Sons for the return home

Sons of the return home

(Text to self)

            Sons of the return home a story about a person questioning his own identity. Struggling to know who he is where he belongs and asking himself why is I unlike others. Why do I not belong here, where do I belong? An issue that is very common and almost everyone get confused if this topic ever comes up in a conversation.

           The main character found him self in a situation where he do not know who he is.Moving to a new country and making relationships to a person from different culture made him more confused to the point that he did not know his identity.

           Other people feels the same way as Sione, they sometimes feel that they do not belong in a particular place, especially people from another culture growing up in a different country. Just like me, I grew up in the country of the Philippines. The first few months after we migrate to New Zealand were the hardest. I’ve always wanted to go back to my mother country because of people mocking me about my way of speaking English (Not fluent, hard to understand). I had my trouble. No friends, no other families. Therefore I felt like I do not belong here. The main character, Sione knows others cultures, culture mainly Maoris and Caucasian. Although, He is either a (Samoan or a Kiwi) it is a though time in a persons life to feel this way. Almost as if nobody wants you but at least he knows how to find himself by tracing his ancestry back to Samoa.

           Sione grew up in a Samoan life style. He goes to church with the family (family time) and has kept the tradition Fa’a Samoa. Although, Sione thinks that he is different from his family. I think that he still considers them as family and will keep a close connection to them. His partner Sarah who also made him raised more questions about himself is I believed to be a big part of his life, in trying to know who he is. Maybe he is just confused and not used to Sarah’s culture and that is the reason why he kept asking more and more. This is just a simple example of what you love can be what your weakness is.

          Relating to my self, I think Sons for the return home made me realised that knowing who you are is very important. If you know your backgrounds, your roots and your ancestry, then you will never be able to lose who you are and you can be proud of what you can become.

Wild dogs under my skin

Response to wild dogs under my skirt

This poem I assume is about a young Samoan who is desperate and excited to have his tattoo. “Not blue or green but black” the common colour of a Samoan tattoo.

This person perhaps knows his background and knows what he wants. A tattoo symbolizes his ancestry and his tribe making him a proud Samoan man.

The feeling of desperation is very obvious in the statement “ I want to sit opposite the tufuga and I know he means me pain” a very powerful voice saying that I know its painful I know it hurts but I am a proud Samoan; defeat is only a myth.

The power that has been passed on to him by his tribe is clearly seen. He literally wants to feel the pain that his father’s and forefathers have felt while getting their own tattoos. “I want him to bring out his chisel and hammer and strike my thighs”

He wants his family to be proud of him and that is why he wants to obtain a tattoo as sharp (accurate) as dogs’ teeth. (In order to do that he must resist the pain and do not move a lot while being tattooed) and as fierce looking as a Samoan dog who dislikes strangers for no reason. “I want my legs like octopus black octopus” from my point it means. I want my tattoo to be as obvious as possibly, able to be seen its dark colour because I am a proud Samoan man.

Lastly, to feel satisfied He wants to get hurt, he wants to feel the sting and the swelling of his wounds just as his ancestor did before him.

Inked

In response to 'Tatz'

(Author's Note: The three stars and a sun is in flag of the Philippines.
When there is a war, the Philippine flag gets turned upside down.
"Lupang Hinirang" is the country's national anthem.) 

I may not be inked like you are
I may not experience the pleasure
That comes with pain
When you etch your ancestry

The history of your people
In the depths of your skin
To show the world who you are
But, I am more than that

If I were to ink myself head to toe
And make what makes up my DNA
Visible to everyone

With the history of how
Three stars and a sun with eight rays came to be
And how red is above blue when
Bloodshed and gunfire becomes the only method
To try and claim the land that I belong to

I would turn to ashes

For no amount of ink
That covers my body will ever be enough
To bear the history of my beloved land

So, with my right hand over my heart
I will sing my “Lupang Hinirang”

And claim the ancestry and history
That is forever wrapped
Inside and around my flesh and bones

A book and a pen

Response to book and a pen

         By: Vaine Rasmussen

Not sure about what this author is talking about.

