people who wouldn't like that sound, to be honest. Eh? It's such a great sound, those Harleys, especially when they're all together. 'I love motorbikes.' Yeah. It's like, you know, you're in the moment, and you just can feel the wind blowing through your hair. This is her final journey,... Yeah. ...so we wanna make it a beautiful drive, beautiful ride for her. Eh? Oh. That sounds awesome. (POIGNANT MUSIC) Kia ora, Whaea Judith. All right? Kelly informed us that her mother was, you know, very natural and not too much make-up. And that's what we're trying to do. Eh? (SLOW STRING MUSIC) One of the beautiful things about Mrs Blundell's funeral is that they've asked to have her body returned back to lay in her home in Waiuku, which is not a normal Pakeha thing to do, in their culture. (SLOW STRING MUSIC CONTINUES) How's that, Kellie? Yep, yep. Yeah? We're seeing this happen more and more in New Zealand with our Kiwi families across the nation, that they're taking their loved ones home now, because they realise they can. And that is a beautiful thing. (CURIOUS MUSIC) I am very excited, because we're just about to see the transformation of the scooter. (GASPS) Oh. (CHUCKLES) Oh, Bill, e hoa! You're my hoa now. Oh. What did you do to this? You fixed the side too? Yeah, we fixed everything. Now it's come really bright. Oh my gosh, eh? Yeah. Yeah. I honestly can't believe it's the same bike, especially the parts that were broken. Like, he's, like, fixed them and put this beautiful black matte finish, like, carbon stuff, the stuff they make aeroplanes out of. And I made the special` (CHUCKLES) Oh, special writing. Writing, yes. I know your likes white colour. She does. So I made it a really nice font. You know, really romantic? E hoa, thank you. The words are not so romantic, but the writing is beautiful. Yeah. Bill's the man. He's done an awesome job, and I'm so happy, honestly, and I think my wife will love it too. (CURIOUS MUSIC) (SLOW PIANO MUSIC) (SPEAKS TE REO MAORI) Joshua is 16 years old. He has taken his own life. Haere mai, e hoa. Aw. We're gonna slide you across. Haere mai. On three. Come here. One, two, three. Good boy. Sorry. This is confronting for myself and my whanau. I mean, I've got six sons. And I bet you his interests weren't that far off from our kids. OK. Here we go, e hoa. One, two. Pop it into there. Thank you, dear. Beautiful. There we go. WHISPERS: Ka pai. Suicide is a heavy subject for many. And it's not often talked about. It's seen as a taboo subject as well. So young, eh? Yeah. Still got a lot to give. But I feel that, you know, this is something that we can talk about. It's a must. Come in this way. He's just in his casket. Come in. Haere mai. Come in. Haere mai. Come in. (TOUCHING MUSIC) (WOMEN SOB) (GUITAR PLAYS) # Tama ngakau marie. # Tama a te Atua. # We're taking Joshua back to his whanau home in Manurewa. # Arohaina mai. # We're gonna turn around together. Turn around. That's it. And we just wait for the karanga, then we go together, OK? # Haere mai, e te tungane. # Haere mai. # Haere mai. # Haere mai ra. # # Whakaaria mai... # tou ripeka ki au... # Rebecca is an elder sister of Joshua. And, you know, she's young as well, and she's showing a lot of mana, organising this funeral. * (PEACEFUL MUSIC) Today is the funeral service day for Mrs Blundell, and I'm backing the hearse into the family home, the driveway, and then we get a whiff of smell, and it's hangi. I love hangi. It feels very Maori,... and I feel this is now a true, sort of, Kiwi... Kiwi send-off. (AMBIENT MUSIC) There's some keys there, if you'd like to place a key on. Come forward. Come forward. Another key here. Mrs Blundell and her husband, Dave, were part of a Harley Club, a motorbike club, and so we're going to have a motorbike procession in front of us. And we're going to follow all the Harley motorbike