Emily's Peace Corps Adventure in the Pacific

How I think Peace Corps Service will influence my personal and professional aspirations after my service ends...

2011-08-24T17:40:00.001+10:00

"I am absolutely certain that my Peace Corps service will greatly influence my personal and professional aspirations after my service ends. I cannot, however, profess with any certainty whatsoever how that influence will look in 27 months. At present, I do not have any definite aspirations for after my service because I am approaching my future with a spirit of openness. I must acknowledge, however, the gap between a professed spirit of openness and the actual embodiment of it. It is well and good for me to spout a ‘spirit of openness’ mantra as my guidepost for my new experience and beyond, but I know it will be quite difficult to actually be open to whatever may or may not present itself to me in 27 months. Professionally, my service may determine my life course, or it may not. I know at the very least I will be equipped with countless skills and experience on which to build my future vocation, whatever it may be. Regardless, the opportunities available to me through the Peace Corps will enable me to expand my understanding of the human experience – how we operate as humans to understand our place in the world – and equip me with the skills necessary to actively address issues of social justice and environmental sustainability. As far as how my time as a Peace Corps Volunteer will influence my personal aspirations, I hope to live and work openly, compassionately, warmly, and in a spirit of service according to my values long after my 27 months in Micronesia."

Wow. I wrote this in May 2009 - over two years ago - and in 2 months my Peace Corps service is ending. The future is upon me =)

The last two months have been filled with such goodness. When I returned to my island in July I was swept up into a computer project. Federai now has over 12 new computer stations and it is my job to train the whole island on how to operate and maintain them before I leave in October. Should be challenging, should be fun!

My good friend Kanani came out to Ulithi for a visit at the end of July. Her visit happened to coincide with a tropical storm, so we nestled in, watched movies and did puzzles galore! By the end of the week, we dubbed each other with official grandma titles. But the storm interfered with our travel plans to our Close of Service Conference, and our pace makers were sure put to the test. Fortunately, while the flights were cancelled on Friday, we made it back to Yap on Saturday with about 12 hours to spare before we left for Pohnpei.

We arrived in Pohnpei in the middle of the night and were whisked away in a van to our hotel. With no bearings whatsoever, I crashed on my mosquito-netted waterbed. The next morning I started awake, shooting up to find the most breathtaking view of the water and Sokehs rock. Amazing. From then on, our COS conference at the Village did not disappoint.

Our Close of Service Conference was nothing short of wonderful. A number of my fellow volunteers were sadly missed, and we had a cozy affair of 13 PCVs. There were four of us on our way to Pohnpei and we had a lovely layover on Guam shopping, eating, and taking our outer island friend around. He was on his way to attend the College of Micronesia and he had never left Yap before. It was so neat to see him experience so many new things - elevators, hotel key cards, the Sunday rush at Denny's. Seeing his experience made me understand that this world can be as overwhelming as it is expansive.

From the layover on Guam with my ladies, it felt like I could feel the Universe pulsing through me - the energy and goodness were so palpable. And it continued throughout the week. The best way I can think to describe it is that Peace Corps has been a 2 year lesson on learning how to be present regardless. At COS I felt myself being present, and it felt like I was a sponge soaking up so much goodness! It was a rare opportunity in my life where, in those moments, I had the full realization that this experience as a whole has been whole-heartedly worth it - from chatting w/ the PCV transferring to Jordan to sharing around the circle about our group and our experience. We even saw the last Harry Potter movie in the only Micronesian movie theater!

Recently I spent the morning at a local funeral. The women here are known for their histrionics - loud, prolonged, dramatic sobs. That morning, however, after sitting with the body and saying Mass, there was only a single woman sobbing, her real crying audible under the long, musical notes of her sob - it was really quite beautiful. I felt honored to be a part of it. Through family ties the woman was a host relative of mine (everyone in the outer islands is connected to me somehow through family), and it was special for me to be able to join the ceremony as one of them. I think it was even more meaningful for me because this is technically my "old" community, and I still fit naturally. The only other funeral I attended was at the beginning of my service, and thinking back to then I can see the depth and the richness of sinking in to these communities for two years.

And so my two years are coming to a close. October 26th is my final day as a PCV. This Friday I return to Federai for the last stretch, during which time I'll be training the island on the new computer system donated this summer. I will say goodbye to Federai and come back to Yap on Oct. 17, finish up PC logistics, and say goodbye again here on Yap. On the 26th I fly from Yap to Jordan, which is where I'm moving. I'm going home to Colorado before Thanksgiving to spend time with my family through the New Year. Then it's back to Jordan with Andrew.

As you can tell, I'm entering the reflective stage upon finishing my service here. Despite my attempts at being present and aware, I do still feel as though time must be playing some sort of trick on me. How is it two years have passed and I have only two months to go? Regardless of the answer, I do know my task now is to be present and to be grateful. And I really am. Thank you. So now the question I really should be tackling is...

How do I think Peace Corps Service ~~will~~ HAS influenceD my personal and professional aspirations after my service...?

To be continued =) Whee!

Pictures

2011-06-28T18:02:00.004+10:00

Culture Day 2011 - traditional Ulithian stick dance

Federai and proud

Commute to work

It's been awhile...

