Highly Commended in the 2021 Dunedin UNESCO Robert Burns Poetry Competition youth section - Rap Like Robbie
Gilded Locket
Photos taken, serious,
Sombre,
Placed into a locket,
Gilded with rubies and pearls.
When looking in,
We see those,
Who changed their future.
Stones placed,
Dreams mistaken,
As the wind changes,
All of their memories fade in.
Resting on the bow of a ship,
Crisp air flutters,
Guided by ancestors,
Shining in the sky.
Sailing through the night,
A vision of home,
Lingers,
Tears spill, Blurred vision fills.
Don’t look back,
Corset tight,
Starched bright,
Billowing dresses,
Hold it all in.
Don’t look back,
Rolling thistle laid,
Choppy like the harbour,
on a cool winter’s day.
Turning back,
Fog covers the land like a blanket,
As dusk settles,
The highest spire,
Peaks through the clouds.
Cramped ships,
Pull in to the harbour,
Making waves and dips,
An opportunity to start a new way.
Taming lands,
With rabbits, stoats and possums,
She spends her days,
using clubs and knives to get her way.
But how things have changed,
Cultures mingle,
Ringing of home,
People talk.
Embracing heritage,
Far away,
From Food to gods,
To music, to dances.
Notes flitter,
Flowing like rivers,
Marching around,
All through our scant town.
Further away,
The louder the drum beats,
To keep the flame lit.
To keep the connection growing.
Photos taken, serious,
Sombre,
Placed into a locket,
Gilded with rubies and pearls.
To remind those of old.