Dancin’ the days away

“Go dance.”

“I can’t dance!”

“Go dance.”

And thus began my week long dance practice.

Most of the Pohnpeian women that I have met while being here really know how to shake up.  At any kamadipw, special occasion, or just for fun, it is almost a given that if there is music, then there will be dancing.  In honor of Education Day, a day when all the educators on the island gather together to celebrate their successes and reconfirm their commitment to teaching, each municipality had to prepare a song and/or dance to perform for their fellow teachers.  So it was decided by my Principal that all of the teachers at Madolenihmw High School would participate, whether or not they could sing or dance.  Everyone would sing, but for some reason only the ladies would dance.

I love singing – give me lyrics and a melody and I’ll totally sing.  Roughly translated into English, the song MHS chose to sing was about showing the light to people who have lost their way (very appropriate for teachers).  However, I don’t dance.  This is a fact of life.  Over the years I have avoided dances and dancing in general.  Of course, with the “why not?” attitude I have adopted here, I conceded to join in on the dancing.  Surprisingly, I’m actually glad I did since practices were a lot of fun and the dances weren’t too hard once broken down.  The best part, though, was watching the other ladies dance.  They sure know their stuff!  Conversely, it was pretty hilarious observing those teachers who didn’t know the moves attempt to dance since I was in the same boat as them and probably just as ridiculous.  Our performance on Education Day was full of energy and spirit though lacking a bit in accuracy of dance movements.  But sohte pwunod (no worries) since everybody had a good time.

Ironically, this all took place in the midst of mid-terms, so when I should have been grading I was dancing instead.  Curses!  My classes have been both challenging and rewarding for me over the course of this past quarter.  The large class sizes and variety of learning styles and levels in the same class constantly make me work hard to adapt my lessons so everyone can learn.  They haven’t always been successful but teaching is a work in progress, I believe.  However, I have seen my students grow a little more comfortable and confident in using English every day, which is one of the primary reasons as to why I’m here in the first place.  I also love that many students are excited to have an accessible library and borrow books, which makes me really hope that I can spend more time in the library next semester and find a librarian who will carry this all on.

Though I spend most of my free time planning and grading, I have been able to join in on family sakau time, play with the baby, research options for the future (I’m thinking grad school somewhere), and party with my fellow mehn wai.  As always, please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or just want to catch up.  Kaselel until next time!

Drinking sakau (too much sakau)

Looks delicious, right?  Now imagine these roots being pounded on a large flat stone, twisted in hibiscus vines, and squeezed into a dahl en sakau (kava cup).  Sakau remains very much a constant in my life, whether it be in a bottle or off the rock and shared with family, friends, or strangers alike.  It brings people together, which may be the very reason why sakau is so valued in Pohnpeian culture.  It certainly brought my entire extended host family together as we celebrated the birthdays of my host brother, my host father, and my self at one big kamadipw.  It also makes a person reflect on the traditions and lore surrounding this drink, as well as reflect on life in general.

My own life has been taken some unique turns this past year, but with the grace of God and support of my family and friends I have been able to navigate each one.  I have already learned so much – how to teach English, how to integrate into a culture different from my own, how to go with the flow when need be but stay firm when necessary.  Most of all, being a Peace Corps Volunteer in Micronesia has made me learn how to treasure the little things.  Eating breadfruit everyday.  Catching a student sharing a library book with an interested friend.  Understanding a new Pohnpeian word that I have been curious about for the longest time.  One moment that really made me smile was giving recommendations for four of my former students to join Upward Bound, a program for the best and the brightest sophomores, juniors, and seniors who are destined for greatness.

This current school year already has me in full blown work mode.  I’ve acted as an emcee and as the token mehn wai teacher.  Due to some very last minute changes in the schedule (per norm) I am now teaching FOUR (out of four) classes, two sections of juniors and two sections of (crazy) freshman.  All Language Arts but no Biology though (woo-hoo!).  I do my best to incorporate grammar, reading, writing, vocabulary, test taking, and journaling into my classes so I can expose students to the many interesting facets of the English language.  And yes, I spend most of my time lesson planning and grading papers, though I do think (and hope) that it is time well spent. 