2011-06-27T22:11:00.000+10:00

There is a refrain from a song on one of my favorite albums that reminds me of how distances can increase over time. When I joined the Peace Corps in Micronesia, the physical distance certainly came easily. Somehow (miraculously it seems) I presently find myself almost two years down the road with roughly four more months to go. So now I’ve got some temporal distance, too. And yet there is another distance of my own personal making. There is the distance that occurs when I become busied with life around me or plainly forget to be intentional and do not reach out to connect with those who are supporting me. For the past half year or so, I have been stupendously negligent in most areas of friendships and relationships, especially with letters, emails, and updates. As a friend used to say, “if you wait till the last minute, it’ll only take a minute.” While this may have worked for me in the past (college papers, what?), it is not how I wish to approach the important relationships in my life. So rather than waiting, I’ll just get on with it, shall I?

The wizened volunteers before me told me “the second year goes fast,” just as before I joined the Peace Corps I was told “there will be challenges.” Both times, I thought I respected and heeded the advice, incorporating it into my present and preparing myself for what would come. “Sure it’ll be challenging,” I thought, “I like challenges.” Later I found myself thinking, “but I didn’t think it would be challenging this way, and no thank you I don’t care for this challenge.” Now I am thinking, “but I didn’t think this year would go so fast.” When Peace Corps tells you to be patient and flexible, they’re basically just saying, “oh, just you wait and see all the ways reality will budge into what you think you know or expect, no matter how self-aware or prepared you try to be.” The flexible part entails allowing your experience to be a crowbar in your life, prying open places where you never thought a space could be, or at other times dismantling whole mansions of evicted expectations with the tiniest tap.

And that’s what it all comes down to. It doesn’t matter what I’ve read or what I’ve been told. We are inherently self-ish creatures endowed with our own spatio-temporal spark of consciousness. There are certain things we need to experience for ourselves to get their full value. Yes, sparks can reach out to each other, as often happens through relationships and/or art. Yet it comes down to what your own spark experiences, spatio-temporally. And so I selfishly claim that this is my experience, attached to my spark.

There is something in the art of sharing experiences, which is why, when it comes down to it, I think we are touched by the deep relationships in our lives as well as the great arts of poetry, theatre, painting, comedy – because they somehow transcend our physical limitations to connect our sparks outside of our individual selves. I claim to be no great poet or painter, but I would like to strive in my nameless mediocrity to be the best sharer of my experiences I can be, hoping in my own way to connect with the treasured people in my life - friends, family, kindred spirits. I need this connection, just as my spark needs this experience.

When I joined the Peace Corps, I received a document called the Volunteer Assignment Description (VAD). Smack dab on the cover of the VAD were the official dates of my service: November 6, 2009 to November 6, 2011. “2011!” I thought, “the future!” I was 24 at the time and calculated ahead – I’d be 26 when (inshallah) I completed the Peace Corps. Now it IS 2011 and I AM 26. The future made present. Almost. And so now I find myself preparing for life after the finish line, for that unfathomed age of 27 and all the life beyond. Which includes…?

…Living in Jordan with my partner Andrew, Arabic codename Shookers, who is making his first blog appearance. The plan for the immediate future is to make a short visit to Jordan after PC before returning home for a couple of months for the holidays with Andrew and the families. And what will I be doing with the rest of my life?

Well, I am in the beginning stages of hatching a master plan for a Masters degree and beyond. I am exploring the idea of a Masters in Sustainable Development to prepare me to work with organizations such as the UNHCR, UNRWA, and/or UNDP Jordan, as well as smaller NGOs and non-profits in Jordan. The idea in my mind seems to be a flow of my passions for social justice and environmental sustainability within the global community. First service through Peace Corps, then learning through a Masters in Sustainable Development, and finally a culmination in a job, combining my skills, knowledge, and passion day to day in service to others and the environment.

Soon to come, month to month updates focusing on island life and what I've been working on. In the mean time, it's good to be back in touch and I would love to hear about what you've been working on and what adventures you've been having.

Whee!
emily

2011-04-25T15:59:00.000+10:00

At the beginning of April I caught the ship in for a resource trip. The time has been wonderful and refreshing and full of an unexpected adventure to Manila. I made friends, both on Yap and in the PI, and it's been wonderful to reconnect with people.

Here are a few tidbits, some taken from previous emails and some just spur of the moment (sorry, no island reflections, but don't worry, things have been going really well out there and I'm working on a full update). I apologize because I have been very negligent with communication lately. Thank you for all of your support and love and letters.

My heart and wishes of well-being go out to Japan, however unspecific and unknowledgeable they are. It's kind of scary coming back in and seeing pictures and hearing stories. I can understand why some people never go back to the "real world" after living so far removed from it. But then again, I don't want a tension-less life. The real world is hard, it has struggles, and it has meaning and compassion. It's such a simple and hard thing to comprehend at the same time. As my friend Cate pointed out, makes you wonder what the “real world” really is.

I recently found myself on a lay-over in Guam on my way back to Yap. I ordered a pizza from Pizza Hut and walked to pick it up, which ended up being a 20 minute walk each way (which made me feel much better about actually eating the pizza). On the way, though, there was a Taco Bell. Now, I'm not one of those Americans who goes out of their way for Taco Bell like some of the other volunteers do (I am Organic Hurianek, afterall), but I figured, since it was IN my way and since my standards of consumption have greatly plummeted since joining PC, why not? See my new Facebook profile picture for further proof.

