By: Trevor Carolan

Trevor Carolan — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 03:32:09 +0000

People sometimes ask how it is in the writing and teaching trades that we know what we know. I tell them, “Mostly it comes from reading…” For those of us who enjoy keeping abreast of what’s happening in the literatures of Asia and the Pacific world, MANOA has been our secret decoder ring for a while now (20 years already?). That’s a lot of aloha. As a visiting researcher to the Univ. of Hawai’i shortly after the first edition of MANOA had arrived, I remember calling by the office more or less by accident, and the friendly welcome I received. Things have changed a little over the years, but not too much and only for the better. Through subscriptions, occasional review contributions, a long-distance editorial friendship, and regular linkages with other members of the MANOA community throughout the Pacific Rim (and we’re talking some far-flung places), I’ve felt privileged by this sustained association with such a truly unique publication. One can’t forget that it comes to us from northern Polynesia: I don’t think the journal we know as MANOA could come from anywhere but the middle of the Pacific, halfway between East and West. The beauty of being on the periphery is that it’s also known sometimes as the leading-edge–always a groovy place to dance our prayers. Mahalo nui for two decades of illumination!–Trevor Carolan, British Columbia

By: Davide Sapienza

Davide Sapienza — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 07:28:44 +0000

When I was asked to join the Summer 2008 issue with an essay by Barry Lopez (consider this: he is my favourite living author and thinker, and I’ve been heavily influenced by his work, as an author and journalist), I was really amazed. Amazed because I was going to be given the chance to join a group of authors from all over the world to contribute to one unifying theme–something we all desperately need in order to survive the current situation (and I hope Obama will be President, because the world will be a better place, and a more reconciled place). Amazed when I received my copy of MANOA and avidly browsed through some of the most beautiful writings I have read recently. So thank you, MANOA, for Being, and it is my honour and pride to have been part of this. There is a sentence I like, referred to Native peoples cultures: “I become part of it”–and that is precisely how I felt.–Davide Sapienza

Comments on: Congratulations Received

By: Trevor Carolan

By: Davide Sapienza