The library coordinating is also going well.  All of the fiction books have finally been organized.  New metal shelves have been obtained and installed to house the many stacks of non-fiction books currently sitting on the floor.  The process of getting the shelves was quite the doozy but well worth it.  I am still in the process of finding a permanent librarian, though I have found a counterpart of sorts to work with for now.  I just wish there were more hours in the day!

I would like to thank EVERYONE (even you silent lurkers) who has followed my blog for the past year.  Kalahngan lap once again.  Here’s to another great one!

This post has been brought to you by M77’s Team Pohnpei.

Floatin’ along

“You want to read this fantasy book?”

“Why not?”

“You want to listen to this Korean boy band?”

“Why not?”

“You want to join the Peace Corps?”

“Why not?”

My “why not?” philosophy in life has made me the person I am today, I like to think. Why not give something a try? If all doesn’t go according to plan, at least there will be no regrets.

So when I read the email inviting me to spend the weekend in Pakin, of course I replied yes. Since this was right after GLOW I was already packed with everything I would need. Following a brief respite, I boarded the boat that would take our band of adventurers to this outer island atoll of Pohnpei. The ride itself was beautiful – bright blue skies and clear ocean waters, with the greenery of Pohnpei disappearing in the distance. Our destination was the Chief’s Island, inhabited by only two families. After some enthusiastic greetings I set out to explore the land in the fading light. “Gorgeous” does not do justice to describe what I saw.

Rising with the sun the next day, I took in all of the little things that made Pakin a lovely place. The sound of the waves breaking on the sand. The breeze hitting my face as I swayed back and fourth on the chair swing. The kids singing bright tunes accompanied by a boy playing a ukulele shaped like a rock guitar. The gang set out to explore the rest of the atoll via boat. I was mesmerized by the vibrant colors of the ocean as we visited the other islands.

Our longest stop was on Pakin’s main island, home to most of its population (100 or so people), its school (three classrooms), and its tireless PCV (pictured on the left). I actually made a shot into that basket!

Upon return to the home base I spent the rest of my time swimming in the ocean, making sand castles with the resident 4-year-old, showering using well water (makes me appreciate Pohnpei’s never-ending rain all the more), and drinking tea while watching the stars. Absolutely glorious.

August so far for me has been a time of recovery from the business of the summer. I attended the 45^th anniversary of the Peace Corps in Micronesia at the U.S. Embassy (wow!). I am honored to be a small part of that legacy. Now I am back to working in the library (organizing the fiction books), planning for the school year (teaching sophomore language arts classes and BIOLOGY WHY), spending quality time with my host family (going to parties and rainy day picnics), and contemplating my future while floatin’ along in the Pacific Ocean.

At CAMP

Remember those summer activities I’ve been blabbing about in past blog entries? Well, they finally came and went and (in my humble opinion) were highly successful.

First I helped out with Library Camp, hosted by the Pohnpei Public Library. For two weeks children of all different ages and backgrounds participated in a variety of activities centering on the theme of “One World, Many Stories.” They learned about library and reading skills, made crafts and played games, and checked out books to bring and read at home.

Due to my long-lasting love of libraries (hehe), I volunteered to teach the kids about library skills. We talked about taking care of library books, parts of a book, fiction and non-fiction books, how books are organized, and reference books. I had the kids hug books, draw pictures about fiction books, do word searches about non-fiction books, sort books by genres, reshelf books, and make their own “ME” books complete with dictionary entries and mini self-portraits. I had a blast and I hope they did too!

Next was the 27^th Pacific Education Conference, sponsored by Pacific Resources for Education and Learning (PREL) and hosted by Pohnpei State. This conference brought together educators from all over the Pacific, specifically from the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and Hawai’i. Educators attended speeches and sessions based on “The Pacific Child: Cultivating and Preserving the Pacific Identity.” I went to some very helpful and informative workshops, including one on how to better prepare high school students for college and another on how to narrow down the achievement gap. I was also able to observe some really cool cultural presentations. Palau represent!

Finally it was time for GLOW – Girls Leading Our World. This camp took the most preparation and work but resulted in a pretty incredible experience for the campers. This year’s theme was “Healthy Girls GLOW” so the speakers and activities focused on how the girls could lead healthy lives. About 60 girls from eleven schools around Pohnpei participated in the four days of camp, jam-packed with speakers on physical and emotional health, different break-out sessions (tie-dye, friendship bracelets, sports, etc), leadership sessions, and nightly entertainment (fashion show, dance party, talent show and smore’s).