So, as you may or may not know, this was on my way back from Manila for a "Dental MedEvac" with a broken (well, dislocated and fractured) toe to boot (ha!). This time they couldn't just "fix me" b/c of the infection. So they undid the root canal I got over Xmas and "instilled antibiotics." There will definitely be a Part 2 in about a month, and then we’ll see if we need a Part 3. It sounds scary and painful, but the experience was painless and very enjoyable and heartening. Oftentimes, coming from Yap and going to one of the biggest cities in the world, I felt like an island bumpkin, but it was so interesting to meet up with a number of local PCVs in the Philippines. The PC program there seemed huge compared to the FSM/Palau program here, and I didn't even know before that there was a program there (it's actually one of the oldest...someone told me it would've been the FIRST, but the plane ride was longer so somewhere in Africa beat them to it). There are over 200 volunteers, so there's a wonderful assortment of people. I got to share about my experience and stun people about living topless and teaching only three students. They stunned me in lots of other ways, like texting and students making school signs by using images from the internet...I saw a picture of one sign that said "Everyone needs to lend a hand" and it had an outline of Hitler w/ outstretched hand and an iPod!

I heard lots of interesting stories and experiences, like about the "bakla" culture here (which is basically a socially accepted 'third sex' of flamboyantly gay men) and how one volunteer's bakla mayor literally painted the town PINK! I've also eaten so much good food that I've brought back some of the Philippines with me. Indian food, burritos, even just the eggs, wheat bread, and tea w/ milk and sugar for breakfast. We went to an all PB place, I ate mango everything, even an avocado popsicle. I basically just attached myself to other volunteers and I was taken on a great trip around the city, to markets and bead stores, to eco-goods stores where I got organic toothpaste and Newman-O's and a really cool coin purse made from woven plastic bags.

I was really happy to have experienced the human dynamic of the PC program there, I mean like, social interactions between a group of diverse Americans with different experiences under the same context. I connected with lots of volunteers, even if I just met them for a taxi ride. On my last night they took me to the PC-infamous hole in the wall Indian food restaurant some volunteer found once and has passed down for PC generations. They treated me to dinner and we had fun talking story. I feel happy about the connections I made in the PI and hope that they continue in a very groovy, fluid yet sincere way throughout life.

Here’s what’s on deck for me: Today I leave on the ship to return to Federai and I’ll finish out the school year there. I come back to Yap at the end of May for MedEvac Part 2, then vacation to Jordan, and (if necessary) MedEvac Part 3.

I know there are many challenges involved in the work we do. As I understand it, these challenges are inherent to our work and indicate a strong need for what we do. If it were easy, we wouldn't be here. I am very thankful for the opportunity to be here and for the challenges I've faced.

Yay for your friendship and for the adventures you're on. When you can, tell me about them!

Much love from your happy friend,
emily nell hurianek

Which pretty much brings me up to date

2011-01-30T12:45:00.000+10:00

I leave tomorrow on the plane to return to Federai. Looking back on all the wonderful events and experiences during my vacation, I’m nothing but grateful.

First there was Mid-Service Training for the Peace Corps in Pohnpei. It was the first time the whole of our group came together since we began in the fall of 2009 and it was delightful to reconnect, catch up, and deepen relationships. I know this is often claimed of many groups, but we really do have a strong group dynamic based on friendship, love, and support. It all began when the Palau volunteers flew into Yap and we all went to Guam for a 13 hour lay-over. Despite being sleep-deprived and unaware of the hotel room PC paid for us, the ten of us navigated our time in Guam wonderfully and never once got cranky or mutinous. After visiting one of the world’s largest K-marts and feasting on American fast food (eeek culture shock!), we flew to Chuuk for yet another reunion with Porter, Andrea, Trevor, Kirby, and Dan. Still without any sleep, we flew into Pohnpei and headed up to our hotel. Everyone in the Yap and Palau group had been up since Saturday Morning and so went to bed…well, not everyone. By some unknown power I was able to stay up all night, laughing, joking, and talking until the cloudy sunrise. I knew I could sleep every other night of my life, but that the moment that night was a once in a lifetime opportunity – it was the looking forward to this reconnection that helped keep me going during the hard times the previous year, and it was our laughter that seem to make it all worthwhile.

Laughter was the signature throughout the rest of my time at MST. There was drinking cocoa and crocheting like old ladies, my first toga party, a do-or-die dance party, accidentally missing the staff/volunteer softball game, and watching movies and telling poop stories. Our final night together, us M76s went to dinner. At the suggestion of the fabulous and beautiful Gita Drew, each person stood up and shared a reflection on how amazing, dynamic, and supportive we are as a group (ding ding goes our own bell). I shared on the beauty of each member, another shared about how her door will always and unconditionally be open to us in the future as we continue to be friends. Although we were missing a few people who had already left for their sites, the sense of unity, friendship, and frankly family was life-motivating. Allow me to say this group of people jazzes me to be alive. It really is a beautiful thing.

