10-02-2017, 07:07 PM
When I was little
and always in love with languages
I did little but listen
in English class
and dream about far off lands
on the way back home
fall asleep after Grandpa showed
where the countries were
in the flat page of the world
on the old atlas
Where are there no real latitudes and longitudes?
Then one day, the teacher
spoke about hot springs
thermal water
and how Maoris cooked
food dipped in the hot springs
Wow, I thought
slinging my water bottle
across, and running
to be the first in the bus
small things mattered
For weeks, I only ate food
cooked like pasta
immersed in water
knew where 40.9006° S, 174.8860° E was
and knew the place like the back of my hand
or so I thought
Then came All Blacks, their haka
which I learnt to scare my husband
All he did was laugh and go back
to watching rugby, I prefer football
then came ChristChurch, because
of the earthquakes, then came the fruit
then the bird and then Mercedes
What kind of requirement is this
to list the things that we feel
honestly about people we befriend
fight, argue and blend in with?
I don't know, I have been around
way too long, to forget the colour
of my skin or anyone else's
Last fortnight, I was sitting with
the world at my table in a restaurant
and talking about the way haggled
my way through to buying a curio
using my calculator, nods and smiles
At least the Kiwis can understand English
except Merc, she is her own language
and can really scream back when mad
at the world, gosh, I don't want to cross
her or her path then, but my mother
who is very Indian is also the same
Women of a certain age,
transcend geographical borders
Ouch!
and always in love with languages
I did little but listen
in English class
and dream about far off lands
on the way back home
fall asleep after Grandpa showed
where the countries were
in the flat page of the world
on the old atlas
Where are there no real latitudes and longitudes?
Then one day, the teacher
spoke about hot springs
thermal water
and how Maoris cooked
food dipped in the hot springs
Wow, I thought
slinging my water bottle
across, and running
to be the first in the bus
small things mattered
For weeks, I only ate food
cooked like pasta
immersed in water
knew where 40.9006° S, 174.8860° E was
and knew the place like the back of my hand
or so I thought
Then came All Blacks, their haka
which I learnt to scare my husband
All he did was laugh and go back
to watching rugby, I prefer football
then came ChristChurch, because
of the earthquakes, then came the fruit
then the bird and then Mercedes
What kind of requirement is this
to list the things that we feel
honestly about people we befriend
fight, argue and blend in with?
I don't know, I have been around
way too long, to forget the colour
of my skin or anyone else's
Last fortnight, I was sitting with
the world at my table in a restaurant
and talking about the way haggled
my way through to buying a curio
using my calculator, nods and smiles
At least the Kiwis can understand English
except Merc, she is her own language
and can really scream back when mad
at the world, gosh, I don't want to cross
her or her path then, but my mother
who is very Indian is also the same
Women of a certain age,
transcend geographical borders
Ouch!