Students engaged in their drama class.
Showing posts with label Contributions from New Zealand. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Contributions from New Zealand. Show all posts
Wednesday, 23 September 2009
Primary school in Ngunguru, New Zealand
Children going to this school have their swimming lessons in the sea.
A Maori creation myth
Included in the parcel by Lilicherie McGregor, Whangarei, New Zealand.
The legend of Creation.
Before there was light there was darkness. Still and quiet it lay; a huge void; a vast nothing with potential of all there was to be.
And the great void was profound. A limitless night. And deep in the blackness of that long night rested the creative thought, reaching away into forever, creating the earth and the sky.
Ranginui, the sky father, held Papatuanuku, the Earth Mother, in a close embrace. And there they lay, deep in the darkness of that long, black night.
Many children were born to them. The children lay cramped between their mother and father, deep in the blackness, longing for the freedom to move.
Tangoara, the restless, the discontented, Tangoara, god of the oceans to be, murmured in the darkness. “Let us part our parents.”
There was a long silence. Then, with one voice, all but one brother whispered, “Are, let us part them,”
It was Tawhirimatea who did not speak. Tawhirimatea, the passionate, the caring, Tawhirimatea, god of the winds to be. The he said quietly, “They are our parents. They gave us life. Leave them as they are. Let them be.”
“And what kind of life is this for us!" argued Tangaroa, “with no space to stretch our limbs, no space to explore the unknown? Again I say, let us part them!”
The brothers quarrelled. Bitterly they quarrelled. Alone in his view, Tawhirimatea was defeated.
It was decided that Tangoara should be first to try and separate Ranginui and Papatuanuku.
Impatiently he rose up. He heaved, he pushed, he shoved… and his parents clung tightly to one another, for great was their love. Finally, exhausted, Tangaroa sat down in the darkness.
Tanemahuta, the first-born, the courageous, the strong: Tanemahuta, god of the forests to be, spoke next. “Let me try,” he said.
He lay with his shoulders pressed on his mother, and placed his feet on his father. He pushed, he pressed, he heaved and he struggled… and in the great darkness his parents lay, still bound together.
Tanemahuta the relentless, the tireless, kept pushing. He strained with every ounce of his being. “I can do it. I can do it…. I will do it!” he thought to himself.
And slowly, very slowly, Ranginui was parted from Papatuanuku. Tane kept pushing until his father was away up high.
Ranguinui wept as he looked down upon his beloved wife far below him. His tears formed the rivers, lakes and oceans. And Papatuanuku grieved for her exiled husband. The early morning mists are her silent tears.
And thus did Tanemahuta, the remarkable, the endurer, separate his parents, Ranginui, the sky Father and Papatuanuku, the Earth Mother.
Light flooded into the world and for the first time the brothers looked upon their parents.
Tanemahuta then clothed his grieving parents. He dressed Papatuanuku in tall, stately trees, ferns, flowers and vines.
And Ranginui he dressed in rainbows, clouds, stars the silver moon and the golden sun.
Tawhirimatea was sad, Tawhirimatea was angry. He swirled up and away, away from his brothers, up to join his father in the sky.
And to this day he remains there aloof, for he remembers.
The legend of Creation.
Before there was light there was darkness. Still and quiet it lay; a huge void; a vast nothing with potential of all there was to be.
And the great void was profound. A limitless night. And deep in the blackness of that long night rested the creative thought, reaching away into forever, creating the earth and the sky.
Ranginui, the sky father, held Papatuanuku, the Earth Mother, in a close embrace. And there they lay, deep in the darkness of that long, black night.
Many children were born to them. The children lay cramped between their mother and father, deep in the blackness, longing for the freedom to move.
Tangoara, the restless, the discontented, Tangoara, god of the oceans to be, murmured in the darkness. “Let us part our parents.”
There was a long silence. Then, with one voice, all but one brother whispered, “Are, let us part them,”
It was Tawhirimatea who did not speak. Tawhirimatea, the passionate, the caring, Tawhirimatea, god of the winds to be. The he said quietly, “They are our parents. They gave us life. Leave them as they are. Let them be.”
“And what kind of life is this for us!" argued Tangaroa, “with no space to stretch our limbs, no space to explore the unknown? Again I say, let us part them!”
