Blonde
I want to be blonde when I grow up
Have long shapely legs and a double D cup
I am only four but I know where I stand
Although the daughter of an immigrant
Barbie and Jane Fonda still have an imprint
I want to be blonde when I grow up
A child understands how beauty is perceived
She doesn’t know how the gene pool works
But she know what society sees
Brown skin, dark hair and bony knees
And later when the double D's I thought I would grow turned out to be B's
I prayed for a growth spurt, that never arrived
As a half-caste Fijian Indian living in small-town New Zealand, I survived
As a brown bogan sieving through any subculture that will take
I cover up and hide from the sun, while my mates stretch out for the full tan bake
All the girls wear short skirts and their virginity is something to share, not keep
Yet if I dressed like my 60-year-old aunties with nose rings, and exposed midriff I’m thought of as cheap
Comments like “but you don’t have that curry scent'“
Or “you’re pretty… well, for an Indian.”
Those are supposed to be compliments
But in 2001 cultural appropriation comes to save the day
Bindi’s are cool, Gwen Stefani wears henna
Madonna practices yoga every day
Apparently being Indian is NOT cool, but Indian accessories are okay
But seriously… Gwen? this is bullshit!
I want to be blonde when I grow up
Put away the turmeric and coconut oil
Use beauty products packaged in plastic and foil
Forget about the virtues of timid and demure
Western society celebrates Women with confidence and allure
Don’t let the neighbours see the pooja fire, or smell the burning spice
Eat with cutlery, eating with your hands isn’t nice
Tone down the drumming, the incense and the chillies for luck
If you don’t set your traditions aside you will be stuck
But it’s not me that is stuck,
And neither is my country,
That constantly moves like the seismic waves that are always reshaping the ground
Each time we stamp our feet, beneath the surface tremors of social movement can be
found
Through small things,
The odd brown on face in catalogues and on TV
City councils hosting Diwali festival of lights
Regular Bollywood movie screening nights
Subtle changes, but over time they have meant that
Getting to know your foreign neighbour may be time well spent
We can have governor general who IS a real New Zealander and of Indian descent
Cultural difference should bring vibrancy to a country
Not a reason to hate, fear and resent
I now look at my four year old nephew
A white boy singing fluent in te reo maori
Adorned in korowai cloak as he makes his ascent to school
When he grows up he wants to dance in tutus and drive a fire truck
I pray, we don’t let anyone tell him that that he is stuck
Because we need him to be
BOLD
When he grows up