I was responsible for my two junior counselors from MHS, making sure we had enough local food to eat for lunch and dinner (there was plenty!), running the environment breakout session (I had the girls do a garbage pickup then discuss recycling), supervising the picture frame making session (with some very creative results), facilitating the leadership sessions (YOU can be a leader), and leading morning karate classes (talk about empowering girls!).

Besides all of this, I was also able to celebrate the 4^th of July with American food and carnival games, listen to live music courtesy of the navy band, chill with the U.S. Ambassador on the Spanish Wall, pretend to be a shopkeeper for a day, kill large amounts of cockroaches with RAID, party with the peeps, act like a local for the hike up Sokehs Ridge, lay around in bed devouring Alex Delaware novels, drink lots of sakau (too much), work on my library (just a tad), and meet the Japanese Ambassador to the F.S.M. July 2011 will go down as one of my most memorable months in the Peace Corps.

In a Jeepney

My third trip to the "mother land" was filled with smiling relatives, personal reflections, and lots of shopping. Don’t judge – goods are really cheap in the Philippines!

Before landing in the Philippines I had a layover in Guam. Imagine how I felt eating both onion rings and onigiri in the same meal then washing it all down with a chocolate frappe from Seattle’s Best Coffee! Just a tad overwhelmed. I felt even more so when I was being driven down a highway with nine lanes watching billboards pass me by. My first meal in the Philippines was Hawaiian pizza delivered to my Lolo’s (Grandpa’s) house in Batangas from Domino’s. Over the next few days I was ecstatic about taking hot showers, eating vegetables every day, using fast internet at a personal residence, watching hair commercials on TV, climbing onto the back of jeepneys for quick transport, and shopping at actual malls. Of course, I loved catching up with my Lolo and various relatives and sharing my knowledge of Pohnpei with them. I also loved listening to my parents reminisce about their years in the Philippines and marveling at all of Manila’s changes.

The next stop on my trip was to Bulacan, where my dad’s side of the family resides. And what a huge family! I could not keep track of all the cousins running around, nor of aunts gossiping, nor of uncles roasting lechon (pig) over an open fire. During my time there I hung out with my parents and grandparents, went to mass in the church where my dad became Catholic, discussed the current state of affairs in the Philippines with knowledgeable aunts, shopped for capri pants while avoiding multitudes of sales ladies (no joke), and mistook chicharro (green onions) for chicharron (pig skin) which resulted in many laughs. I must also mention that I visited the Peace Corps office in the Philippines, which is a very swanky place, and met a PCV from Pohnpei who was medically evacuated to the country a few weeks back.

As much as I enjoyed seeing the relatives I never get to see, I could not help but feel like the perpetual outsider. Sure I’m related by blood, but it’s the ties of language and culture, communication and understanding, and memories made while spending time together that really make a family. Since I lacked all of those elements I was, well, out of place. No matter how much I tried to help out with chores or sit through conversations I did not understand, I really could not feel like part of the family. Ranging from my preference of showing respect to elders the American way (with shaking hands and hugs) instead of the Filipino way (mano-po), to the fact that I can’t even speak to my grandparents, I just felt like one huge failure. I flat-out failed at being Filipino. And that did not carry well with me. Sure, I could blame my parents for not teaching me Tagalog or my family back in the states for not sharing more about Filipino culture, but I put the emphasis of blame on myself. I should have tried harder to get my parents to talk to me in that funny language of theirs. I should have done more diligent research about Filipino customs and traditions. I should have been proud to be Filipino. But I wasn’t. All of that backfired on me this trip and since I couldn’t handle it, I broke down.

Why am I sharing all of this with you, dear reader? I would like everyone to embrace their heritage, whether it be Filipino, American, Korean, Italian, Chinese, what have you. Though I am the eternal mehn wai in Pohnpei I feel more at ease here than in the Philippines since I have genuine knowledge about its language and culture. How unfortunate is this? After my stint in Pohnpei is over I plan to remain in the United States and work towards the betterment of the country I truly consider my home. Not to say that I will abandon my pinoy pride. I will try to learn Tagalog and more about the traditional practices of the Philippines. But there will always be something holding me back. I don’t want this to happen to any of you, so please learn a little lesson from me.