The brothers quarrelled. Bitterly they quarrelled. Alone in his view, Tawhirimatea was defeated.
It was decided that Tangoara should be first to try and separate Ranginui and Papatuanuku.
Impatiently he rose up. He heaved, he pushed, he shoved… and his parents clung tightly to one another, for great was their love. Finally, exhausted, Tangaroa sat down in the darkness.
Tanemahuta, the first-born, the courageous, the strong: Tanemahuta, god of the forests to be, spoke next. “Let me try,” he said.
He lay with his shoulders pressed on his mother, and placed his feet on his father. He pushed, he pressed, he heaved and he struggled… and in the great darkness his parents lay, still bound together.
Tanemahuta the relentless, the tireless, kept pushing. He strained with every ounce of his being. “I can do it. I can do it…. I will do it!” he thought to himself.
And slowly, very slowly, Ranginui was parted from Papatuanuku. Tane kept pushing until his father was away up high.
Ranguinui wept as he looked down upon his beloved wife far below him. His tears formed the rivers, lakes and oceans. And Papatuanuku grieved for her exiled husband. The early morning mists are her silent tears.
And thus did Tanemahuta, the remarkable, the endurer, separate his parents, Ranginui, the sky Father and Papatuanuku, the Earth Mother.
Light flooded into the world and for the first time the brothers looked upon their parents.
Tanemahuta then clothed his grieving parents. He dressed Papatuanuku in tall, stately trees, ferns, flowers and vines.
And Ranginui he dressed in rainbows, clouds, stars the silver moon and the golden sun.
Tawhirimatea was sad, Tawhirimatea was angry. He swirled up and away, away from his brothers, up to join his father in the sky.
And to this day he remains there aloof, for he remembers.
An oral history from New Zealand
Included in the parcel by Lilicherie McGregor, New Zealand
Greetings to people of Aotearoa, visitors under the wings of our mountain, Taranaki.
Tena Koutou
E nga iwi o te motuy
E oho ake nei
i raro i te parirau o to tatau maunga Taranaki
The story of Te Whiti o Rongomai and Parohaka
As told by Freda Parekaitu Tito,
At her home on the Parihaka pa.
My name is Parekaitu Tito. I was born in 1930 in new Plymouth and came to Parihaka in 1931, when my parents were asked to look after the meeting house here, Raukuar. This meeting house belongs to Te Whiti o Rongomai. My Kuia, who was Te Whiti’s daughter, wanted my parents to come back and help. In the meantime the Raukura burned down. Then it was transferred to T Pae Pae. When they died my sister took over and then it was my turn. I have been looking after the meeting house for fourteen years now.
In the days of my up bringing in Parihaka I learned much about the stories of the place. Our local lore here is based around the stories of the land taken away and how our chiefs T Whiti and Tohu were taken to the South Island to jail because they refused to give up the land.
See, Parihaka was a community of people who had come to settle and listen to the teachings of Tohu Kakahe who was a seer and T Whiti o Rongomai who was the puwhenua- he did the talking. They were prophets chosen to guide the people and thousands settled here to listen to the teachings.
To try and disperse the people, soldiers would destroy the fences and rip up people’s gardens but when they came back the following day the fences would be up and the gardens mended again.
On the day when finally a big group of soldiers came they brought a big gun with them, placed it on this hill over here, T Purepo, and trained it on the marae. They had come here with the intention of shooting all the of the people who settled here. These days people ask me, “Was there a bloodbath?” but no, there wasn’t. I wouldn't be talking to you today.
A man, Taare Waitara, who lived in the house on this hill over here, Te Hiona, had a dream the previous night, before the soldiers arrived. He dreamt of a dog barking and that he got up and wondered what was the matter. He saw the dog run up the hill where a gun was standing and crook its leg. Taare Waitat told the chiefs about this dream and Te Whiti and Tohu told the people to come out of their Whare. The people were told to sit down on the marae and the children were sent off down to the gate and told to play marbles, skipping, anything. They were all young kids at the front, with the bigger ones at the back. When the constabulary arrived and tried to come through the gate to get to Te Purpoo they couldn’t get in because the entry way was filled with children, who were named the Tarkihi children.
Finally the sol soldiers got off their horses and surrounded the marae with their guns at the ready, looking for the slightest movement. Houses were burned to the ground. Then Bryce, the commander, came on the marae to talk to Te Whiti and Tohu but they would not stand up to talk to him and at the end of the day the soldiers took them away.
