to Josiah
the leaves lay down
the carbon at my feet
the Leith is sniffing out
the settler’s stone shed the old
quarry the first dam the water
is dripping purple poroporo
from the side of the stream the water
is tickling the pencilled koura
the bells are singing to the red wood
the water is chortling
the water is guffawing
the water is laughing like an ice maniac
rippling its own path down
through the slip of stars
mahika kai inspired I am the water
the water is me I see the blue
reservoir between the trees
and kōtukutuku writes on red paper
mauri ora!
health to the sky!
I am refugia!
out breathe
-Gail Zing
Gail Zing is an award-winning writer from Aotearoa New Zealand, author of three poetry collections, including Some Bird, selected for Best NZ Books 2024 by The NZ Listener. Published in places like Poetry Aotearoa, Cordite Poetry Review, Poems for the Planet, Landfall and others, she can be found at: https://www.theseventhletter.nz/
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