The transplant

In my culture, my people

have a deep connection to where we were raised.

We are inextricably tied to that land.

The word for this is – ‘turangawaewae’(1).

It means ‘a place to stand’.

Uproot (verb). To pull out of the ground.

Emigrant (noun.) Someone who uproots.

The original land no longer bears my weight

where my feet were cultivated in soil

as they abandoned home for a new fate.

Tearing out a root system makes the plant

vulnerable, and at risk.

Leaving the earth that is known,

and the support system, the nutrients

for a time, one is exposed and alone.

Will the root system take anew?

Or will there be rejection?

Will there be acceptance and support?

Or will the root system suffer

from the status of ‘export’?

My root system is divided –

Some is with me in this part of the garden but

remnants were left behind.

If I ventured back, I wonder -

what is it that I would find?

The return to papatuanuku (2)

20 years down the track.

Whispering chatter from the trees,

winter breeze through the valley,

a chorus of birdsong with ease.

A party of welcome from

the caretaker of the earth.

Recognition that my feet

were treading the land of my birth.

It is a reunion complete.

1. Turangawaewae – ‘turanga’ means standing place, and ‘waewae’ means feet in the language of the New Zealand Maori.

2.Papatuanuku is a mother earth figure who gives birth to all things, including people, trees, birds etc.