They were taken to court, where they never said anything, and finally they were taken to jail in Dunedin with a lot of the people from here, who had done with them. A lot of those people died down there.
We run the “eighteens” and “nineteen’s” for Te Whiti and Tohu, to commemorate the meeting days they used to hold here.
People would come in carts from Waikato, Nelson, Wanagnui, all over New Zealand right down to Invercargill. As they travelled, they would stop off at maraes along the way and would be given bags of kumara, potatoes and other food to bring here. Thousands of people would arrive her on the seventeenth of each month and in the old days it took some of them months to travel here.
A lot of people are coming back to live here now. They bring their houses with them and settle on the places that belonged to their ancestors. And if you see anybody wearing the white feather, anywhere in the country, it is because they belong to Parihaka and are members of Te Ati Awa Iwi.
"Te Whiti was a famnous prophet who led a protest of passive resistance against the British settling and confiscating Maori land." (Taken from Lilicherie's notes in the notebook)
Greetings to people of Aotearoa, visitors under the wings of our mountain, Taranaki.
Tena Koutou
E nga iwi o te motuy
E oho ake nei
i raro i te parirau o to tatau maunga Taranaki
The story of Te Whiti o Rongomai and Parohaka
As told by Freda Parekaitu Tito,
At her home on the Parihaka pa.
My name is Parekaitu Tito. I was born in 1930 in new Plymouth and came to Parihaka in 1931, when my parents were asked to look after the meeting house here, Raukuar. This meeting house belongs to Te Whiti o Rongomai. My Kuia, who was Te Whiti’s daughter, wanted my parents to come back and help. In the meantime the Raukura burned down. Then it was transferred to T Pae Pae. When they died my sister took over and then it was my turn. I have been looking after the meeting house for fourteen years now.
In the days of my up bringing in Parihaka I learned much about the stories of the place. Our local lore here is based around the stories of the land taken away and how our chiefs T Whiti and Tohu were taken to the South Island to jail because they refused to give up the land.
See, Parihaka was a community of people who had come to settle and listen to the teachings of Tohu Kakahe who was a seer and T Whiti o Rongomai who was the puwhenua- he did the talking. They were prophets chosen to guide the people and thousands settled here to listen to the teachings.
To try and disperse the people, soldiers would destroy the fences and rip up people’s gardens but when they came back the following day the fences would be up and the gardens mended again.
On the day when finally a big group of soldiers came they brought a big gun with them, placed it on this hill over here, T Purepo, and trained it on the marae. They had come here with the intention of shooting all the of the people who settled here. These days people ask me, “Was there a bloodbath?” but no, there wasn’t. I wouldn't be talking to you today.
A man, Taare Waitara, who lived in the house on this hill over here, Te Hiona, had a dream the previous night, before the soldiers arrived. He dreamt of a dog barking and that he got up and wondered what was the matter. He saw the dog run up the hill where a gun was standing and crook its leg. Taare Waitat told the chiefs about this dream and Te Whiti and Tohu told the people to come out of their Whare. The people were told to sit down on the marae and the children were sent off down to the gate and told to play marbles, skipping, anything. They were all young kids at the front, with the bigger ones at the back. When the constabulary arrived and tried to come through the gate to get to Te Purpoo they couldn’t get in because the entry way was filled with children, who were named the Tarkihi children.
Finally the sol soldiers got off their horses and surrounded the marae with their guns at the ready, looking for the slightest movement. Houses were burned to the ground. Then Bryce, the commander, came on the marae to talk to Te Whiti and Tohu but they would not stand up to talk to him and at the end of the day the soldiers took them away.
They were taken to court, where they never said anything, and finally they were taken to jail in Dunedin with a lot of the people from here, who had done with them. A lot of those people died down there.
We run the “eighteens” and “nineteen’s” for Te Whiti and Tohu, to commemorate the meeting days they used to hold here.
People would come in carts from Waikato, Nelson, Wanagnui, all over New Zealand right down to Invercargill. As they travelled, they would stop off at maraes along the way and would be given bags of kumara, potatoes and other food to bring here. Thousands of people would arrive her on the seventeenth of each month and in the old days it took some of them months to travel here.
