Merry Christmas to all my readers, and thank you for your support!
SEE VIDEO
Much love and blessings to you all today and in the new year,
Mox
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Family Matters
I’ve been told about the central role that family plays in the culture of the Pacific since before I came here. I’ve lived over a year in an island where every new Pohnpeian I meet is able to tell me exactly how we’re related through various connections with my host families. During funerals on-island I’m reminded that, yes, most people feel they should attend EVERY funeral because, in some way or another, they’re family with that person.
But sometimes, even when you think you “get it,” cultural awareness hits you over the head like a baseball bat. And I don’t mean that in a bad way.
A couple of weeks ago, we made family trees in my Oral English/grammar classes. In 7th, we just made simple, pretend family trees to practice using the basic family vocabulary in sentences in which the subjects and predicates agree (to limited success). In 8th grade, we felt we were up to the challenge of graphing our OWN families using family trees. The results were sprawling spiders of names … some of them understood how and why to connect these names, others not quite. But the big shocker moment came when I was collecting them.
There are a few sets of siblings in my 8th grade class, so I joked that some family trees would look pretty similar. Then I realized that cousins, too, would be represented on the trees. So I asked, by a show of hands, which students had cousins or siblings in our class. And in my 8th grade class of 20 students, only FOUR students didn’t raise their hands. I know that if I had asked them to raise a hand if they had cousins or siblings at our school (of 200-ish students), every hand would have been raised. A school full of family didn’t surprise me. But standing there looking at my class-full of cousins really threw me for a loop.
I smiled and tried to explain to them how this was different from my life/how that percentage of family in your class would be unusual in the States (except for in very small towns). Now, I’m not from a particularly large or small town. And growing up I always had a feeling that I was a part of a big and closely connected extended family, especially on my dad’s side. But then, as I was explaining to my students how I never, EVER had been in an academic classroom with a single sibling or cousin because all my cousins were older than me and lived in different cities, I realized how strange that must sound to them. To them it would look like I was all alone for my whole schooling life. And in that moment, I looked at myself through their eyes and thought, “Wow! That must have been really lonely!” And as I was being thusly moved, I tried to tell them what a unique gift their large, loving, and accessible extended families are—how they are lucky and blessed to be Pohnpeians/Micronesians/Pacific Islanders—but I wasn’t quite able to communicate my epiphany to them. To be completely honest, they were distracted when I got a little choked up in the telling.
But this was okay, my emotio-cultural epiphany, because my 8th grade class is a happy and accepting place to be (God bless them). [For example, on a different day we did a paired vocabulary activity about baseball. The first pair to finish was a duo of one of my highest- and one of my lowest-achieving students. They finished first because the high-achiever just filled out all the answers while the other copied. So I congratulated them on their speed, and then asked the former to explain what was going on to the latter. And as they bent their heads over their worksheets and I heard/saw the process of explanation, translation, and comprehension, I realized something else unique and heart-warming about this class – the explainer was 12 years old and my youngest student; the explainee was nearly 17 years old, the eldest in the class. They were dressed alike, in plaid, cargo shorts and black t-shirts, with skinny, machete-scarred legs extending down into Pohnpei zories. But the explainer’s legs barely reached the floor, while the explainee’s knees barely made it under the desk. And yet they worked together harmoniously, without any of the attitude or resentment one might expect from an age-authority reversal. Again, my 8th grade class is a wonderful place to be.]
But back to the family moment. After class that day, I talked with some of my students about how crazy my history must look to them—that as I’ve grown older I’ve been gradually conditioned to go further away from my family for longer periods of time. And how to me that’s normal, to maintain your claim to your family’s love while purposefully distancing yourself and “making your own life” in a new place—I mean, most people in the States do that without even needing to go abroad.
Pohnpeians understand having to go away from your family for a time to find work, send money home, and (hopefully) one day return with enough money to set yourself and your family up for a while in style. But that I haven’t seen my family for 15 months because I chose to go somewhere and make no money (on purpose!), and that I miss my family but am no literally sick for home, makes me a complete oddity to them. (Also that day I found out that my 8th grade co-teacher had started high school in Palau and, for a full semester, suffered actual, physical symptoms of homesickness.)
