My brother
on top of Koko Head peak today
any other day
he may be lost
or just on other mountaintops
Diamond Head
Lanikai Pillbox
Some days he is small
in his head
bible in hands
pain, remembrance of
days lost as a kid
We all had to grow up
a little too fast
we all had to survive
a little too much
to make it through days
as skeletons floating
like piñatas
above winery land
We were hot air balloons
in Calistoga
on days our childhood house
was always in mode
of lights out and violence
Now you walk outside to see
colorful fabrics high in the air
flames giving way to
speed and light to
fly away from this life
to be bigger than this life
Brother
you and I
they and us
we aren’t kids anymore
it’s like we took those shades off and
see this new panorama
see this scenery
see these murals with messages
broadcasting how we don’t belong
to our skeletons of sad children
We can be anywhere
like you are now
in the Honolulu hills
Oahu beaches
pineapple mountains
and palm trees
There is nothing bigger than your grace
bigger than you
e kūlia i ka nu’u
Photo by Georgina Marie, Tropical Flowers in Rural Country, Ukiah, California
“e kūlia i ka nu’u” is a Hawaiian proverb meaning “strive to reach the highest”.
-Georgina Marie, Poet in Residence
