Symmetry
I came here on my parents’ prayers And thousands in aid for air fares To the land of condescending stares / As I hid beneath the arch of the tatau
I came here to watch the blood in Hau’ofa’s kava bowl Flow like oratory; swirl and roll Leap and rave without control / From the lines that are my veins
I came here to wear my skin And the scars of where my ancestors have been That toss, and turn and stir within / To remember their names
I came here to be the woman in Makini’s dreams Even as my bilum dress is tearing at the seams Snipped at by labels and a lack of financial means / To be the daughter my ancestors suffered for
I came here to burn with the flame Teaiwa lit The day I learned exactly where I fit Like signet: each fibre, every bit / To be, and keep on being
I came here with the courage my people bequeathed to me I grew into this soil like the roots of a tree I am still here
And
I
AM
FREE.