By most people here it’s assumed that, when I am done with Peace Corps, if I don’t marry a Pohnpeian man and stay forever, then I’ll go back to California to live. Because that’s where my family is, so why would I want to go anywhere else? And as I’ve been away from my family, I begin to see that they have a point. How wonderful it seemed to me that day to be always, literally, surrounded by family. Upon further reflection I can see that nothing’s perfect and that being forever tied into family connections and obligations without having a choice in the matter can also have its downsides. But that day it was a pleasant window (albeit a small one) into how my students view the world.
Ps: My REAL family matters, too. Very much so. I’m going to see them in December—we’re meeting up in Kauai one month from today! And since 15 months is the longest time I’ve ever spent without seeing them face-to-face, I am suitably excited! My computer’s background is a throwback picture from Homebuilders circa 1990 that Mom emailed a while ago. I went into paint, drew a big, pink heart around the four of us, and set it as desktop. To them, “I love you, and I’ll see you soon!”
But sometimes, even when you think you “get it,” cultural awareness hits you over the head like a baseball bat. And I don’t mean that in a bad way.
A couple of weeks ago, we made family trees in my Oral English/grammar classes. In 7th, we just made simple, pretend family trees to practice using the basic family vocabulary in sentences in which the subjects and predicates agree (to limited success). In 8th grade, we felt we were up to the challenge of graphing our OWN families using family trees. The results were sprawling spiders of names … some of them understood how and why to connect these names, others not quite. But the big shocker moment came when I was collecting them.
There are a few sets of siblings in my 8th grade class, so I joked that some family trees would look pretty similar. Then I realized that cousins, too, would be represented on the trees. So I asked, by a show of hands, which students had cousins or siblings in our class. And in my 8th grade class of 20 students, only FOUR students didn’t raise their hands. I know that if I had asked them to raise a hand if they had cousins or siblings at our school (of 200-ish students), every hand would have been raised. A school full of family didn’t surprise me. But standing there looking at my class-full of cousins really threw me for a loop.
I smiled and tried to explain to them how this was different from my life/how that percentage of family in your class would be unusual in the States (except for in very small towns). Now, I’m not from a particularly large or small town. And growing up I always had a feeling that I was a part of a big and closely connected extended family, especially on my dad’s side. But then, as I was explaining to my students how I never, EVER had been in an academic classroom with a single sibling or cousin because all my cousins were older than me and lived in different cities, I realized how strange that must sound to them. To them it would look like I was all alone for my whole schooling life. And in that moment, I looked at myself through their eyes and thought, “Wow! That must have been really lonely!” And as I was being thusly moved, I tried to tell them what a unique gift their large, loving, and accessible extended families are—how they are lucky and blessed to be Pohnpeians/Micronesians/Pacific Islanders—but I wasn’t quite able to communicate my epiphany to them. To be completely honest, they were distracted when I got a little choked up in the telling.
But this was okay, my emotio-cultural epiphany, because my 8th grade class is a happy and accepting place to be (God bless them). [For example, on a different day we did a paired vocabulary activity about baseball. The first pair to finish was a duo of one of my highest- and one of my lowest-achieving students. They finished first because the high-achiever just filled out all the answers while the other copied. So I congratulated them on their speed, and then asked the former to explain what was going on to the latter. And as they bent their heads over their worksheets and I heard/saw the process of explanation, translation, and comprehension, I realized something else unique and heart-warming about this class – the explainer was 12 years old and my youngest student; the explainee was nearly 17 years old, the eldest in the class. They were dressed alike, in plaid, cargo shorts and black t-shirts, with skinny, machete-scarred legs extending down into Pohnpei zories. But the explainer’s legs barely reached the floor, while the explainee’s knees barely made it under the desk. And yet they worked together harmoniously, without any of the attitude or resentment one might expect from an age-authority reversal. Again, my 8th grade class is a wonderful place to be.]
