"Me kāpui te waha o te pēke kia kore ai e maringi ō māpere." Which translates as, "pull the top of the bag closed so that your marbles won’t spill out".
Good advice, I’m sure.
Then I watched the film ... oh, goodness, what was it’s name again? Ah, yes, Familiar Touch.
It’s about an octogenarian who is slipping into some sort of memory loss in her twilight years.
Very early on in the film she fails to remember her son’s name, or indeed recognise him at all.
So, it’s off to the care home. A nice one.
Now, anyone who has experienced any of this in a friend or relative is going to be triggered.
The film confronts a good bit of the fear and indignity involved, often lingering in the difficult moments.
There is relief. The staff, as is universally the case, are portrayed as saintly. And our protagonist, Ruth (Kathleen Chalfant, who is excellent), has her moments. Ruth was a cook and there’s a lovely scene in which she takes over the care home kitchen.
It’s all done skilfully and sensitively enough for the film to have won prizes at the Venice film festival.
Meanwhile, just this past week or so there was news that a second language can slow the ageing of the brain.
With that in mind, repeat after me: "Me kāpui te waha o te pēke kia kore ai e maringi ō māpere."
