A Different Kind of Power: A Memoir

When Ardern was four, her family moved to an isolated foresting town called Murupara so that her father could take a job as the local police sergeant. Poverty had been rife in Murupara since the privatization of the forestry industry in the 1980s, and most of the town’s population was Māori. Living in Murupara was difficult at first, though Ardern’s father worked hard to build trust with the local population and overcome their hostility toward governmental authorities. Ardern and her sister, Louise, who was 18 months her senior, eventually attended a school outside town to avoid local bullies.

She recalls walking past the police station one day and seeing a group of large, angry men surrounding her father. He was attacked on duty, and one night, a group of brawling townspeople threatened to break the windows of the family’s house. Ardern’s mother struggled with the relocation and sought support from their neighbor Joan after having a panic attack.

Ardern’s mother was largely bedbound in the aftermath of a nervous breakdown, often crying and continuing to experience panic attacks. As part of her recovery, she taught herself trout fishing, relishing the silence and solitude. Ardern’s family were members of the Latter-day Saints (LDS), or Mormon, Church; her father was raised in the church after his own parents converted, and her mother converted while dating her father. The local Mormon church provided a sense of familiarity and community for the family, and Ardern’s mother became particularly involved in its volunteer and charity work. She made friends with people in need, offering them support and receiving support in return.

Ardern became close friends with a boy from church named Walter, who collected perfume samples. During the three years that Ardern’s family spent in Murupara, her father made significant progress in building rapport with the local people. He would always be wherever help was needed, and he volunteered for the dunk tank at the school fete. He delayed arresting one gang member so that he could save face by turning himself in, but hiked four hours into the bush to apprehend another who sought to avoid arrest. Ardern recalls the hardships and pride of the local people and believes that she first became political while living in Murupara.

Ardern’s maternal grandparents, Eric and Margaret, owned an apple orchard in Morrinsville, and Ardern still has a scar on her face from injuring herself with industrial equipment while trying to help out. Eric was clever and hardworking, though he was impatient with mistakes, so Margaret usually supervised the grandchildren when they visited. Ardern’s father bought the property when he was promoted to Detective Sergeant, and the family moved to Morrinsville, where Ardern and Louise did their best to help with the orchard because they could tell that their overworked parents needed support.

Several months later, one of Ardern’s maternal uncles was seriously injured in a car crash. He was comatose for an extended period and had brain damage, so he required lifelong care and support, mostly provided by his family. Ardern began to have painful stomach aches due to stress. She officially joined the Mormon church when she turned eight, attracted to the idea that baptism would cleanse her of her sins but concerned that a clean slate couldn’t remain unmarred for long. She played with her sister in the forest behind their house and, as a tomboy, took pride in acting like the son her father never had. Each night, Ardern’s family watched the news and debated world events over dinner.

Every week, Ardern and her family had Sunday dinner at the home of her paternal grandparents, Gwladys and Harry. Harry was reserved and happy to blend into the background, while Gwladys was proud, funny, and fearless. Ardern’s father was the youngest of seven children: three born before World War II, and four born afterward. There had always been a rift between the prewar and postwar siblings, and Ardern’s favorite of them was her Aunt Marie. Marie was attractive and always wore lots of makeup to cover scars from a childhood burn injury. Intelligent, brash, and politically active, Marie (like her parents) firmly supported the Labour Party, though Ardern’s maternal grandparents were staunch conservatives. Ardern fell seriously ill with the rare childhood illness Kawasaki disease. Doctors failed to diagnose her for a long time, but Gwladys (realizing the severity of her illness) gifted her the violin that was the only thing her mother (Ardern’s great-grandmother) had brought with her when she emigrated to New Zealand.

Ardern recalls visiting her maternal grandparents’ house that year to celebrate Christmas and noticing that Gwladys appeared seriously ill. Within a few weeks, Gwladys died, and the family grieved, but Harry continued to host (and cook) weekly Sunday dinners in her stead. Ardern began to appreciate his steady, supportive presence in the background of family life.

After finding and reporting several abandoned boxes of fliers in the woods behind their house, Ardern and Louise took over a local paper route. They diligently delivered fliers to every house, including one where an aggressive Rottweiler terrified them. Though still close, the sisters had grown apart slightly over the years, and Ardern became best friends with a schoolmate named Fiona. Fiona had a twin sister and an older brother named Theo. Both Ardern and her sister were shy around Theo, who was “cool” and attended a boarding school.

Ardern became increasingly knowledgeable about current affairs, developing opinions on contemporary budget cuts and discussing politics with her friends’ parents. She also participated zealously in fundraising efforts for the international children’s charity World Vision.

Ardern began attending the local high school, where her mother was a canteen worker. One morning, she learned from her classmates that Theo had died by suicide. Her mother confirmed the rumor and, at Fiona’s request, took Ardern to the family’s home. Ardern could barely believe it and, at a loss for words, simply hugged Fiona and her sister and cried with them. When Fiona spent that night at Ardern’s house, Ardern answered her questions about the Mormon faith and offered what comfort she could.

After Theo’s funeral, another dinner guest tried to console Fiona’s mother by attributing the tragedy to God’s plan. Enraged, the grieving mother asked how God could do something so awful. This disturbed and preoccupied Ardern, who had never before doubted her religious convictions. She ultimately concluded that while her faith in God remained intact, she could not and would not ever understand Theo’s death.

Evangelicalism is a key component of Mormon religious practice, and when she turned 13, Ardern began door-knocking alongside missionaries from the US. She was initially reluctant and shy, given the unpredictability of doorstep encounters and the intimacy of discussing something as personal as faith. They were usually rebuffed after introducing themselves, but any conversation the missionaries did have always ended with their asking if they could do anything to help. This always warmed people’s demeanors, and Ardern built confidence and skills that she later used throughout her political career. Ardern got her first job when she turned 14, working at the local fish-and-chip shop on Fridays. In preparation for her trial shift, she diligently practiced wrapping a cabbage in newspaper under her mother’s tutelage. Louise developed an interest in photography, and the sisters mistook Harry’s friend Jim for their father while developing old photos.

At school, Ardern admired the social studies and history teacher, Mr. Fountain. He chose to teach the history of New Zealand and encouraged students to form their own conclusions about complex historical issues and current affairs. Ardern won numerous prizes for public speaking but struggled with imposter syndrome and anxiety. She then joined the high school debate team and found that her arguments benefited from her tendency to overprepare. She enjoyed exploring different topics and viewpoints, and it gave her valuable experiences like visiting Parliament and attending formal events.

During one of Ardern’s work shifts at the fish-and-chips shop, a young man stole from the cash register, though she was able to get his details and report him to her father when she recognized him at a party later that night. The thief paid reparations and went through the youth justice system, and Ardern became interested in the reasons that crimes occur. Soon after, she was doing biology homework on blood types and realized that their grandfather Harry could not be their father’s biological parent. Ardern’s father admitted that his biological father was actually Harry’s friend Jim, and while this has never changed his opinion of Gwladys, it made him admire Harry even more for never treating him differently from his other children. Ardern was initially hurt and angry at the revelation, but over time her feelings softened as she realized that such situations are complicated. She sent the violin that Gwladys gave her to be repaired and was heartbroken to learn that the original, valuable instrument must have been stolen by an unscrupulous antiques dealer decades previously. Despite her sorrow, Ardern chose to have the fake replacement violin repaired anyway because it still had sentimental value.