A lot of people are coming back to live here now. They bring their houses with them and settle on the places that belonged to their ancestors. And if you see anybody wearing the white feather, anywhere in the country, it is because they belong to Parihaka and are members of Te Ati Awa Iwi.
"Te Whiti was a famnous prophet who led a protest of passive resistance against the British settling and confiscating Maori land." (Taken from Lilicherie's notes in the notebook)
Fabric illiustrating symbols of New Zealand
Donated to the parcel by Moira Aberdeen, Whangarei new ZealandStories from students at Tikipunga High School Year 10
Included in the parcel by Lilicherie McGregor, Whangarei, New Zealand
“Short stories written by the students – work in progress kindly given in their unfinished state.
If anyone would like to send a story to these NZ students that would be cool.
Send to email: lilicherie@koretheatre.com “, best wishes Lilicherie
(taken from Lilicherie’s notes in the notebook.)
A Journey into the Deep
It was a cool calm silent night. No one was in sight. The moon shone brightly on her forehead; the stars twinkled high above, shimmering in her dozy hazel eyes. Small little bugs flew around her small button nose; the soft breeze flowed though her light wavy hair.
Her rosy cheeks lit up as she wriggled about, drifting away into nothing but the calm dark blue sea. The sea was as calm as the sky; the light reflecting on the water was remarkable as she had not seen such a sigh before.
She was joined by the presence of fear, having no idea what was happening, drifting far away from the sight of man. Light splashes of small fish were flapping around the lost raft she was in. Sounds echoing from afar, sounding like they were coming closer and closer by the second.
The adrenaline within her piled up as the creature making the sound appeared. It was not human it was not a boat. It was something she had never seen before. Her hazel eyes became enhanced as the shape came closer to her.
She was shocked by what she saw.
She reached her hand out to touch this creature. The skin felt slimy and scaly; she slowly moved her hand higher towards the head. Its eyes were big and bold. She slowly took her hand away and the creature slowly darted off into the sea.
By Mariu Taua. J
The crowded and energy driven crowd all cheered in the blazing inferno released from the golden and blinding sun.
They all prepared for what was to be an event that would surely be heard throughout the ages and would be considered to be a gathering of pure divinity and an enlightening experience.
Upon the arrival of the deities, which personified pure rock, the roar of the crow shot through very crevice and every hole, shattering through every dimension known to man. It shook the heavens, awoken all the gods of Valhalla and echoed around the winds of Mt. Olympus.
As their eyes shimmered amongst the awe of the crowd, they prepared themselves for what is to become the most historical part of everyone’s life.
As they were announced all the members inspected their instruments before walking in to the blinding spotlight of fame and fortune.
They started off with a bang guided by the audience and their way cry of pleasure, but something was completely wrong, a small numbingly and catastrophic mistake which could bring them all to a sure and impending doom.
It was as if Loki had committed his trickery or as if Satan had their souls in possession, for the group was in control of the unknown sorcery of pure evil, corruption and insanity.
The unearthly riffs were piercing through the eardrums of every human sending them into a world-wide-scale riot of pure bloodlust and hypnotism.
The was drums pounded with every beat shaking the earth to its very breaking point almost leading to the ultimate destruction of mankind and every living thing on the planet. The vibrations given off from the Bass broke the continents into pieces and made islands crumble into the deep abyss for all the evil deities and every nightmare you could think of on a feeding frenzy of souls.
The shattering whirlwind of screams swept across the universe at the speed of unknown limits and disrupted the space continuum itself. But as they were combining their efforts they were consumed by an unknown force.
As they shot through the fiery depths of the underworld and through the abyss of unimaginable horror, they were consulted by the higher order of control, which was immeasurable beyond belief.
They were given a privilege, which was too immense to handle for any man. They were considered The Supreme Creators and The Devouring entities but were beyond the control of the higher order and were sentenced to a near eternity of confinement.
TO BE CONTINUED
By Douglas Karanga
NZ Rules.
Is it a very hot day! Eddie bunked second period and went to the shops to get him a drink. As he was walking back to school he looked to his corner of his eye and saw that a pig was pulling up next to him. He hesitated, looked away and ran for his life…As he ran and jumped over the nearest wooden fence he saw. He heard a faint voice saying, “Oi you get back here.” Eddie ran through a big mud puddle getting his new black and white Nike’s dirty. When he couldn’t hear sounds he stopped to take a breath. He had stopped by a bush where no one could see him so he got out his pipe and smoked some marijuana. He said it is his stress relief.