As are my friends and family back home. For the first time in three years I was able to spend Christmas with my family. On the way home from Guam, I passed over Colorado as I flew the plenty plenty hours to the east coast. It seems my thirst for wintery weather helped provoke the first snows to Maine this season. Over a very quick (and COLD!) two days in Maine I reconnected with a good number of great friends. Unfortunately, two days is not a lot of time to catch up on almost two years away, so the next time I’ll have to visit longer 

I had such a lovely reunion with my family when I landed in Denver. My plane was late which allowed my parents to stake out prime real estate at the “waiting area” bar in DIA. My parents had both angles covered and I was delighted to see my dad as I came up the escalator and then hear my mom cry out from the other side when she saw me. And thanks be to the customs gods that I got all my bags through! Then it was into the family jeep on straight on to dinner. Along the way my brother Noah asked me what was one thing I wanted to make sure I did while I was home. Tired and hungry, the first thing that came to my mind was “Mexican food.” Lo and behold we were en route to meet my other brother Nate at none other than a Mexican restaurant. It was wonderful after so long away to simply be in the presence of my family, not to mention sharing a meal and stories together.

The highlight of my vacation was Christmas dinner at Grannie’s house with the whole family, laughing, joking, eating. While home I also helped make cookies, volunteered with my hardworking and amazing parents with their food pantry project, attended our candle light Christmas Eve service, and went to my friends’ golden birthday party…Oh yeah, and the dentist. Here’s my advice. The best way to approach your first root canal is mid brewery tour with your brother, sister, and friends. Not a bad itinerary for a snowy afternoon: Left Hand Brewery, Comfort Dental, Mountain Sun.

And what better way to follow-up a wonderful trip home to the family than to head to South America to visit your bosom friend? Well, check out my previous post on this one.

Which pretty much brings me up to date. Yap, lost bags, head colds, barrels of oil, host brother’s birthday, PCV friends, and planning for the future. Right now I’m looking at coming in for a quick resource trip after graduation in May. Then there’s our official Close of Service Conference around the beginning of August. Then I’m pretty much in the home stretch. Now, I’m sure many of you are asking, what then, after Peace Corps? Well, try this on for size. Jordan. Just sayin’.

Along the Path, A Library

2011-01-28T16:48:00.001+10:00

Andy’s death was and is a very difficult and surreal experience. The news came days after from a friend in England (of all places) and I was not able to simply get on a plane to give or get support. Life, love, mortality, the ocean. All these basic concepts flooded my usually basic reality on island. Soon they got jumbled and bumped up against each other and often led to a condition I generally term “a bad case of the mucky mucks.” Spiritual and emotional frustrations ebbed and flowed during October and November for me, though they were usually under the surface, not lethal but unpleasant.

It seemed to come to a head one Sunday afternoon while I was doing some last-minute lesson planning. Kids trickled in from the nearby weekly volleyball game and it seemed, as usual, all bets were off. They were running and screaming and pushing and fighting, all the while dishelving the library. One swear word, explicit drawing, and writing on the wall too many, I snapped and shouted for all the kids to leave immediately. Thus commenced Library Lock Down - NOT my finest moment.

Talking to the principle, I decided to close the library for the next week, both as punishment and preparation. What I really needed to do was make sure that the students and I were on the same page - that the school's expecations for the library and appropriate behavior were well-known and aligned with the expecations of the students.

So over the course of the following week, I worked hard to "refurbish" the library, cleaning shelves, organizing, creating activity cabinets and teaching resource centers. And, above, all, I dug out and dusted off the old library rules that had long since fallen by the wayside. Once everything was in place as far as the library rules, procedures, and philosophy, it was time to bring back the students - to unlock the library.

The next Monday I held an orientation with each class throughout the day. "We want Happy Books," I said, "as well as Happy Students and Happy Teachers." We learned together what the rules and expectations are in the library and by the end of the day our Library Club was full of eager and excited members.

Since then, the library has been a happy place for both the students and me. With the Library Club we explore and maintain the library - because let's be honest, libraries are just so darn cool. Certain days students can check out games and activities - kites and yo-yos seem to be the hot ticket.

The most wonderful feeling of pride and success came one day when I had a staff meeting and had to leave the Library Monitors in charge. Not only did the students play and work quietly, they even cleaned and closed up entirely on their own! I couldn't say who was prouder, me watching the kids walk away from a job well done or the students having done the job!

(Pictures are being persnickety and may or not make an appearance.)

Endings

2011-01-26T11:40:00.001+10:00

My last post regarding island life talked about a new beginning. Now I am beginning to learn about endings.

November 6th, 2011. That’s the finish line. When I joined the Peace Corps, I dreamed ahead to the distant future, a time far off in the year 2011 and the age of 26. Lo and behold I am 26 and it is 2011. T minus 10 months to go.

It’s strange how 10 months can feel both solid, immovable, forever and like it could disappear in a blink.

October 15th, 2010. Another finish line none of us were prepared for.

And it’s strange how the past, which was so heavily present at the time, is now to be looked back upon and recounted for you today. Sitting down now, Tuesday January 25th at 10:20 am, I stare at my tumbling laundry hoping it will tell me where to begin. But, I smile as I remind myself, I’ve already begun and I’m well on my way. And I guess that’s where I started the last post. And so that’s where I will pick up, grateful that I can.

