Half Moon Bay
by Fu Jinzhi
Located on the thoroughfare entrance closest to Theobroma cafe.
Paper cutting designs by . Sign writing by New Signland.
Speak Out East is a community-driven poetry project reflecting the abundance of cultural diversity in East Auckland, hosted at Botany Town Centre. Arts Out East work alongside local collectives and communities write or chose a poem to reflect their lived experiences, providing insight and drawing connections for our wider communities.
Half Moon Bay is a seven-character poem by Fu Jinzhi, a local poet and calligrapher. Each line consists of seven characters following a consistent rhythm with his graceful flow of words.
It opens with an autobiographical narrative, gently sharing the author’s journey settling in Half Moon Bay, Auckland from China. Playing with multiple connotations of the ‘moon’, Fu transcribes his initial thoughts of people, immigration, time, nature, and history.
With the eternal moon as a recurring theme, Fu connects Half Moon Bay to his homelands, threaded together with ancient poems by Li Bai and Su Shi. With the moon’s evident tide and flow are the unchanging rhythms of time; Fu reflects his six decades of life, while in front of their eyes lies Half Moon Bay, still lush and green despite the wash of years.
The moon serves as a vessel for emotions, memories, insights, and acceptance. Moon’s cycle of fullness and absence symbolises the ongoing nature of time, and life’s fluctuation and constancies. Facing the complexities of life, brings sorrow and the accumulated perspective that allows Fu to appreciate Half Moon Bay today.
Long ago, poets have expressed their longing for home through the moon. Gazing at the same moon across great distance is a way to convey emotions that words can’t capture. Even today, Chinese culture continues to invoke the moon in reflective songs of sadness and joy. This poem is also an invitation from Fu to look at the moon, to truly see those nearby, the mountain, rivers, and seas.
Mandarin translation of poem:
《半月湾》 是一首傅金枝创作的七言诗，七个字一句诗，格律严密，字数整齐划一， 文字宛转流动。这首诗一段自述开始，娓娓道来作者自己移居奥克兰半月湾的感悟。用 “月亮”这个意向，当作一根丝线，将人，移居，时间，自然和历史的一粒粒思绪串起来。
脚下的奥克兰半月湾，是作者移居后的住所；畅想和李白、苏轼共享万古的明月，是此刻和古人情感的相守相望；抬头看，月亮的潮起潮落是时间不变的规律；向内看，回顾的是作者自己六十载人生的经历，而眼前也是时光冲刷后依然青绿的半月湾。
以月寄情，寄思念，寄感悟，寄释怀。月亮规律的周而复始的圆缺盈亏也暗示着时间的流逝，也承载着生命的变化和不变。面对生活的复杂是磨练，也是此刻能够欣赏半月湾的积淀。
李白和苏轼很早就开始用月亮诉说思乡之情。人隔千里，除了书信之外，共同遥望天际一轮明月也是寄托感情的一种方式。在现在，大家也在用月亮反复吟唱着悲伤与欢乐。
这也是来自作者傅金枝的邀请，一起观月，感悟眼前的人，山，河，海。
This project is funded by Arts Out East and Botany Town Centre. Supported by the Howick Local Board and Te Tuhi.