By Breeze.
The life of Miley and Jake.
One day in the big city Miley and Jake were at their home. Their home was a cardboard box big enough for two. All of a sudden it started to rain. They pulled their cardboard box under a porch by a building. $20 floated passed in a puddle. It was about to go down a drain but Jake just got it. So Miley and Jake went to the lottery shop and brought them a big Wednesday ticket. The next day they found out they won while looking through a house window. They were so excited that when they took the ticket in no one believed them, everyone thought they had stole the ticket but then the lady who had sold the ticket to them walked in and told everyone that she was the one who sold the ticket to them. So everything that they had won from the big Wednesday ticket was eventually sold to them. They had won a boat, a 4WD ranger and Audi sports car. That had also won a batch, 2 million dollars and a platinum card with $250,000 dollars in it. They wanted to be generous so they donated to SPCA for giving them the cardboard box when they had nothing. So they had donated 1,000,000 to help the animals get better homes for the animals. All the news reporters started to surround them and asking them questions about their generous donation. Later that week they decided that they wanted to travel the world.
The End
By Richard Wihongi
The girl that was in trouble.
The night was bitterly cold. The only light came from the distant windows of the town in the valley. A soft unpleasant yellow glow illuminating the smoke from a hundred fires. Jacob drew his thin nylon parker around him and shivered. From where he stood on top of the hill he could see her house. She was home alone. As Jacob tried to call her he heard no response so he leaped off the hill. And ran into the yellow light close to the valley. There was the girl laying in the dust as the cold breeze touching her warm nose. As she wept he rushed over and picked her up and took her into her house Jacob tried to wake her up she got up and said to Jacob - who are you - Jacob replies - my name is Jacob. I was standing on the hill outside my house and all I could see was you laying on the ground so I rushed over to help you cos I thought you were in trouble so what is your name?- The girl replies – My name is Kylie and I was not in trouble I just wanted to sleep under the shining stars cos every night I just sit outside on the grass and look at the stars till my parents get home - Jacob waited with Kylie till her parents came home from work. Kylie introduced Jacob to her parents then Jacob went home. So him and Kylie always watch the stars every night. So that’s the end of the story.
Mina
“Short stories written by the students – work in progress kindly given in their unfinished state.
If anyone would like to send a story to these NZ students that would be cool.
Send to email: lilicherie@koretheatre.com “, best wishes Lilicherie
(taken from Lilicherie’s notes in the notebook.)
A Journey into the Deep
It was a cool calm silent night. No one was in sight. The moon shone brightly on her forehead; the stars twinkled high above, shimmering in her dozy hazel eyes. Small little bugs flew around her small button nose; the soft breeze flowed though her light wavy hair.
Her rosy cheeks lit up as she wriggled about, drifting away into nothing but the calm dark blue sea. The sea was as calm as the sky; the light reflecting on the water was remarkable as she had not seen such a sigh before.
She was joined by the presence of fear, having no idea what was happening, drifting far away from the sight of man. Light splashes of small fish were flapping around the lost raft she was in. Sounds echoing from afar, sounding like they were coming closer and closer by the second.
The adrenaline within her piled up as the creature making the sound appeared. It was not human it was not a boat. It was something she had never seen before. Her hazel eyes became enhanced as the shape came closer to her.
She was shocked by what she saw.
She reached her hand out to touch this creature. The skin felt slimy and scaly; she slowly moved her hand higher towards the head. Its eyes were big and bold. She slowly took her hand away and the creature slowly darted off into the sea.
By Mariu Taua. J
The crowded and energy driven crowd all cheered in the blazing inferno released from the golden and blinding sun.
They all prepared for what was to be an event that would surely be heard throughout the ages and would be considered to be a gathering of pure divinity and an enlightening experience.
Upon the arrival of the deities, which personified pure rock, the roar of the crow shot through very crevice and every hole, shattering through every dimension known to man. It shook the heavens, awoken all the gods of Valhalla and echoed around the winds of Mt. Olympus.
As their eyes shimmered amongst the awe of the crowd, they prepared themselves for what is to become the most historical part of everyone’s life.