 I mean after all those years

 of going inside and outside of school and in the end

saying “I missed a lot”?

 how big is that plank in your eye that

you, a graduate can not see the reality?

“They gave me a book and pen” is this not English?

“Set-rule and calculator to play with” is clearly for maths.

And “test tubes and Bunsen burners” are more likely to be science.

Are you not happy that you are educated?

 Not everyone gets the opportunity

You are lucky enough to wear those shoes in your feet

Maybe nobody needs education if everyone

is like Bill gates or Steve Jobs.

high school drop outs

yet, invented the great future.

but even this people went through school

and learned that great ideas

 are often found

in a piece of paper

written with a pen or a pencil.

You think calculations are useless,

Well think again.

 how many days, months or even years sill you

spend to obtaining your dreams.

and that perfection can only be achieved through

thousands and thousands of experimentation and repetition.

“When I was at University they gave me another book and a pen

Marx’s theories and Solzhenitsyn’s literature to debate discuss and agree over.

This is where students never understood what schools do for us.

Yea we may never be able to use formulas, verb phrases or astronomy after leaving school

but isn’t this just a formal translation

 of you arguing with your best friends about what each of you

can become after graduating?

Admit it in school you’ve learned

 to love, to suffer, to party and to sacrifice

but most important of all

you’ve learnt how to be yourself

The heck with those A+,B+, or C+

 who needs those anyway right?

They’re just those fancy displays on your C.V.

As if you need those for a better career in life.

Just don’t you dare go regretting your actions once the time of judgement

comes

Where you,

 yourself reach the point of no return.

So next time you call school time a waster

think again you would have never

Be able to write this poem if you took your education for granted.

Response to the Cross.

Response to the Cross.

The cross? It's always the cross ha.

blame the cross, blame this cross

blame that cross, blame their cross

what did the cross ever done to you?

You say it kills, it destroys, it changes.

I tell you that cross is not the true cross.

The cross that I know.

The cross that I know saves, heals, protects.

That cross never changes. 

You say you hate the cross, 

You say that the cross changes everything

but in truth it is, its not the cross that changes 

but its you who always change and kept running away.

you kept denying the cross but in the end kept

saying OMG? OMFG? FCS?

I tell you the cross that you hate is not the true cross.

because the cross that I know will never hate you
nor will it hurt you and will always
 welcome you back.

The cross that I know is never a symbol of destruction.

The cross that I know symbolizes victory over death and over the enemy.

You can not change the cross, no one will ever be able to change the cross

the cross came here to stay. 

It is perfect and will always be the same nothing more, nothing less.

Its promises, gifts and words will always be the same.

It happened before, happens now, will happen in the future.

Do not blame the cross for your mistakes

Look into yourself and realize the truth.

The end of the ages is near; the cross will soon come back

and when it does, are you ready?

Sons for the Return Home (Text to Text)

Sons for the Return Home

Upon reading Sons for the Return Home by Albert Wendt, my initial response is that people don’t start questioning their identity unless they are surrounded by people that are different from them, or someone who seems to be at the other end of the spectrum. When we are surrounded by people that we “belong” with, whether this is in a religious or cultural sense, there is a sense of security. On the other hand, being surrounded by people that we “don’t belong” with, makes us doubt.

This is the main challenge that “the boy” has found himself in – he has been questioning his own identity, just by moving into a different country, and having a relationship with someone who isn’t from his culture, only made him raise more questions.

Racial Stereotypes

The main male character in Sons for the Return Home has his own perception of different cultures, particularly the Maoris and the Caucasian. Each culture views another culture differently and this is something that seems to be taught. Much like racism, these ideas do not exist until someone learns about them, and once they know, this are passed on from one person to another, until the idea becomes a generalization of one culture. More often than not, these generalizations are often negative and sometimes, based on a person’s skin colour. The poem “Brown Brother” by Joshua Iosefo is a great example of this generalization of culture. He talks about his skin colour, the food and “the mud” that “his people” is judged upon, and how you can be the “first” ‘brown’ person to graduate or be a prime minister. This shows just how much the Pacific culture is belittled, when in reality, we don’t know if this speaks the truth, because we only get a glimpse of their life. Therefore, one shouldn’t so easily generalize.

