Te Māori disciples of the rapture
I have feared ihu karaiti since I have learnt of the rapture
when te kore will make its journey back home
Ranginui will make its way to papatuanuku
And Māori will join the celestial
in this time
heavens trumpets will unearth oral korero
our body’s turning to vessels of the past
rising as unmoved time capsules
in the presence of weeping wahine o te atea
we are all weeping
as waka sink through quills of Biblical text,
gods disciples wade through awa
Tangaroa becoming familiar with foreign vessels
Sovereignty slowly losing its meaning through blistered history
papatuanuku weeps through confiscation of tapu land
our tupuna weep at the loss of mana to colonial constructs
For those who foresee the future, this is an ode
To the Maori disciples who have fought for te ao Marama
3 wise men will wake out of te paepera tapu
one will bring taonga
one will bring harakeke
The last brings the kereru
these gifts are given in the womb of Māori wahine
Birthing gifts of whakapapa
Back to the findings of Kupe
where our bodies will rest
Aotearoa
unearthed
in the between – te po
Ivy Lyden-Hancy
Papakura High School
From the author:
Kiaora Ko Ivy toku ingoa, this poem is about my overwhelming love for being a Māori wahine in modern day New Zealand. It conveys how colonialism affected our country, under the influence of Christianity. I utilised the 3 concepts of te kore,te po and te ao marama to bring these concepts to life. Being Māori is my passion and it drives me every day to do better and succeed. Thank you so much for this opportunity.