At the beginning of October I returned to Yap for a resource trip where I resupplied on many levels. There was shopping for the basics (mosquito coils, oatmeal, TP) and utilizing communication with friends and family thousands of miles away. Then there were also the joys and wonders of my host family and friends here on Yap, plus the adventure of becoming SCUBA certified. Birthday celebrations, ice cream indulgences, reconnecting and catching up – simple things that sustain and rejuvenate me to return to island life.

Back on Fedreay, life fell back into place that first week with lesson planning, talk story, and starting weaving projects. Plus I was delighted to hear the ship was returning to the island by the end of the week, bringing with it my dear friend Gita and news of her life on Fais over the last few months.

Normally the ship anchors for hours off the island while it delivers its services and supplies. Yet since we expected it, we got the opposite; Gita and I had maybe half an hour to catch up as she showered at my house and “freshened up” from the ship (if you’ve ever traveled on the H-1 you’ll understand the use of quotation marks). So much life to share in such a short space of time. And we had no idea that so much of life could change so totally so quickly.

The next day our dear friend Andy Buth drowned off the shores of Fais Island.

Many people didn’t know who he was, perhaps except as the tall white guy with nipple rings who brought his own spears and knives when he came out on the Voyager in April. In Woleai he was known as the guy who “goes where the fish have seen no man.” To me, he was a new friend. To Gita, he was a life-long friend and fellow adventurer in life and love. What more can I say than the truth -

His life was an adventure, and he died happy and in love.

Andy, may you continue to soar and explore. Thank you for sharing your time with us. We love you and will think of you often while continuing the adventure. Rest in a wild, free, and open peace Andy.

Double Dipping

2011-01-21T11:07:00.004+10:00

I was asked by a student at my old school to reflect on my Peace Corps service. Since I'm egregiously behind on updates, I figured this would do for a post :-)

1. What work are you doing right now with the Peace Corps?

I am currently a volunteer in the Federated States of Micronesia. I'm in my second year serving on a small outer island in the island state of Yap (my current island is called Federai, Ulithi. Previously I was on Falalius, Woleai). The Peace Corps project plan in the FSM focuses on TESOL and Community Development. Personally that means I am teaching the upper grades in my local elementary school as well as creating projects with the community that address certain needs. I'm working on developing a sustainable waste management system that fosters environmental stewardship, communal responsibility, and creativity.

2. What made you decide to do volunteer work with the peace corps?

Even while I was at Whitworth I knew that I wanted to do some kind of service work abroad for a long period of time. Peace Corps is a great financially viable way to do this. It's two years of service work, plus training, that I don't have to pay for out of pocket. I'm given a small stipend that allows me adequate food, shelter, and other basic needs. Moreover, I have the wonderful opportunity to live in and explore another culture and really become part of the local community. I eat fish and taro, I wear lavalavas (and no shirt!), I weave and I cook and I speak the local language. I am used to palm trees and rolling waves and rainbow fish and clear water. My service is my reality; this tiny speck of land in the great big Pacific ocean is my whole world. Peace Corps allows for time and place to seep into me as I seep into my service.

3. How has your experience at Whitworth shaped, helped or impacted your work as a volunteer?

Whitworth focuses on service. Service is at the core of the Peace Corps. The interesting twist is that I am a non-Christian who attended a Christian institution. At the center of Whitworth's service is Christ. At the center of my service is my personal philosophy discovered and honed during my four years in Whitworth's Philosophy program. It was also during these four years that I honed my appreciation for community and support, especially in light of common or core differences. During my time at Whitworth I developed deep relationships with people whose values or beliefs deeply differed from my own. And yet it was (and still is) in those relationships that the most meaning and growth happened. So it is during my time in the Peace Corps, where I find myself literally as far from my own milieu as possible. The distances I've come and the differences I've encountered only strengthen the similarities we find together, where sometimes the only important commonality is laughter or food.

4. How have your experiences so far impacted your life and worldview?

In a sense the whole point of two years of service abroad is to change one's worldview as literally and physically possible. In my case it is total immersion. I am on a tiny tiny tiny (I don't think most people can even conceive of it) island in the ocean hundreds of miles from any substantial land mass. I have no phone. No Internet. Power comes from the sun. Water comes from the sky. Food comes from the sea. In a very real way, I am out there totally on my own. And yet I'm not alone. Peace Corps for me is people. It's relationship. It's the community on my island (less than 100 people). It's my students (less than 20). It's my host family. Time becomes a very strange concept when you join the Peace Corps, join a new community and culture and language, and then are simply there. There has never been a better way to learn the lesson of being present than when you're a PCV on a tiny island in the big blue ocean! And yet time passes. The people around me change. The island changes. I change. The world's longest hour can somehow turn itself into a month passed, then two. Then I find myself more than a year in and less than a year to go, and time, which has seemingly just rushed passed me, slips on just as slowly, just as quickly as ever. That's the only way to mark change, impact, experience, with subtlety and awareness, with gratitude for the past and openness towards the future. And that is for me, in a coconut shell, what I've learned thus far.

As you can see, I'm very tangential and like to sway between topics. If you have any more questions or need clarifications (I'm sure you have no doubt that I'm a PH major after all my abstractions), please let me know. I'm always happy to hear from friends.

