Leila Lees

Ferry Crossing Leila Lees

This little book melds contemplative minimalist poetry with rapid pencil-and-ink sketches. Both words and images were produced sitting on the Waiheke ferry. Both are observatory, almost cursory, and yet manage to convey something deeper- loss, memory, place, transition and discovery.

In 2010 my mother died after a long period of illness with alzheimers. Ferry crossing was written during the time of her dying. It was during this time that I began to draw. My mother was a watercolour artist and I inherited her art materials. I wrote and drew in a small notebook as I travelled on a ferry from Waiheke to Auckland and back. This poem is dedicated to my mother, for her keen observation of nature, her ascetic sense of beauty and her courage.