Island City Voices: Chapter 1: The Last Call
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00:00From the bottom of my heart, I love you.
00:20I'm sorry.
00:23I hear you.
00:29In 2010, a gardener named Itaru Suzuki installed a disconnected telephone in his garden in
00:37memory of his recently deceased cousin.
00:40It was a powerful tool to help him navigate his grief.
00:45This idea of a wind phone spread far and wide, with wind phones being installed all across
00:51the world.
00:53Each wind phone carried with it the story of the people it represents.
00:57Island City Voices is a collection of calls made within the city of Portsmouth, inspired
01:03by the memory of five-year-old Hindra Jaab.
01:07In this first episode, each caller will share a story or special memory centred around the
01:13themes of love and compassion, later collectively reflecting and responding to Hindra Jaab's
01:20final call.
01:21The call she made before she died.
01:36Our first stop is South Sea.
01:39Answering questions on self-reflection is poet Abigail Norman, artist Freya Perry and
01:44puppeteer Rachel Goddall.
01:47Hello, I know things haven't always been easy between us.
02:00I just need you to know how much I appreciate you.
02:03I know that you always tried your best.
02:06I know that you gave me what you could with what you had and all you knew.
02:12I'm so moved by the person you've become.
02:17I'm proud of you for showing up despite the pain and the hurt and for giving the love
02:24you could.
02:25Thank you for loving me with what you have and I know it never felt like enough, but
02:30I see you, I hear you and I love you so much, more than words could ever describe.
02:36So what age shall I go back to?
02:39I guess when the magic began.
02:42The magic I mean me, wearing my little ballet dress, a tutu, I looked like a fairy.
02:49I remember it was pale pink and those very soft satin ballet shoes and it was in Childwell
02:55in Liverpool by the five ways in the room upstairs.
03:00Yeah, lovely memories and what would I say to her?
03:06Keep dancing girl, keep the magic alive.
03:10Don't worry, don't worry too much about anything.
03:14Don't worry too much about what people say because it's just words, it's just words.
03:21Stick to who you are, always remember who you are.
03:26Just know that you're good and what you're doing will all come out and it will all be
03:31okay and all those things that are supposed to happen will happen and it will all be alright.
03:40Stepping a little further into the city, we make a call to fitness instructor Harley Elliott
03:45and community volunteer Dan Browning.
03:48We ask them what would they say to their father?
03:53I forgive you.
03:55I think I haven't really had the time to think about it and now that I'm sat here, it's making
04:03me process things a little bit more and it's making me feel like I've taken the way I dealt
04:09with things quite negatively and I think it's really important that I take a step back and
04:17understand that you did everything in your power to rectify that and I'm sorry that it
04:25took me so long to come to terms with it.
04:28It's difficult.
04:33I understand that these relationships get better over time and I really am looking forward
04:40to that being the case and I can't thank you enough for being there for me regardless.
04:48So thank you for that.
04:49It means the world.
04:52I'm going to forgive you.
04:55I still think about you when I need to and I still feel your presence sometimes when
05:04Once again, I wish he was here to guide me where I need guidance but although I still
05:21don't really know you dad and when my time comes now through this trauma, I look forward
05:32to when I become a father because you still taught me how to love.
05:41I guess sometimes the best plans come unexpectedly so it's okay and I forgive you and I'm thankful for you.
05:56Going further afield, we ask Mr Portsmouth himself, John Westwood, and comedian King
06:03Sian their thoughts about love.
06:19The people I love, my mum, my dad, God bless him he's dead.
06:25My son and my daughter, my brother, my sister, my family, what more can I say?
06:33Family's the most important thing in the world.
06:36Family and friends, materialistic things, you can stick them.
06:43Family and friends, that's the most important thing in the world.
06:45Material things are nothing really, they come and go but believe me, I love my family from
06:54the bottom of my heart.
07:24I hope I get to see you again sometime and maybe take you out to that dinner but not as friends.
07:36Even though the first time that we met, I never knew that it was going to go away, that it did
07:40and I'm blessed to have you in my life like I'm every day I wake up and I'm so thankful for all
07:47the memories that we have. I remember that first time when we met, it was just such a hilarious
07:51story. Whoever thought that Tiger Tiger was going to be the place that I would find you is just
07:56mental. So yeah, I'm just, thank you for just being there for me and helping me through everything in
08:02my life. You are an absolute rock to me, you make me happy, you bring me all the enjoyment and
08:10passion in my life and yeah, I'm going to get emotional talking to you but
08:22I love you and I'm excited to get married this year so yeah.
08:30Well, I didn't think I'd be making this phone call but this is a bright, crisp, sunny winter's day
08:40in England. And what does it make me think of? I'm down by the beach, well I'm in the Japanese
08:46garden, Karl, but it's right opposite the beach, do you remember? Coming down and we'd sit there
08:51together and we'd sit on the beach and we'd sit on the beach and we'd sit on the beach and we'd
08:55but it's right opposite the beach, do you remember? Coming down and we'd sit there together
09:00and you always said one day you'd like a chair in your name down there, well maybe we'll do that
09:04one day. So, lovely memories Karl, you're with me every day, love you lots Karl, bye for now.
09:16Finally, we ask our callers to listen and respond to a call that the phone is in memory of.
09:23A call made by five-year-old Hind Rajab moments before she died.
10:54I hear you
11:13and we'll pray for you
11:19and what can you say what can I say
11:23please God it's not in vain
11:28please let others hear this if they have the strength to
11:35so it may never ever happen again. No one deserves to be where you are right now. I hold
11:44you through this with the love from the bottom of my heart and hope collectively we can shift
11:50and return to our state of compassion. I love you, I love you, I love you, please forgive us.
11:58My heart will always be with you.