This Christmas, Boralani offers its first modern Christmas song not as a performance, but as a moment—set to the slow rhythm of tide and lantern light. Written in the plain, communal voice of the island, it reflects a place where Christmas arrives without hurry, where memory and gratitude share the same table, and where the year is laid down gently rather than celebrated loudly. The song belongs to no single singer; it is meant to be learned easily, sung together, and carried forward as a small tradition rooted in land, sea, and the people who remain.
Sun comes up on the quiet bayOars knock soft where the canoes stayBreadfruit warm and the kettle singsMorning knows what Christmas brings
Oh sing it slow on BoralaniLet the long year set us freeNo snow, no bells, no hurryJust the tide and companyHold the light, pass the bowl aroundLet tomorrow wait its turnIt’s Christmas on BoralaniBy the fire and the fern
Church door open, voices plainPrayers rise up, come down againNames we loved and names we lostStill sit close, no seat is crossedOh sing it slow on BoralaniLet the long year set us freeNo snow, no bells, no hurryJust the tide and companyHold the light, pass the bowl aroundLet tomorrow wait its turnIt’s Christmas on BoralaniBy the fire and the fern
Fish on leaves and kulu sweetBare feet dust along the streetOld hands clap, the young ones laughTime walks with us, half by halfOh sing it slow on BoralaniLet the long year set us freeNo snow, no bells, no hurryJust the tide and companyHold the light, pass the bowl aroundLet tomorrow wait its turnIt’s Christmas on BoralaniBy the fire and the fern
If the world feels loud tonightLet it fade beyond the reef lineHere we keep what matters mostLand and sea and those still close
Oh sing it slow on BoralaniLet the long year set us freeIt’s Christmas on BoralaniWith the land… and the sea
