This paper presents understandings from indigenous Maori "kaumatua" (elders both male and female) and "whanau" (parents and extended family members) from Aotearoa New Zealand. These people live in a close-knit "hapu" (subtribe) community close to an ancestral meeting space known as their "marae." Their marae continues to be essential in the promotion of Maori knowledge, language and ways of being. Kaumatua and whanau recall important cultural understandings and practices from this journey. From growing up largely in te ao Maori (the Maori world) they consider "languaculture", the inter-relationships between language, identity and culture, as foundational to their future "hope" for collective cultural strength and wellbeing. To renormalise the use of the language of their ancestors, we use many Maori words throughout. These words are italicised and translated the first time they are used.