Crossroads: continuity and change

By Deborah Wall

Ancient faces, phases,

continuity and change

teetering on the balance,

Masked men and women showcased

colourful feathers waving with the wind

as they peered through tiny painted hole eyes of old,

seeing from extant tradition

the external world's shifting stage

at the fifth Melanesian Festival performances.

Flashing, lightning speed digital smart phones

recorded for posterity the interplay of cultures

now and then, a backward glance,

then eyes looked forward

to the desire to preserve

'taim bilong tambuna'.

Complexity/simplicity fused

at live performances of diverse cultures

at risk, the earth shuddered, faith trembled

at the prospect of a dance to extinction,

columns of bare feet pounded the earth,

dust flew, drums beating collective heartbeats

that synchronised with the rhythm of singsing,

the human species at edge now

with cultural unrest!

D.R.W.

Port Moresby, PNG

July 2014