Laying Siege to Lips
The Incredible Visitation of Apirana Taylor
Ati Teepa (Tūhoe, Kāi Tahu) is a poet beloved here in Ōtepoti and around Aotearoa. A central member of the Tuwhare whānau, Ati knows his poetry. During his recent visit for the festival we asked Ati to write a review of the session featuring Apirana Taylor and he responded in to the ‘volcanic fury’ of Apirana’s work in his own way.
Ati said he was blown away and it was the ‘best poetry thing’ he had ever witnessed. We are honoured to share Ati’s tribute to Apirana here.
You can listen to the session in podcast form here.
The poet has poetry
Written in swirling script
On his face.
Tika tonu!
scratched as lines
From brow to his hairless
Head.
Tīwhana!
The poet is a whare
The poet is a mountain.
Creator and destroyer of worlds.
They rise at night.
Knock on your door.
Like a green ghost moth.
Bashing at your heart.
I must not write
I must not write
I must not
I must not
I must
I must
I
I
I must
I must
I must write
I must write.
He speaks haka
Until spittle gathers at the corner of his mouth.
He speaks volcano
Until words explode from his head.
Papaki tītaha.
Left hook
Right hook
Jab.
Straight to the gut.
The poet has his own voice
His own Reo.
Speaks in the tongue of the
Pub soaked in DB.
He’s a healer
Medicine in his pages
Medicine for him
For us.
Connector, reflector, vulnerable
Visible, victim, villain.
That It’s okay not knowing.
To Be hungry.
The poet is a navigator,
Leads you to the edge of the map.
until you fall off the page
into the unknown.
Through the dark dark dark.
And to the light.
The Light.the light.
The poet doesn’t traverse the ocean in straight lines.
His course is circular he makes the straight line curl on itself.
Tihei Mauriora!
The poet says.
Words are my people.
The pen is my taiaha.
The book is my Marae,
And it’s okay not knowing.
It’s okay to be weak.
Tihei Mauriora!!
Is not just a proclamation
It’s not just a sneeze.
It’s life.
It’s poetry.
(Mō Apirana Taylor - Nā Ati Tuhoe)