Years back
On a night so black
Natiu ran to me
Seeking refuge
In my arms
In the blackness
Our tiny atoll was all shaken
Heaven had burst
Proud palms bent low
Saluting the furious wind
From all corners came
Bellowing rumbling roars
Answered by
Snappy
Bright lights
And so Natiu ran to me
For they were scared
On that dark night
I held their hands
So tiny and damp
I heard their hearts
Beat beat beat
In their chests
I whispered now
Low, slow words
Up there in Matang
The ancestors are partying
That is all they do
Hear thunder
They pound the bwaoki
Palms slap the kabae
Feel rain
They are sweating
And crying
Wetting the earth
Feel the gale
Grass skirts swing in the buki
Raising the angry wind
See the lightning
They are taking pictures
Of them, you and me
With cameras
Made in Japan
Teweiariki Teaero (20th century) Kiribati
Source: Indigenous Literatures from Micronesia, Editors:Craig Santos Perez, Emelihter Kihleng, Evelyn Flores, University of Hawaii Press, 2019
On a night so black
Natiu ran to me
Seeking refuge
In my arms
In the blackness
Our tiny atoll was all shaken
Heaven had burst
Proud palms bent low
Saluting the furious wind
From all corners came
Bellowing rumbling roars
Answered by
Snappy
Bright lights
And so Natiu ran to me
For they were scared
On that dark night
I held their hands
So tiny and damp
I heard their hearts
Beat beat beat
In their chests
I whispered now
Low, slow words
Up there in Matang
The ancestors are partying
That is all they do
Hear thunder
They pound the bwaoki
Palms slap the kabae
Feel rain
They are sweating
And crying
Wetting the earth
Feel the gale
Grass skirts swing in the buki
Raising the angry wind
See the lightning
They are taking pictures
Of them, you and me
With cameras
Made in Japan
Teweiariki Teaero (20th century) Kiribati
Source: Indigenous Literatures from Micronesia, Editors:Craig Santos Perez, Emelihter Kihleng, Evelyn Flores, University of Hawaii Press, 2019
Natiu - children
Matang - a small village in central Kiribati
bwaoki - square
kabae - male dance mat
buki - a type of dance
bwaoki - square
kabae - male dance mat
buki - a type of dance
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