Bolivia!

2011-01-14T15:30:00.004+10:00

As part of a wonderful travel Christmas present/blessing from my family, I got to visit my dear bossom friend Katie in Bolivia for a week. Below is a smattering of pictures. There are lots more fun ones on Facebook should you have access and like to take a peek :-)

Videos

2011-01-14T05:28:00.004+10:00

Here are a few belated videos from my time throughout my service. I hope a.) they are rather self explanatory and/or enjoyable and b.) that they work!

Half Way Through and A New Beginning...

2010-10-08T10:49:00.004+10:00

One year down in my Peace Corps experience and somehow I'm back at the beginning again. Since I left in July, I've said hello to my new community in Ulithi and goodbye to my old home in Woleai. Both experiences were positive yet challenging in their own ways, and it's been interesting to transition from one island home to another.

I fell in love with my new island community on Federai from the get-go. It's a very long, skinny island with open, friendly people. Long beaches line the shore and the water is invisibly clear. I'm staying with William and Andresa, two very kind and amiable people. We live right by the school and I'm staying in the coziest little local hut that was built by a previous PCV and my host brother, Frankie (who looks like a professional heavy weight boxer).

My local hut on Federai - home sweet home!

Inside my hut at night :-)

I have found the language to be more difficult that I anticipated, but fortunately I can get by speaking English and listening to Ulithian. This made me realize what a gift a common language is because it allows room for me to really express myself and show my personality. I feel like I'm known for who I am on Federai, and this feeling is very grounding and helps energize me for the rest of my service.

Another great part of feeling energized is my daily routine of running to the end of the island in the evening and then jumping into the ocean with my 9 year old friend Nick during the sunset. It's times like these when the phrase "island paradise" floats across the brain for some reason :-)

Sunset on Federai

A weird thing happens in Federai. At night, the mosquitoes go away. That means they run rampant from sunrise to sunset, but when the moon comes out, we on Federai are blessed with cool, buzz-free night air.

The apple tree we sit under at night to talk story

My favorite way of enjoying this phenomenon is to sit out with my host mother and father by the glow of our solar powered light. During these talk-story sessions, I get to share about who I am and the places I come from. We love to laugh and joke about funny stories, foods, customs. One of my favorite times was when I told my host mother when I owned a motorcycle. She was saying she couldn't picture me on one, and I said it wasn't like I was wearing a lavalava :-)

Speaking of lavalavas, I have successfully completed my first full lavalava, winding and weaving it from scratch, so to say :-) It was fun to sit in the women's house with Alyssa "cheating" as she coached me in English, then to laugh and joke with my host mom as she taught me to weave on the "pop," or loom, in my house. It's far from perfect, but as it was my "learning lavalava" intended for my Grannie, I think it's just swell. Besides, I remember learning about how certain Native American tribes purposefully incorporated flaws into their crafts so as to not offend the gods by feigning perfection. Let's just say no gods were offended during the making of this lavalava. I look forward to much more weaving in the future.

Host mom Andresa and friend Joanna helping set up my first lavalava!

At the end of August, I hopped on the state ship out to Woleai. It was a great summer time adventure upon the waves shared with Gita and two other PCVs who took the ship all the way to Satawal and back. It was difficult yet good to have time to say goodbye to Falalius.

My final boat ride from Falalius with all my stuff and yes, that is a pig :-)

My final farewell to maweshe Ashley on Falalius

There were many reasons for me to stay, and many reasons for me to go. One of the saddest parts was discovering that, I'm sad to report, Tiny the Turtle passed away. She was well-loved in her short life, an unforgetable Christmas gift and a delightful island companion. All in all, I'm very thankful for my time spent in Woleai.

Coming back to Federai I found myself in the throws of teaching full-time, a plight I blame on my genes (thanks four generations of teaching behind me!). On the first day of school we had a Back To School Party. I was just sitting on the side, minding my own business, when all of a sudden I noticed all of the students huddled together secretively and staring at me. Then they attacked me - with floral maremares, that is! Each student had made me a lei to welcome me to the school and the community. I could feel the weight of their welcome as my head towered and teetered with the most beautiful tropical flowers. I'm very blessed to be part of this community!

Being buried by maremares - one from each student!

Three cheers for my island life partner Alyssa and all the other M75 PCVs in Yap! Alyssa is officially done with her time in Federai and while I'm sad to see her go, I'm happy and excited for her future adventures and all of her "first impressions" to come. My two weeks back on Yap have been delightful and donzerly in every way. I'm healthy, happy, and excited for the future. I will come back to Yap in December before heading to Pohnpei for Mid-Service Training (MST). After MST, my travel plans look a little something like this:
Portland, Maine Dec. 19-22
Colorado Dec. 22-Jan 4
Bolivia Jan. 4-12 Then back to Yap!

In recent, exciting news, I'm getting scuba certified! I started at the beginning of the week and it's been an amazing experience that I'm so thankful for. I'll never forget my first open water dives and being brought into a whole new world :-)

That's all the time I have now for this little update. Please be in touch and let me know how you are and what adventures you are having. Mail is come and go in Federai, but I will do my best to keep in touch.

And lastly, a very special Happy Birthday today to Andrew!!

