Live Encounters Aotearoa New Zealand Poets & Writers March 2026
Hurray. Ode to joy and other potentialities, poem by Alexandra Balm.
Hurray. Ode to joy and other potentialities
Motto: This is supposed to be
a paradigm of presence
why does then absence
haunt my days?
Hurray to the poem
that hasn’t been written.
Hurray to the song
that hasn’t been sung.
Hurray to the thinking
not yet articulated
Hurray to the work
that hasn’t been wrought.
Hurray to the child
who has never been chided
Hurray to the parent
who has known no pain.
Hurray to the morning
that’s yet to be broken.
Hurray to the world
that’s still to be born.
*
You’ve promised me a world
with no hate, nor misconceptions.
You dreamt of a self – bright,
without complaints.
You lifted the veil off
for just a brief moment,
and left me to yearn for
for years afterwards
© Alexandra Balm
Alexandra writes poems and short stories. She received several awards and fellowships, including the Kate Edger Postdoctoral Award from the University of Auckland (2016). Her work was published in Aotearoa New Zealand and overseas. Her latest projects include translating her poetry volume Transformation (Scripta Manent, 2023) into Romanian and completing her novel in progress, A Secret History of the Metamodern. She lives in South Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand, where she teaches at a local high school.