Tusitala

“Tustitala”

teller of tales

that I never heard

till yesterday

born away

for another life

today

the tale I tell

is theirs and yours

a way of seeking

some more

of Somoa

of my sacred centre

today

the tale I tell

will book its way

through tongued histories

sanctioned mysteries

spaces of silence

timeless lives

“tala tusi”

tell the book

word the spirit of brown

in theory

in creativity

we make our sound

renowned

first published in Literature, Cultural Politics and Identity in the New Pacific edited by V Hereniko and R Wilson (Rowman & Littlefield, 1999), © Selina Tusitala Marsh 1999, used by permission of the author.

Selina Tusitala Marsh

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