riders that belong to the club, as a tribute to Mrs Blundell. (ENGINES RUMBLE GENTLY) (POIGNANT PIANO MUSIC) Just being amongst all of these bikes is amazing. What a beautiful ride it is,... to know that she did this every Saturday with her darling. (POIGNANT VIOLIN MUSIC) You know, when you attend a funeral and you learn a lot of information about the person that's passed away, and at Mrs Blundell's funeral, we were able to hear a little bit about their love story and how they met. Mum lived at home in Sheehan Ave with Nan and Pop when this young man moved in next door. This young man happened to be Dad. Dad talks about how he would jump the fence every Sunday for 'dinner'. (CROWD CHUCKLES) Judith would be very proud of Kellie today. She's sharing her final moments with everybody and sharing her love for her mum. And she's holding herself well. It's a final farewell, and everyone's sharing their last moments and placing a rose head on Whaea Judith. Mrs Blundell's family are gonna go back and have a hangi and celebrate her life, and my wife and I will take care of Mrs Blundell, and we'll take her to the Manukau Memorial Gardens for a private cremation. (CURIOUS MUSIC) (PEACEFUL MUSIC) Joshua has spent one night at his home and two nights at Makaurau Marae. (SPEAKS TE REO MAORI) (GUITAR PLAYS) (GROUP SINGS IN TE REO MAORI) When somebody dies of cancer, we often talk about their courageous battle that they've had with the cancer. When somebody commits suicide, we don't often talk about the courageous battle that this person was facing with mental illness. (EMOTIVE MUSIC) Rebecca tells me that her brother Joshua was bubbly, kind and gentle and that he loved children. (CURIOUS MUSIC) (ENGINE WHIRRS) It is time for the big reveal. I'm actually very, very nervous. OMG. It's not. Are you serious? (LAUGHS) What, dear? Is it really? Yeah. It's a motorbike. Oh my gosh. It's for my wife. Are you serious? Yeah. (LAUGHS) I can't see Francis in a leather jacket or leather pants. That's too scary. (CHUCKLES) - (LAUGHTER) - What's your problem? That's like making Rizzo from Grease be a man. (LAUGHS) Ta-da! It's for two people ` you and me. Oh, OK. And, you know, if anyone else wants to have a turn. But come and look at this. Tell me what that says, the name of the bike. 'Tangihanga Rider'? Yeah. What? OK. It's cool, eh? I am... a little, sort of, taken aback by his surprise. Yeah, but also, I go` So, you got a jacket, but I don't have a jacket? Well, yeah. You've got one, but the thing is, what I got is pants. Oh, my gosh. I was won` (CHUCKLES) For you. I feel like this is more of a gift for him. And then a helmet. I showed the scooter to my wife, and her reaction is quiet. Uh, hang on. I'm not sure how to do it. What I need to do is quickly get her on the bike. We need to go and get the wind through her hair. Oh, like` Now, you see these here? These are for your feet. So, I'm on the bike, and I'm feeling kind of squashed. (CHUCKLES) (ENGINE WHIRRS) (GIGGLES) We crossed the road, and I see the mailman. You egg! (LAUGHTER) (WHIMPERS) I just wanna give him a race! This couldn't have come at a better time, because I need to show my wife that I'm edgy, and that we can... you know, if she wants to go fast, I'm gonna... We're gonna go fast together. Oh. Hold on. Sorry. Sorry. (GIGGLES) Hold on tight. No. Bro, I'm good. No. Put your arm around me here. You're holding up traffic. (CHUCKLES) Oh my Gosh! 'I'm in fits of laughter, and I'm, honestly, just cracking up.' (ENGINES WHIRR) (LAUGHS) (LAUGHS) All of a sudden, she just held on really tight, you know what I mean? All right, that's us. Turn around. What are you doing? Oh, my husband, he knows how to make me laugh. (CHUCKLES) Oh my gosh. (LAUGHTER) Yahoo! In my view, in my opinion, this has been one of the best anniversary gifts I could have ever bought my wife.