Laplap and Laughs

Paama Mamas making laplap

Batman

Embrace NOW

Just finished reading The Power of Now by E. Tolle and so much of what I took from this book has made me realize that I must embrace what is happening this very moment…that the “noise” we so often listen to in our heads can be way too cumbersome to our psyche. Instead of thinking about the past…wishing to get a moment back or wanting to erase a bad memory… it’s all putting too much pressure on us and preventing happiness, contentment, enlightenment so to speak. Likewise thinking about the future (which I am very much guilty of doing)…the indulgences of Port Vila to come in 34 days or the next chapter of my life after Peace Corps also prevent me from truly enjoying this time here. I have plenty of time to think, reminisce and pine but instead I need to be present and to not think so much and to push out the noise.

And interestingly enough, the Ni Vanuatu may have it all figured out. Like I’ve mentioned before, they lead a simple life on the islands…they go to the gardens every few days in order to feed themselves or make a mat for an upcoming event but otherwise, there’s less noise. Daily, you find the people here are sitting around, chatting and enjoying nature. There’s no hurry here…when I say “island time”…it truly explains what life on the islands is about.

When I do get to go to the capital, Port Vila, I am always busy, getting work done, meeting up with friends and attending various social events. While on the islands, my days are rarely filled with busy work. RTC class, a meeting (starting hours later, if at all) or event (again, starting hours later) on the islands happen weekly and the rest of the time is spent gardening, preparing food, eating, enjoying nature with family and friends and oftentimes waiting. As for me, reading of course, watching Heroes and movies (thanks, Ivan!) and various other projects help to fill my time and as the sun is setting, I make visits to households to storian with my village, eat and in bed by 9pm. And that’s island life…one that I am learning daily to embrace and enjoy.

My Sunset 32nd Birthday

My family and I started loosely planning my birthday party a week ahead…who to invite (the village, community, elders?, to send invites?), food (of course laplap and cake) and venue (ah…the event planner in me, getting to use the word venue…fantastic).

Wonderful Ivan sent care packages filled with goodies…cookies, glowsticks, a bottle of whiskey for my papas and uncles (as well as mental relief for me of movies and Heroes). My mama, sister and best friend Elsie began food preparations in the morning…my sister and I grating manioc (my fav) for laplap, baking cakes and my mama killing a couple chickens in minutes, I can attest.

My papa set up a tented area on the sandbeach, some uncles and brothers began ramming kava, building a bond fire and kids picking beautiful flowers for décor. Was this really happening? A full on birthday party?
I was tired after making food (remember, this means over a smoking, hot wood burning fire), carrying mats to the beach and setting up but seeing it all pulled together I was ecstatic. By 5pm, people started arriving with food and some with presents…I received 5 island dresses, soap and laundry detergent (very common birthday presents on Paama) and got doused with baby powder (previous posts explain this custom). I got to join the papas and brothers for kava and conversation (storian) then hula hooped with the kids and helped mamas share food. The sun began setting, they sang happy birthday/hapi long laef and with a nice kava buzz, glowsticks glittering, we ate and laughed together. A fabulous 32nd birthday indeed.

MidService Reflection

After an indulgent couple months away from site, I arrive back to Paama’s small airport in Tavie where my host Papa greets me and we row the canoe about 40 minutes to my village…in the rain. During the arduous but peaceful (although this time wet) canoe ride to my home, I find out that some guys had broken into my hut by cutting the screen and then stealing various items of which were mostly returned. (Mom and Dad, don’t worry, I’m very safe here, promise)

So, not only was my hut infested with ants (which I then have to massacre) and spiders (which I don’t mess with because they eat other bugs) but I also come back to it broken into. My Papa forewarned me and explained how all the chiefs and elders from the nearby villages came together after having caught the young man who committed the crime as well as to meet to discuss apologizing to me.

That's my house on the left side, nestled in the hill, RTC has the white roof.

I was disheartened a bit …a new year, my last 12 months of service and it’s not started out quite positively. On the contrary though, I was comforted…a blessing in disguise really.
It was late when I was settled and after unpacking a little, had dinner, I was under my mosquito net falling asleep to the sound of the singing crickets and insect orchestra…not wanting to think about readjusting back to village life nor this fiasco. My meeting with the community chiefs and elders would take place in the morning.

I awoke to the roosters crowing and birds whistling, did my usual morning yoga and then coffee. I made my way down to the nakamal (village gathering place and also a place to drink kava) where they awaited to meet with me. The Tahi chief, Joshua (28 year old new chief who I work with and respect a great deal) began the meeting with an explanation of what occurred, apologies from the village and how much they hoped I would not want to leave. The chiefs and elders of neighboring villages stood up to apologize and appeal to any desire of my wanting to leave. A Mama also gave a speech.

After their toktoks (speeches), it was my turn to respond. And here’s what I said in Bislama (followed by its translation)

Mi tink se yufala bin tink bae mi cros wetem wanem I hapin mo mi no harem gud.
I think that you all have thought that I would be angry with what happened and that I would not be happy.

Be mi harem gud from se mi save yufala bin tink hevi long wanem I bin hapin mo bin tink abaot tink tink blong mi mo wanem bae mi mekem.
But I am happy because I know you all have been worried about what has happened and how I would feel /react.

Taem we mi bin stap long Amerika, mi no bin tink abaot ol samting long haos blong mi, be mi bin tink abaot yufala…ol famili blong mi long Paama.
When I was in America, I did not think about all the things in my house, I was thinking about you all, my family in Paama.

So I continued to talk about how a year has passed and how at home I felt here. My village and community truly are a family and I feel entirely safe here. (Mom and Dad, again, don’t worry!) They actually thought I would want to leave Paama. But I explained how could I leave family when I only have a year left with them?

This gave way to a good time to reflect on a year passed, now midway…several weeks in as I write this and as another volunteer, Sandy Su explains it so well…

A “mid service meltdown…what is it about being smack dab in the middle of something that freaks even the most rational of human beings out so much? From the infamous midlife crisis to the dreaded ‘hump day’ or even getting the middle seat on an airplane, people who find themselves in the midst of things tend to get a little uncomfortable.

Maybe it’s the fact that you’re caught equally between the beginning and the end so you can’t help but worry about both the past and the future at the same time. The end isn’t in sight yet and the novelty and excitement of the situation you had at the beginning has worn off. Maybe it’s that upon reflection of the past you realize things aren’t where you hoped they would be at this point, so you panic a little.”

So, there are good days and bad (thus is life) and tears still come and go some days because a year still does seem like a long time. It also makes me think about how difficult and sad it will be to leave when my service is complete. The strong and everlasting bond I’ve formed with this place, these people who will forever be a part of me.

They often tell stories about Jamie, a former volunteer here in my village and what a legend he is! And they talk about how alike I am to Jamie, in the sense that I am so well integrated and part of the Paama family. What a complement this is and I realize that as much as I come here to “help” them…in so many ways, they are helping me grow, learn and discover what life is all about.