Be well! Whee! emily

If you wait till the last minute...

2010-07-13T08:24:00.004+10:00

A fellow traveler and friend once told me, "If you wait till the last minute, it'll only take a minute!" I'm keeping this in mind as I write this update.

As it stands, I've been back on Yap Proper since the last weeks of May - almost two months. And in those two months, I've had three days of training.

In the meanwhile, a significant change came about when the Peace Corps told the three of us Volunteers in Woleai that, due to the shabby state of the runway and a rescinded emergency contract with the local plane, we are no longer able to serve in our sites.

At the time there was some hope that the runway situation would miraculously improve, but it has become evident that the solution lies in part of the problem; no ship has been able to go out to Woleai in order to deliver the materials or workers for the improvements. As it seems to me, this is an instance of stunted potential as far as sustaining and improving life in the outer islands of Yap. There is funding, there is community and government support, and there is want, need, and drive. But there is a missing infrastructure upon which to hinge the existing systems that would address this transportation problem. From what I've seen and heard, the runway will indeed be patched up and improved soon, just not soon enough for us to remain at our sites. It seems as though we were only one ship away from being allowed to stay, and that's difficult to deal with. If only...If only the state ship hadn't been indefinitely delayed, then we'd be able to fix the runway and Porter, Gita, and I could stay in our sites. If only...

And so here I am, in the last several minutes (read: days) before I leave on Friday for my new site - Federai, Ulithi. (Said: Fed-er-eye, You-lith-ee)

Logistically speaking, I shall be taking a plane to Falalop, Ulithi and then catching a boat across the lagoon to Federai. I'll meet my new host family and community while settling into my new digs. Then, whenever the state ship is finally fit to leave, I'll hop on it from Federai out to Woleai. In the time it takes for the ship to loop around the eastern outer islands, I'll have to say goodbye to my host family, community, digs, and turtle on Falalius. Then back on the ship to be deposited again at my new site. Now let me tell you a little more about Federai.

On Federai, I will continue to be teaching in the local school, which is about the same size as my school on Falalius. The condition of the school is much less dilapidated, and there is a beautiful library already in place. At least initially, I'll be living with William, the principal, and his wife, Andresa, whom I'm told is a "shooabuuto chille," or small woman. Ulithian, the local language, is similar to Woleaian but a different dialect, and in general I should be able to also communicate more in English if I need.

Federai has power (usually) as well as (occasional) cell phone access. Across the lagoon on Falalop there is also internet (at times). There are (up to) two planes a week to Ulithi that deliver supplies, as well as mail to the local post office.

Speaking of mail...I will technically have a new address, but I can still get mail from the PC PO Box. The important thing is to note my change of site in the address so my mail doesn't get sent to Woleai - i.e. Emily, Federai instead of Emily, Falalius. (All in all, there's not much need for us to worry about this as I've spoken to the lovely women at the local PO and they know the low down to help sort things out.) So here are my two viable addresses should you ever have the inkling to write - pick whichever suits your fancy:

Emily Hurianek, Peace Corps Volunteer
Ulithi Post Office
Federai Island
Yap, FM 96943

Emily Hurianek, PCV Federai
PO Box 190
Colonia, Yap FM 96943

I feel almost as though the Fellowship of the Ring of Woleaian Islands has begun to break. Gita left Friday night for her new site on Fais (a rocky outer island in Yap past Ulithi), and Porter is sorting out how to get to his new site (Hoak Island) in the state of Chuuk. It will be very difficult to envision a future PC experience without my two companions in it. To help ease the transition is the fact that Alyssa, Federai's current PCV, will be finishing up her service sometime this fall and so we'll have some overlap. I met Alyssa on Federai in April on a stop-over to Woleai, plus we've gotten to know each other much better while she was here for a few weeks before her COS (Close of Service Conference). She's a firecracker (literally - she made her 'debut' on the 4th of July) from Wisconsin and a fellow explorer and weaver. I'm glad to have her as a friend at the beginning of this new adventure.

And now is the part of the blog post where I begin to list and ramble randomly with no sense of cohesion...much like the messages I leave on voicemails, actually. Anyway...

Speaking of voicemails (nice transition, huh? :-P)...I will still have my satellite phone that I will be checking daily and can receive mini-messages that way. I cannot, however, use the satphone to respond. Which is why I'm very excited that I also have a local cell phone. Signal and phone-card permitting, I will be able to actually communicate WITH you!

As far as where this new adventure will take me, I can't be sure. But I am optimistic, hopeful, and excited. I am hoping to take a resource trip back to Yap sometime this fall. Next along the path is Mid-Service Training, which will take place on Pohnpei in December (very likely during my birthday, actually). AND THEN! Oh, I'm so excited, my WONDERFUL parents have concocted the most fantastic travel itinerary for me. In one fell swoop, I will go from the tropics to mid-winter Maine, then dip down to Bolivia for a visit with my kindred spirit Katie, and finally fly back up to Colorado for Christmas and New Year's with the family. Let's just say there are twinkly lights on my horizon, and I love it.

As always, thank you for your love and support. This continues to be a dynamic adventure for me on many levels and I am blessed by the experiences I've had and the people I've met. I'm happy to share my adventure with you and would love to hear about yours. Thank you.

