Real Thoughts in Makoma
By Tungteya, Year 8
Time and time again I look over what you are to me, my Mother, me
Koma me biribiara
Your words sing to me like vocals in a choir.
Me maame your heart
Pure and precious wishing the best for everyone
Your faith in God and religion unwavering
Tirimudie tirimudie
You say fa ka biribiara no.
Your words of a future envelope
Entrance and entertain me wherever I go
(hours do it for yourself and no one else sticks to me like yin and yang).
Forgive and forget that’s what live
For the world wasn’t nice to people like us
But your words shine in the light
Maybe I’ll try harder to show how you impact me maame.
Life was never meant to be a gold platter, was it?
Real Thoughts in Makoma by Tungteya is an excerpt from Deadly Writing. Deadly Writing explores significant Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voices. Each week, students explore a range of texts crafted by First Nations artists and use them as inspiration for their own writing. They learn about Indigenous cultures and languages from diverse communities around Australia, and explore their own experiences and values as they write a series of short pieces of writing, producing a personal anthology. Students learn about and experiment with a variety of editing strategies as they prepare their own writing for publication. Deadly, unna?