Gender roles

In Sons for the Return Home, there is a distinct difference between the roles of men and women. The mother is expected to be the typical, submissive housewife, whereas the father isn’t expected to show any affection, especially in public as this is apparently a sign of weakness. The wife must “obey [the husband], give him children and keep the home in order.” On the other hand, the man must be that who shows physical strength and able to “protect his family” whenever he needs to. There is also a scene in the book, where the main character hits his girlfriend, yet, she apologized, even though she was the one who got hurt.  

Here are a few excerpts from the Bible that says that a woman should be submissive, especially towards their husband:

“This is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands.”

(1 Peter 3:5)

“Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.”

(Ephesians 5:22)

It’s easy to see that this image of a submissive woman is something that is encouraged in the society even in the past. Like I have stated before, when something is constantly repeated, whether it’s an idea or a way of life, it becomes the tradition and this is passed on because the home is where we learn the most important things in life. Also, it’s quite safe to assume that Pacific Islanders tend to continue the teachings of the Bible. After all, Christianity is a dominant religion in the Pacific.

A woman was only created after the man, biblically speaking, which is another reason why wives should submit to their husbands – because women have always been perceived as inferior, from the time that Christianity was taking over until in today's society. 

Sons of the Return Home makes a person understand what it’s like to have different perceptions of people from different cultures, though I think that the essence of the book is a question of identity in crisis. However, when you do meet them, you’ll find that these ‘common’ perceptions are often wrong, if not exaggerated. It’s so easy to judge other people, yet you forget that you are judged, too, because society relies on first impressions and assumes that what they see, or rather what they hear about what they see, is what they get. 

O' Tamaiti - Sima Urale

O' Tamaiti

O’Tamaiti a short film directed by Sima Urale. Is a story about a Samoan family who recently migrate to their new country. The story revolves around the young boy, Tino, who is also the first born son of the family. Due to his family's situation Tino had to step up and take responsibilities that a child his age should not be doing. Migrating is a really though challenge for this family, especially for Tino. As you can see, his parents work alternatively, they do not have enough time left to take care of their children, thus leaving the job to Tino and his younger sister. It is hard to say that their parents do not care about them. It might be because they are both struggling looking for in to sustain the family's needs. However, the sequence changes when the director showed a stereotypical claim of a drunkard husband at the near end of the film. This is to show that their father can become irresponsible. Tino had to sacrifice his childhood in order to support his parents. He became the second father, he does the groceries, he feeds his siblings and even puts the baby to sleep. The part that disappoints me is that after what Tino had done for the family, his parents still takes his works for granted and not even a single thank you or any sign of appreciation was given for him. Not only that, they also kept leaving a lot of accountability for Tino that they, the parent, should be dealing with. Moreover, the director also showed another stereotypical attitude of a Pacific Islander parents. This is when they fight and throw and break stuffs in front of the kids. As shown in the film; at the scene where Tinos’ father came home drunk and forgot to pay the bill, the parents did not even considered the children who are watching while they fight. As a proof the director excellently managed to use sound effects such as falling object and breaking glass for the viewers to feel and relate to what is happening.

Although, Tino’s life has been a struggle with his parents unfairly treating him, it all did not happen for nothing. Some of these circumstances taught him valuable lessons and can also guide him in his life/fatherhood. Firstly, at such a young age Tino have matured outstandingly, hoping that this would teach him the difference between right and wrong with his parents as an example for him. Secondly, he managed to take care of his brothers and sister becoming the man of the house. This shows that Tino learnt to love his relatives properly and could be a symbol of him taking care of his own family someday. Lastly, according to the film Tino did all of this without his parents being much of a help to him. This proves that Tino is responsible, independent, skill and a reliable person.

To conclude, Sima Urale showed how a person can overcome adversities through the life of Tino. Life is unfair therefore the choice is yours whether you’re going to give up or stand up and face your problems head on aiming for the glory of success