As they were announced all the members inspected their instruments before walking in to the blinding spotlight of fame and fortune.
They started off with a bang guided by the audience and their way cry of pleasure, but something was completely wrong, a small numbingly and catastrophic mistake which could bring them all to a sure and impending doom.
It was as if Loki had committed his trickery or as if Satan had their souls in possession, for the group was in control of the unknown sorcery of pure evil, corruption and insanity.
The unearthly riffs were piercing through the eardrums of every human sending them into a world-wide-scale riot of pure bloodlust and hypnotism.
The was drums pounded with every beat shaking the earth to its very breaking point almost leading to the ultimate destruction of mankind and every living thing on the planet. The vibrations given off from the Bass broke the continents into pieces and made islands crumble into the deep abyss for all the evil deities and every nightmare you could think of on a feeding frenzy of souls.
The shattering whirlwind of screams swept across the universe at the speed of unknown limits and disrupted the space continuum itself. But as they were combining their efforts they were consumed by an unknown force.
As they shot through the fiery depths of the underworld and through the abyss of unimaginable horror, they were consulted by the higher order of control, which was immeasurable beyond belief.
They were given a privilege, which was too immense to handle for any man. They were considered The Supreme Creators and The Devouring entities but were beyond the control of the higher order and were sentenced to a near eternity of confinement.
TO BE CONTINUED
By Douglas Karanga
NZ Rules.
Is it a very hot day! Eddie bunked second period and went to the shops to get him a drink. As he was walking back to school he looked to his corner of his eye and saw that a pig was pulling up next to him. He hesitated, looked away and ran for his life…As he ran and jumped over the nearest wooden fence he saw. He heard a faint voice saying, “Oi you get back here.” Eddie ran through a big mud puddle getting his new black and white Nike’s dirty. When he couldn’t hear sounds he stopped to take a breath. He had stopped by a bush where no one could see him so he got out his pipe and smoked some marijuana. He said it is his stress relief.
By Breeze.
The life of Miley and Jake.
One day in the big city Miley and Jake were at their home. Their home was a cardboard box big enough for two. All of a sudden it started to rain. They pulled their cardboard box under a porch by a building. $20 floated passed in a puddle. It was about to go down a drain but Jake just got it. So Miley and Jake went to the lottery shop and brought them a big Wednesday ticket. The next day they found out they won while looking through a house window. They were so excited that when they took the ticket in no one believed them, everyone thought they had stole the ticket but then the lady who had sold the ticket to them walked in and told everyone that she was the one who sold the ticket to them. So everything that they had won from the big Wednesday ticket was eventually sold to them. They had won a boat, a 4WD ranger and Audi sports car. That had also won a batch, 2 million dollars and a platinum card with $250,000 dollars in it. They wanted to be generous so they donated to SPCA for giving them the cardboard box when they had nothing. So they had donated 1,000,000 to help the animals get better homes for the animals. All the news reporters started to surround them and asking them questions about their generous donation. Later that week they decided that they wanted to travel the world.
The End
By Richard Wihongi
The girl that was in trouble.
The night was bitterly cold. The only light came from the distant windows of the town in the valley. A soft unpleasant yellow glow illuminating the smoke from a hundred fires. Jacob drew his thin nylon parker around him and shivered. From where he stood on top of the hill he could see her house. She was home alone. As Jacob tried to call her he heard no response so he leaped off the hill. And ran into the yellow light close to the valley. There was the girl laying in the dust as the cold breeze touching her warm nose. As she wept he rushed over and picked her up and took her into her house Jacob tried to wake her up she got up and said to Jacob - who are you - Jacob replies - my name is Jacob. I was standing on the hill outside my house and all I could see was you laying on the ground so I rushed over to help you cos I thought you were in trouble so what is your name?- The girl replies – My name is Kylie and I was not in trouble I just wanted to sleep under the shining stars cos every night I just sit outside on the grass and look at the stars till my parents get home - Jacob waited with Kylie till her parents came home from work. Kylie introduced Jacob to her parents then Jacob went home. So him and Kylie always watch the stars every night. So that’s the end of the story.
Mina
Poems by Hone Tuwhare, New Zealand
Included in the parcel by Lilicherie McGregor from New Zealand.
No Ordinary Sun
Tree let your arms fall:
raise them not sharply in supplication
to the bright enhaloed cloud.
