What was also neat was having the opportunity to read some poetry and gift some poetry books to students to encourage them in their writing and to hopefully receive some contributions for our next book.
The two poems that I was able to share with the group were requested by our local library manager and I thought I'd share one of the poems in this blog too (the other was called: 'Mangere my mountain' which I might add in a later blog.
Papa's Mark II Zephyr
Papa's shiny blue and white Mark II Zephyr was his pride and joy
bought back in 1964 to replace the
racy black bachelor motorbike with its roaring engine,
complete with jet black helmet and chocolate leather crusted bomber jacket.
A family man now with a wife, child and another on the way
no longer with a reputation.
Now respectable, honourable.
Every weekend he'd polish and buff her to sparkly new
kept her as immaculate as could be
her cool steel steering wheel with leather upholstery
she was his pride and joy for almost two decades
but over the years wear and tear took its toll
and pretty soon tears and holes
appeared in her leather seats with doors that no longer closed so well.
In the 70s, whilst other families were upgrading their
cars to the latest Holden Commodore and Ford
Papa still kept his endearing Zephyr
a mutual relationship of love and care
as they traversed many a mile from Auckland to Wellington
with regular family trips to beaches and churches
transporting important guests to important places
she was his trusted friend
but time was beginning to take its toll and fixing it was becoming too costly.
Occasionally, Black Power patched gang members
would knock on the door to ask if he would sell her spare parts
her daughter cringing, wishing he would
but his answer was always the same
his daughter becoming more ashamed
wishing she could ride a more fashionable car
so embarrassed that she would rather walk or scoop down in the back seat
whenever she saw classmates
as they drove by not wanting to be seen in the aging Zephyr.
All too soon, it was all too much
and in the 80s, his Mark II Zephyr had done its dash
and she refused to toil anymore with parts had to find
she could no longer pass the road worthy test so
reluctantly they parted ways
he could not bear to sell her and instead gifted her to a mechanic friend and
replaced her with a Ford.
We never saw her again
but was sometimes reminded of her
immortalized and remembered
in black and white photos
of better days gone by with loving memories
by him.
(c) 2016 by Helen Tau'au Filisi
In the poetry collection book of "Pacific Hibiscus"
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