Britomart.
Week Two.

Born in Iraq and now completing his PhD in Auckland, writer and researcher Faisal al-Asaad realises self-isolation is already a way of being for him and many others – and hopes Covid-19 might wake us up to the damage of it and change this enforced pattern of retreat. 

Lawrence Patchett’s 2019 novel, The Burning River, imagines the prospect of a very different New Zealand after an unspecified crisis. In this short piece commissioned by Britomart, entitled Protected, he contemplates separation and connection, and the delicate balance of the natural world.  

Writer and activist Anahera Gildea (Ngāti Raukawa-ki-te-Tonga) wrote this poem for our Notes on Self-Isolation series. It’s entitled 'He waka eke noa on the news feed'.

London-based New Zealander Elle Hunt reports on life as a freelance journalist and the absurdity of public relations pitches in a world turned upside-down.