Moving on…I went to the Philippines with only carry-on bags and returned with a piece of check-in luggage filled with clothes for me and food for my host family and friends. Excellent. I also came back armed with Filipino movies, k-pop magazines (mwahaha), and resolve that is sure to remain with me for the rest of my life. And I think that is a vacation well spent.

On Top of the World

…or at least Pohnpei!

One reason I joined the Peace Corps was to get out of my “comfort zone” and experience more of what the world has to offer. Well, my hike up Nahnalaud certainly fulfilled that. Mind you, I have never been “real camping” up to this point in my life. I’ve done plenty of hikes, for sure, during my travels (America, Canada, Japan, Korea) and I’ve been to sleepaway camps, but I’ve never actually been camping. I am more of an indoors person, preferring a good fantasy book or a Super Smash Brothers smackdown to the wonderful outdoors.

So when the text message came from one of my friends (there are cell phones here, albeit very sketchy ones) asking if anyone wanted to climb up Pohnpei’s tallest peak, I hesitated. Did I really want to go on this hike instead of having a relaxing weekend doing nothing? Then I remembered why I was here in Pohnpei in the first place and decided to just go ahead and do it. Four PCVs also came and luckily our guide (Pohnpeian Super Man) just so happened to be the pahpa of one of the PCVs.

After a relaxing night of conversations and Merlin (the BBC series), we set forth on the hike. And it was probably the most physically demanding activity that I’ve ever had to do (not that I regularly do physical activity, but still). I stumbled through dense jungle by both sunlight and flashlight, crossed countless rivers (and almost fell in one), climbed up the mountain using my hands and feet and slide down it using my fifth appendage, and slept in a five-star cave (complete with leafy bedding and running water). I fell twenty six times, accumulated numerous cuts, scratches, bruises, and blisters, got all of my clothes really muddy, and drove myself crazy having Miley Cyrus’ The Climb stuck in my head for half the time.

Yet it was all worth it. The view was amazing, incredible, breathtaking. I could see my church from where I was standing! We had lunch on top of Pohnpei – how cool is that?

It took me about a week to fully recover from this hike (a.k.a. from the cuts, scratches, bruises, and blisters). My nohno and the rest of my host family all thought me crazy for having gone in the first place but nevertheless helped me heal. This will definitely be one of the highlights of my Peace Corps experience, a reminder that going out of my “comfort zone” is indeed worth it.

What else have I been up to, you may be wondering. Well, setting up the MHS Library is in full swing. I stack and sort books with the help of various students and my host sisters (which has been great fun). I also sweep the floor to get rid of never-ending gecko poop, wipe down the book shelves, and ponder ways to get the Trade and Industry students to build me more of them.

One of the highlights of my summer thus far has been the Summer Reading Program sponsored by the Pohnpei Public Library. Approximately 100 kids come in every Wednesday to participate in activities relating to “One World, Many Places.” The kids listen to stories, make fun crafts, and check out books to read at home. Their enthusiasm is infectious – every week they are so excited to travel to a different continent (they even have passports made by the library’s PCV) and find new books to take back with them, and I get excited to help read a story or supervise book check out. Plus they are all adorable. :)

I have also been planning for Library Camp’s Library Skills sessions, supervising banner making with GLOW girls (MHS represent!), attending my school’s graduation (the singing!), guest reading at Story Hour (what can we use our hands for?), commemorating the end of one PCV’s service (we all miss you!), swimming at Kepirohi Falls (yay being touristy), getting lost in the world of A Song of Ice and Fire, hanging out with peeps, hanging out with the family, doing chores (what?), and eating fried bread fruit (delicious).

Today I am off to the Philippines (my flight is this afternoon). Thank you all for your continuous support and don’t forget to update me on your own lives!

Under My Umbrella

Pohnpei normally gets a lot of rain, but lately the amount we have been getting has been quite ridiculous (Is that even grammatically correct? I’ve been teaching too much!). At least we now have plenty of shower and laundry water!

