Man, meri, pikinini
waite man, black man, olgeta lain.Passerby’s pass on by
in quick strides,
shunned, avert eyes,
seeing what can’t be unseen– Lukim em,
em sanap na lukimShe squints to look.
There, beyond the glass of safety
laid barren hope, dreams, ruined.Despair, etched deep into frail wrinkles
like the cracked path they led,leading them down here to where the crumbling mortar, hanging from moss ridden bricks was their clothes in tethers, pealing from their damp skins.
Pasim ai, karamapim nus, sakim het.
The putrid stench of failure,
hopelessness seeks desperation,
rising from the viscous substance
crawling to makeshift drains
tunnelling beneath her feet,…moving.
Saitim ai, inap lo’ luk luk,
wokabaut igo.Her pace harkens for quick strides,
her squint disappears behind dark shades.
Her phone had seen enough.-Hans Lee
Category: Papua New Guinea
#71 Prose:”PNG has town planners???”
He walked in ahead of me, shook hands, and wrapped himself into of those large meeting seats that sat around the conference table that took up too much space in the small room.
#69: Poem – Stories In Planning
Stories In Planning
Today when planners tell stories,
We do so remembering history.What would histories be without stories,
When words connect memories to space, and time
Embedding themselves onto space, remembering times –Like dirt tracks that become raging roads,
Like cargo wharves hosting art shows,
And acreage that become quarter acre blocks.We tell stories,
to fill the gaps in our memories
of space through time.But some histories are too young.
Some memories too short.Remembering is not possible.
So we borrow time,
Embedding our space with another story,
Living another planners history.-Hans Lee
Can planners really use stories to help us understand the city?
#67 Transforming the Face of Port Moresby
A concerted energy is blowing through the historic streets of Port Moresby, transforming the once derelict Down Town Precinct into the site of future commerce.
Continue reading “#67 Transforming the Face of Port Moresby”
#64 Is Port Moresby About To Come Alive?
What makes a city come alive?
Or rather, I should ask why
– Why would we want a city to come alive?
Maybe the second question is easier to answer.
#62: Three Great Ways To Catch Polio in Pom Siti
Since the outbreak was declared in PNG in mid June 2018, a dozen cases have been reported, and we are still counting.
One case has already been reported in Port Moresby’s 5 Mile.
But how does it spread and how can you get amongst the latest craze to sweep the nation?
Continue reading “#62: Three Great Ways To Catch Polio in Pom Siti”
#61: P in PNG: The Second Coming
It’s the week of Independence.
A young mother, elegantly attired in her PNG meri-blouse, huddles amongst the murmur of other young parents under a tent at the Gerehu Hospital.
With all her attention, she watches the nurse-meri, her eyes trailing every movement of the nurse as she squeezes two drops of a liquid into the pinched mouth of her four year old son.
She exhales in relief knowing that the monster lurking in the dark won’t take her son. At least, not this one.
-Hans Lee
AS we settle into the days after our 43rd Independence festivities, we will be confronted with the dawning reality that may haunt us more in weeks to come.
No, it’s not APEC 2018. And it’s not the nervous toea-clanking at the bottom of the governments empty purse.
It is something much, much, worse.
#60: Pasifik Diplomacy: Lost in Australia
Enter stage left: Foreign Minister, Marise Payne.
“Stepping up [in the Pacific] isn’t an option for the coalition, it’s an imperative…”
Exit stage left: Foreign Minister, Marise Payne
AS the US experiences a bout of Political cold, the Pacific is experiencing a space of increasing tension between traditional and non-traditional players.
Continue reading “#60: Pasifik Diplomacy: Lost in Australia”
#59. Right To The City
This poem has the potential to cause some grief so please take with a grain of salt.
#58 Dear Pom Siti Road Vendors
Originally Published on Twitter:
Dear Pom Siti Road Vendors,
Thank you for the smuk na buai.
The kulau.
The galip nut.
Na peanut.
Thank you for the deer antler.The Nius-Pepa na GoGo Cola.
The 6 ft mirror.
Steering wheel cover, Dark Specs na Air Freshner.
Always and forever,Stuck’n Traphic
