Rubbing Time Together

Fun began with girls, then boys,

husking coconuts (o’a popo)

using sharp sticks (mele’i)

basket-weaving (lalaga ato)

banana-peeling (fofo’e fa’i)

and fire-making (si’aga afi).

The crowd loved cheering

the ancient and everyday

in  young Samoa, pleased

with progress in being —

together. “In years past, none

could. This year, they all did.”

. . . . .

Poet: Susan Powers Bourne
Source: We Are Samoa
Process: Redact, remix, montage