But back to the family moment. After class that day, I talked with some of my students about how crazy my history must look to them—that as I’ve grown older I’ve been gradually conditioned to go further away from my family for longer periods of time. And how to me that’s normal, to maintain your claim to your family’s love while purposefully distancing yourself and “making your own life” in a new place—I mean, most people in the States do that without even needing to go abroad.
Pohnpeians understand having to go away from your family for a time to find work, send money home, and (hopefully) one day return with enough money to set yourself and your family up for a while in style. But that I haven’t seen my family for 15 months because I chose to go somewhere and make no money (on purpose!), and that I miss my family but am no literally sick for home, makes me a complete oddity to them. (Also that day I found out that my 8th grade co-teacher had started high school in Palau and, for a full semester, suffered actual, physical symptoms of homesickness.)
By most people here it’s assumed that, when I am done with Peace Corps, if I don’t marry a Pohnpeian man and stay forever, then I’ll go back to California to live. Because that’s where my family is, so why would I want to go anywhere else? And as I’ve been away from my family, I begin to see that they have a point. How wonderful it seemed to me that day to be always, literally, surrounded by family. Upon further reflection I can see that nothing’s perfect and that being forever tied into family connections and obligations without having a choice in the matter can also have its downsides. But that day it was a pleasant window (albeit a small one) into how my students view the world.
Ps: My REAL family matters, too. Very much so. I’m going to see them in December—we’re meeting up in Kauai one month from today! And since 15 months is the longest time I’ve ever spent without seeing them face-to-face, I am suitably excited! My computer’s background is a throwback picture from Homebuilders circa 1990 that Mom emailed a while ago. I went into paint, drew a big, pink heart around the four of us, and set it as desktop. To them, “I love you, and I’ll see you soon!”
Monday, November 15, 2010
Friday, November 5, 2010
Up-to-Speed, One Month Late!
Hello!
When we last left our heroine, she was embarking on a mysterious trip, crossing seas and pursuing health care with great aplomb. Then she kind of got sidetracked and left everyone hanging. For this she is deeply sorry, or at least a little bit repentant.
The truth is that my time in the Philippines is NOTHING like I expected it to be! Cool, right?! Remember how I was going to be alone a lot? Remember how I was getting new glasses? Yeah. Neither of those things happened. Instead I made a lot of new friends, explored Manila more than I thought I would, and came home with a totally unexpected and laughably simple solution for my eye problems (one that doesn't even involve glasses!).
I should start with the eyes, since they were the cause of this little vacay. When I went to the ophthalmologist, whose offices were located in a mall named Shangrila, they examined my eyes and declared them functionally perfect, except that my "tear bays were a little low." (Since I'm now a fisherman's daughter, I automatically associated this diagnosis with low tide.) So basically I was told that I don't need ANY glasses for ANYTHING (a reversal of the last two years of bespectacled reading & computer time), and I was given ELEVEN boxes of moisturizing eye drops, plenty to bring my eyes back to high tide.
I was in Manila from Saturday night until Thursday night (flights from Manila to FSM do not run daily, you see). All the medical stuff happened on Monday. So I had the rest of the time to do with as I liked. Which I promise would have been spent regaling you with adventure stories if I hadn't been surrounded by people with whom I could make those adventures!
"What people?" I hear you ask. Well, the hostel where they set me up for the week also happens to be the central landing place for any and all Philippines PCVs, and my trip corresponded with several cool people coming through for various business. In fact, from the moment the lovely and hospitable PCMO ushered me into my hostel (after she met me at my terminal as I deplaned on a Saturday night ... what a lady!), I defaulted into having at least 15 new friends! There was a group of PCVs and PCTs sitting on the patio who were eager to welcome me once I said the magic "Peace Corps" words. It's funny, the Philippines has so many volunteers that there was some initial confusion/assumptions that I was, in fact, one of their in-country peers who they had somehow failed to meet earlier. But then we sorted it out and got down to the business of getting acquainted and having fun.