Let your arms lack toughness and
resilience for this is no mere axe
to blunt nor fire to smother
Your sap shall not rise again
to the moon’s pull.
No more incline a deferential head
to the wind’s talk, or stir
to the tickle of coursing rain
Your former shagginess shall not be
ereathed with the delightful flight
of birds nor shield
nor cool the ardour of unheeding
lovers from the monstrous sun
Tree let your naked arms fall
nor extend vain entreaties to the radiant ball.
This is no gallant monsoon’s flash,
no dashing trade wind’s blast.
The fading green of your magic
emanations shall not make pure again
these polluted skies… for this
is no ordinary sun.
O tree
in the shadowless mountains
the white plains and
the drab sea floor
your end at last is written
Hone Tuwhare
Rain
I can hear you
making small holes
in the silence
rain
If I were deaf
the pores of my skin
would open to you
and shut
And I
should know you
by the lick of you
if I were blind
The something
special smell of you
when the sun cakes
the ground
The steady
drum-roll sound
you make
when the wind drops
But if I
should not hear
smell or feel or see
you
You would still
define me
disperse me
wash over me
rain
Hone Tuwhare
No Ordinary Sun
Tree let your arms fall:
raise them not sharply in supplication
to the bright enhaloed cloud.
Let your arms lack toughness and
resilience for this is no mere axe
to blunt nor fire to smother
Your sap shall not rise again
to the moon’s pull.
No more incline a deferential head
to the wind’s talk, or stir
to the tickle of coursing rain
Your former shagginess shall not be
ereathed with the delightful flight
of birds nor shield
nor cool the ardour of unheeding
lovers from the monstrous sun
Tree let your naked arms fall
nor extend vain entreaties to the radiant ball.
This is no gallant monsoon’s flash,
no dashing trade wind’s blast.
The fading green of your magic
emanations shall not make pure again
these polluted skies… for this
is no ordinary sun.
O tree
in the shadowless mountains
the white plains and
the drab sea floor
your end at last is written
Hone Tuwhare
Rain
I can hear you
making small holes
in the silence
rain
If I were deaf
the pores of my skin
would open to you
and shut
And I
should know you
by the lick of you
if I were blind
The something
special smell of you
when the sun cakes
the ground
The steady
drum-roll sound
you make
when the wind drops
But if I
should not hear
smell or feel or see
you
You would still
define me
disperse me
wash over me
rain
Hone Tuwhare
An article from New Zealand about Migrating birds
Inlcuded in the parcel by lilicherie McGregor
Godwits facing perilous journey
The godwits are about to head back to Alaska, amid fears food supplies along their journey may be dwindling.
Adult godwits make the annual 22,000km round trip between Alaska for the Northern hemisphere summer and New Zealand for the Southern Hemisphere summer.
Godwits are long-legged, long billed wading birds.
Christchurch City Council ranger Andrew Crossland said their numbers had been declining for the past two decades.
He said that this was likely due to many of them perishing on the way home because of loss of feeding grounds in Asia.
“Loss of feeding habitat means building up fat reserves fro the final leg of the migration is becoming increasingly difficult.
“This makes our treatment of godwits in New Zealand even more important, as it is crucial they need to set out on their return in peak condition.”
The council said Christchurch had adopted the birds as “harbingers of spring” with the cathedral bells heralding their arrival.
Godwits facing perilous journey
The godwits are about to head back to Alaska, amid fears food supplies along their journey may be dwindling.
Adult godwits make the annual 22,000km round trip between Alaska for the Northern hemisphere summer and New Zealand for the Southern Hemisphere summer.
Godwits are long-legged, long billed wading birds.
Christchurch City Council ranger Andrew Crossland said their numbers had been declining for the past two decades.
He said that this was likely due to many of them perishing on the way home because of loss of feeding grounds in Asia.
“Loss of feeding habitat means building up fat reserves fro the final leg of the migration is becoming increasingly difficult.
“This makes our treatment of godwits in New Zealand even more important, as it is crucial they need to set out on their return in peak condition.”
The council said Christchurch had adopted the birds as “harbingers of spring” with the cathedral bells heralding their arrival.
Tuatara, New Zealand
Tuatara are the only living relic of Rhynchocephalia which lived some 200 million years ago.
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