The history of the shore
I stand on the sand
Witnessing the ocean’s routine
The place where sea meets land
And where the loud meets serene
I ponder the dark history
Of what could have happened here
It’s one enormous mystery
The answers are not quite clear
But I know my ancestors landed upon these shores
Hundreds of years ago
To live amongst each other, fighting wars
Bodies scattered across the plateau
Mothers and sons and fathers and daughters
Slain and slaughtered
The flesh of their innocent, lifeless corpses
butchered and quartered
The head of a defeated chieftain
Decapitated
To be ritualistically eaten
Preserved or decorated
Then the white man came
With tools, food, and muskets
At first, our relationship was tame
But war erupted for land and justice
Missionaries had converted
Many Maori to Christianity
They baptized men who had once murdered
And now yearned for a different personality
I turn away from the seas
And head back up onto the mountain
Where I’m confronted with a breeze
The answers I wanted, I had found them