Over the week with my new friends I experienced Videoke (Video Karaoke; I hear it's the Philippines' national pastime), went out dancing in a club that plays more than 5 songs on loop (!!!!), ate delicious meals (Indian! Shawarma! Mexican! Dark Chocolate Cakes! Milkshakes!), and went to funky markets and upscale malls. So, yes, my main activity in Manila was consumerism, and it was fantastic. Amidst these adventures I got a chance to have wonderful conversations with some really excellent individuals. A recurring theme was comparing and contrasting PC experiences past, present and future -- what got us here, what life is like now, and where we hope it will take us. It's amazing that I was able to connect so well with people I just met--and was able to share and listen to really personal stories (you know who you are; thank you).
The other best part of the trip (I think we're several "bests" in right now ... it was a really great trip!) was the opportunity to skype using the free, fast internet at the hostel. Even though I was on the other side of the world (12-hour time difference from EST, what?!) It was amazing to see my familiar faces. I love you all very much! Thank you for connecting with me!
So that basically sums up my trip, but it only brings you up to speed to the beginning of October. Since that time, I spent a couple of weeks madly catching up with my work at school in time for mid-term exams and tried to get a good direction going for 2nd quarter (tough with all these early November holidays & community funerals, but who doesn't like a nice day or several off from school?). I also experienced the relationship twilight zone of saying goodbye to the last of the M75s on-island, getting to know the new M77s who will be sworn in next week, and looking forward to seeing the rest of my M76s when we come together for our Mid-Service Conference in December. I'm also falling more deeply in love with my host family, making new friends/having new experiences in Pohnpei, and looking forward to seeing my REAL family in Kauai in December. As my dear friend Caitlin would say (in quoting a great film), "It's all happening!"
So thanks for caring about what's happening with me. What all is happening for you?
Love!
Mox
When we last left our heroine, she was embarking on a mysterious trip, crossing seas and pursuing health care with great aplomb. Then she kind of got sidetracked and left everyone hanging. For this she is deeply sorry, or at least a little bit repentant.
The truth is that my time in the Philippines is NOTHING like I expected it to be! Cool, right?! Remember how I was going to be alone a lot? Remember how I was getting new glasses? Yeah. Neither of those things happened. Instead I made a lot of new friends, explored Manila more than I thought I would, and came home with a totally unexpected and laughably simple solution for my eye problems (one that doesn't even involve glasses!).
I should start with the eyes, since they were the cause of this little vacay. When I went to the ophthalmologist, whose offices were located in a mall named Shangrila, they examined my eyes and declared them functionally perfect, except that my "tear bays were a little low." (Since I'm now a fisherman's daughter, I automatically associated this diagnosis with low tide.) So basically I was told that I don't need ANY glasses for ANYTHING (a reversal of the last two years of bespectacled reading & computer time), and I was given ELEVEN boxes of moisturizing eye drops, plenty to bring my eyes back to high tide.
I was in Manila from Saturday night until Thursday night (flights from Manila to FSM do not run daily, you see). All the medical stuff happened on Monday. So I had the rest of the time to do with as I liked. Which I promise would have been spent regaling you with adventure stories if I hadn't been surrounded by people with whom I could make those adventures!
"What people?" I hear you ask. Well, the hostel where they set me up for the week also happens to be the central landing place for any and all Philippines PCVs, and my trip corresponded with several cool people coming through for various business. In fact, from the moment the lovely and hospitable PCMO ushered me into my hostel (after she met me at my terminal as I deplaned on a Saturday night ... what a lady!), I defaulted into having at least 15 new friends! There was a group of PCVs and PCTs sitting on the patio who were eager to welcome me once I said the magic "Peace Corps" words. It's funny, the Philippines has so many volunteers that there was some initial confusion/assumptions that I was, in fact, one of their in-country peers who they had somehow failed to meet earlier. But then we sorted it out and got down to the business of getting acquainted and having fun.