The end of the semester has been a whirlwind of activity. My juniors suffered through vocabulary and reading comprehension with varying degrees of success. I helped prepare seniors who did not obtain satisfactory results from the first College of Micronesia Entrance Test take the second COMET. My health science freshman have learned all about the food we should and should not be eating (which included a fun activity of reading labels from all of the cans, bottles, and ramen packages they consume), as well as the reasons WHY tobacco, alcohol, and drugs are harmful to their bodies. I chose to teach these because they are issues most relevant to teenagers in Pohnpei and maybe a little bit of what they learned will stick with them over the summer.

I have triumphantly conquered grading the final exams and calculating final grades (all 103 of them). My students definitely earned their grades (for better or for worst). You can refer to me as Ms. Santos, destroyer of GPAs (hehe). I am proudest of those students who steadily improved over the course of the semester and learned to take ownership and pride in their school work. I am definitely satisfied that I could help them grow on both personal and academic levels. That’s the whole reason I’m here, right? I kept that thought in mind as I was grading stacks and stacks of papers over the past few weekss.

So what else have I been doing besides grading…well, I have been reading plenty of novels, catching up on the Asian pop music scene, and researching HBO’s Game of Thrones which I DESPERATELY need to watch. AHH, it looks SO GOOD!!! Sorry. On the home front, I have been doing more chores (easy ones a mehn wai cannot mess up), hanging out with my host sisters (Heroes marathons and card games), and losing at raffles (all for a good cause). Peace Corps staff visited my house and had a productive discussion with my host parents, which was nice. My nohno also says that I have been getting fatter and thus more Pohnpeian, which was both depressing and encouraging at the same time. Speaking of which, my family has recently been on a kimchi spree, which has been a treat for me (I miss real Korean food). I have had wonderfully delicious food (breadfruit is the best) and food that was not so much to my liking (you try eating salt disguised as ramen and canned mackerel).

Socially I haven’t really been up to much (surprise surprise for those of you who know me, right? hehe). The PCVs had a “Princess Party in Pohnpei” celebrating the royal wedding (look it up on CNN iReport). There was also a delicious dinner in honor of Cinco de Mayo and a birthday celebration for one of the hardest working PCVs on the island.

To begin this edition of the cultural corner, Madolenihmw (the municipality where I live) celebrated its Constitution Day on May 1. Everybody gathered together at the baseball field to listen to speeches, buy trays of food from the high school juniors raising money for the seniors’ graduation, and watch baseball, of course. Interesting note – baseball here is called iakiu, which comes from the Japanese yakyuu (I hope I spelled those correctly!). A LOT of the words in Pohnpeian are borrowed and modified from other languages, with Japanese and English being the main culprits. I enjoy this because I can easily memorize some Pohnpeian vocab since I studied Japanese.

My church has been hosting priests from Chuuk for big events such as baptisms and confirmations. Hearing English spoken at masses was a welcome change! One lesson I learned as we were feasting after one such event – NEVER get between a Pohnpeian woman and food. My attempts to serve myself at a buffet style table were thwarted by hoards of women dead set on getting only the best food for their families. Oh well! Thankfully my nohno took pity on me and helped me get some food.

I finally attended a Pohnpeian wedding, albeit an unusual one. The groom was my nohno’s brother and the bride was half-Filipino. They were already married legally but they wanted an actual religious wedding ceremony. The guests ranged from Pohnpeians to Filipinos to straight up white people, which I think reflected the diversity of people the groom worked with (in the FSM Department of Education). The wedding took place at a marine park picnic area with simple decorations and lots of food (per norm). The ceremony was in both English and Pohnpeian (I tried to see if I could follow both). The couple did not kiss at the end, but they did hold hands.

Since I am done with teaching (for now), my primary project over the summer is cleaning up and organizing the library with the assistance of interested students. I will also be coming up with GLOW ideas and keeping tabs on the junior counselors, helping out with library camp in Kolonia by teaching youngsters about library skills (let’s all hug books!), and start serious tutoring in Pohnpeian now that I have extra time. I also plan on rereading A Song of Ice and Fire series in preparation for the fifth book, visiting some of Pohnpei’s touristy areas, and going to the Philippines (I want to buy a bike and a mahjong set).

Thanks for reading, once again! Hope all of your summers are both relaxing and exciting. Shout outs to my newly married friend (congrats again!), my ACen friends (was it a blast this year?), and my recent IWU grad friends (you will all accomplish great things). Much love to my parental units and their amazing packages. Tupene mwur (until we meet again)!