Over the week with my new friends I experienced Videoke (Video Karaoke; I hear it's the Philippines' national pastime), went out dancing in a club that plays more than 5 songs on loop (!!!!), ate delicious meals (Indian! Shawarma! Mexican! Dark Chocolate Cakes! Milkshakes!), and went to funky markets and upscale malls. So, yes, my main activity in Manila was consumerism, and it was fantastic. Amidst these adventures I got a chance to have wonderful conversations with some really excellent individuals. A recurring theme was comparing and contrasting PC experiences past, present and future -- what got us here, what life is like now, and where we hope it will take us. It's amazing that I was able to connect so well with people I just met--and was able to share and listen to really personal stories (you know who you are; thank you).
The other best part of the trip (I think we're several "bests" in right now ... it was a really great trip!) was the opportunity to skype using the free, fast internet at the hostel. Even though I was on the other side of the world (12-hour time difference from EST, what?!) It was amazing to see my familiar faces. I love you all very much! Thank you for connecting with me!
So that basically sums up my trip, but it only brings you up to speed to the beginning of October. Since that time, I spent a couple of weeks madly catching up with my work at school in time for mid-term exams and tried to get a good direction going for 2nd quarter (tough with all these early November holidays & community funerals, but who doesn't like a nice day or several off from school?). I also experienced the relationship twilight zone of saying goodbye to the last of the M75s on-island, getting to know the new M77s who will be sworn in next week, and looking forward to seeing the rest of my M76s when we come together for our Mid-Service Conference in December. I'm also falling more deeply in love with my host family, making new friends/having new experiences in Pohnpei, and looking forward to seeing my REAL family in Kauai in December. As my dear friend Caitlin would say (in quoting a great film), "It's all happening!"
So thanks for caring about what's happening with me. What all is happening for you?
Love!
Mox
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Embarking on my very own ‘kasdo en Philippine’
To explain the reference, “kasdo” is Pohnpeian for “movie.” And “kasdo en Philippine” is what they call Filipino soap opera sagas, which are very popular in Pohnpei.
But what, you may ask, does this have to do with me?
Answer: I’m going to the Philippines!
Actually, as I type I’m already halfway there. I’m writing from the Guam airport, which is easily the swankiest structure I’ve seen in a year. I’ve already had many adventures so far today, including leaving Pohnpei for the first time in a year and seeing/landing in Chuuk for the first time (the lagoon islands and Weno are quite lovely from the air), and eating Burger King (eh, not so impressive).
But why am I going to the Philippines? Shouldn’t I be in Pohnpei shaping young minds and interacting with my community?
Well, yes. Yes, I should be. And I will be doing so again in one week’s time, if all goes as planned. But the The Peace Corps is sending me to the Philippines.
Why?
For an eye exam and to renew my reading glasses’ prescription.
!!!!!
Yes, I’m flying many, many miles on the Peace Corps’ dime for an eye exam. And this is simply because my prescription is getting old and Pohnpei doesn’t have the technology to read, prescribe or treat my particular ocular malady.
The official term for what’s happening to me right now is a “medevac”—which is shorthand for a “Medical Evacuation.” Which clearly does not bring to mind a visit to the optometrist. But, as my wonderful and attentive PCMO explained to me, Peace Corps is responsible for my health during these two years. If I have a medical problem, they will treat it. And if that problem requires facilities or procedures not available to me at site, they will get me where I need to go so that we can resolve the problem. So, rather than conjuring up terrifying images of emergencies and life support, a medevac is basically just an extension of the really exceptional health care insurance that is the Peace Corps Medical Office.
So back to my kasdo en Philippine. The plan is this: I’ll be staying in Manila for a week because of flights. The only medical business I have to attend to are a visit to the optometrist and whatever necessary follow-up visits I might need. Other than that, I’ll be hanging out in my hotel, shopping in the malls, eating in the restaurants, and reading in the cafés & coffee shops. Which is what the characters in these films do, pretty much. (Expect not in the period-piece ones, obviously) So I’ll have a one-woman show, literally. A mini vacation with a medical overlay. Which is a really exciting surprise. (I say “surprise” because I found out two days ago that this was the plan.)
The only downside is that I will honestly miss my island, family and school. Yesterday was slightly crazy trying to plan for the week of my absence, but my coworkers and family members have all been nothing but obliging. As soon as everyone realized that no, I’m not horribly sick, they all god excited about my trip. I’ve gotten many bits of advice on what to buy, how not to get cheated, and how to stay safe. At least 5 times people have told me not to wear “jewels” and stick my hands out of car windows because thieves will chop off the bejeweled hand. If it’s a tall tale, it’s a powerful one here.
And speaking of hands, it is tradition here to shake hands with a person before they leave on a trip. So even a trip as short as this one looks to be, everyone I know gave me a strong handshake with earnest blessings for my journey. My American Dad will also be happy to hear that my Pohnpeian Dad gathered everyone around to bless my journey before I left the house. Although I don’t think he used the exact term “travelling mercies,” I’m sure that he meant it.
And my trip has been blessed already – due to a conference in Thailand, Bruce, our post’s fabulous AO (Administrative Officer), is on all my flights until Manila. So I’ve had a great travel buddy to help me navigate the various stop-overs and transfers that are part-and-parcel with travelling in the Pacific.
But now it looks like we’re boarding now. If I’m feeling up to it, I’ve got a nice information packet for my medevac. Guess what that’s stored in? You guessed it … a manila envelope!
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Fun with assignments!: A Traditional Dialogue
Written Thursday, September 09, 2010
This week I had my eighth graders write dialogues about Pohnpeian traditions, with spectacularly fun results. Here’s my personal favorite, written and performed with aplomb by two of my top students and my one IEP (Pohnpei DoE for Special Ed) student, all boys. [Brackets mine]
[Shakira and Peggy enter from left; Sinsohn enters from right]
Shakira: Hi, how are you?
Peggy: What’s your name?
Sinsohn: My name is Sinsohn. What is your name?
Peggy: [With hands on hips and feminine flair] This is my friend Shakira, and I am Peggy.
Shakira: What is an important tradition in Pohnpei?
Sinsohn: Planting yam.
Peggy: How do you plant the yam?
Sinsohn: We will dig a hole, put the yam in the hole, and bury it.
Shakira: And then what do you do?
Sinsohn: After one week, we will put a stick on the yam, and the vine will grow into the trees.
Peggy: How do you eat the yam?
Sinsohn: We will take it out of the hole, wash it, peel the yam, and cook it and eat it with our hands.
Shakira: Ewwww! Gross!
Peggy: Disgusting!
Sinsohn: I mean spoon.
Peggy: Oh, I’m sorry.
Shakira: Oh, spoon!
Sinsohn: Yes, I mean we will eat it with a spoon.
Peggy: That’s how you eat it?
Sinsohn: Yes.
Shakira: Okay, thank you.
Peggy: Goodbye, see you later.
Sinsohn: You’re welcome!
Friday, September 3, 2010
Dancing Video!
Mombo has done it again!
The most recent batch of photos are up on her picasa (to be captioned by me soon), AND she posted this little beauty from Madolenihmw Women's Day. I didn't previously know the teenage girls to whom I handed my camera, but they seemed to know how to cheer me on, nonetheless. Also, listen for random people laughing at the "lien wai" -- that means "white woman." You see, there are 7 or 8 districts in Madolenihmw ... District 2 (Pwin Keriau) was the only one with a foreigner.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tAjecdV7Cs
Also, Mom, could you put up the video from Daddy's "Celebration"? I want to show the folks at home how ridiculous song & dance runs in the family.
Much love! (And welcome to the M77s who land in Pohnpei today!)
Mollie
The most recent batch of photos are up on her picasa (to be captioned by me soon), AND she posted this little beauty from Madolenihmw Women's Day. I didn't previously know the teenage girls to whom I handed my camera, but they seemed to know how to cheer me on, nonetheless. Also, listen for random people laughing at the "lien wai" -- that means "white woman." You see, there are 7 or 8 districts in Madolenihmw ... District 2 (Pwin Keriau) was the only one with a foreigner.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tAjecdV7Cs
Also, Mom, could you put up the video from Daddy's "Celebration"? I want to show the folks at home how ridiculous song & dance runs in the family.
Much love! (And welcome to the M77s who land in Pohnpei today!)
Mollie
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