Allow me to catch you up...

2010-06-17T13:11:00.000+10:00

Let’s go Marty McFly. If you were to step in the Delorean and time travel back to the last few weeks in May, you would have found me in the final days of my first school year at Falalius Community School, caught up in the throws of graduation preparations. I would be practicing about ten local dances to perform with my students on the big day and brainstorming my speech (in Woleaian) to my four graduating 8th graders. If you asked me, I would have told you that I'd be arriving in Yap for In-Service Training II around the beginning of June and no, I have never seen a Cheeze-It on my island, thank you very much.

Oh, how little did I (do I ever?) know!? My last scheduled day of class was Friday, May 21st and on Thursday, May 20, I was all set to collect my students' final projects and not at all worried about calculating grades - after all, I'd have plenty of time before I would be leaving to schlog through grades. I was confident in this conviction because, if anywhere, it is on a tiny island in the middle of a big ocean that you should literally be able to see your means of transportation coming for miles.

Nope.

Not only was I blindsided with the news that I'd be leaving in less than a day on a patrol boat with none other than the President of the FSM, but this news was fantastically preceded by an honest-to-goodness boat-load of Cheeze-Its arriving on my island!

In one mad dash, I managed to finish my grades, pack, and ant-proof my mountains of food with enough time to catch the high school graduation on Falalop Friday morning. President Mani Mori’s address to the graduating seniors? “Don’t get married and be humble. Oh, and your island may be 60 ft. under water soon. Congratulations!”

Leaving Woleai on the 01 Patrol Boat was every second an adventure. Taking a little inflatable raft up to the boat, Porter was instructed to climb the ladder while Gita and I, the only females taking the trip, were hoisted aboard – whee! Then, within minutes, we were given mail – always a delightful treat – as we sailed passed the back side of Falalius. A number of my students were there waving us farewell with giant banana and coconut leaves. From a distance they reminded me of Tiny and her flippers flapping away to bid us farewell. The ship honked its horn and we were out to sea.

Now, normally going out to sea from Woleai entails many days of bland open ocean and crackers. This adventure, however, was marked by receiving fresh fruit and cold Fantas on the way to the W.C., pork and coconut crab for dinner, eggs and toast for breakfast. In the evening we chatted with President Mori about life in Woleai and climate change. We slept in cozy bunks in an air-conditioned room (thanks to our school area supervisor, Stan, essentially our boss, for insisting we kick him out!). On the quiet deck Porter and I spotted any number of creatures and beasts in the clouds as we had a soul-heartening conversation in the morning. Gita and I reverted to seventh grade girls as we giggled our way through New Moon in the afternoon. All the while, I shamelessly made friends with all the crew members so as to secure rides in the future – “hey, if you’re ever in this neck of the ocean again…” Yap appeared on the horizon and as wonderful as each moment was on the ship, it was made even better for how short the voyage was! We arrived Saturday evening, in little more than a single day's time. Needless to say, I loved every second of this adventure!

Being back on Yap, it's always delightful to spend time with the other PCVs and my host family here. My brothers are all doing well - they have finished their school year and Jimmy (aka Cobrino – I’m Cobrina) graduated from Yap SDA High School - we are all very proud of him. Summer time with my host family includes watching MANY movies, taking walks at dusk with Gita, and a little something I like to call Night Court, wherein I am the judge, the twins are attorneys, and any number of defendants, plaintiffs, and witnesses are on hand. In the last case we tried, Lin was charging his friend Nathan with the murder of his dog. Riveting.

The weekend before training began, the three of us Woleai Volunteers caught wind of a rumor about the Peace Corps closing our sites in Woleai. The new Program and Training Officer flew in from Pohnpei to meet with us and over pizza that Wednesday she dealt the blow. On account of recent developments, or rather deteriorations, in the “safety and security situation” in Woleai, we will not be allowed to return permanently to our sites barring a miracle. Basically, PMA, the airline that had a contractual agreement with the Peace Corps, has since rescinded their agreement in writing and can no longer guarantee to fly to Woleai of emergency on account of the state of the runway.

I now have one of the worst track records with the Peace Corps. Twice the Peace Corps has come to me saying it’s time to go back to Woleai and I said, in effect, “Well, what if I stay?” Now that I want to go back, wouldn’t you know it, the Peace Corps is saying to me, “nope, now you stay.” This has been a very challenging and dynamic change of circumstances. It’s difficult for me to wrap my brain around this decision and even harder for me to grapple with what my role in this whole situation is. I did not join the Peace Corps to be told that the answers to a key problem facing my community are out of my hands and not to push. “Emily, you’re not an engineer, let it go.” (Well, I’m not a teacher either, but here I am.)

Moving on.

So when it comes down to it, Porter, Gita and I have been cleared to return to Woleai to finish out the summer. We’re planning on leaving on the next ship, which has just been bumped back from the 18th to the end of June. We’ll have time to spend in our communities and try to bring about some sense of closure, however conflicted it may be. Then we shall pack up and leave Woleai on the next ship (August-ish). Our futures after that point are still around the bend, but the Peace Corps has allowed us to explore many options for ourselves. Right now I am exploring a couple possible placements both within the Ulithi Atoll and on Yap Proper.

At present, I am waiting to hear back from PC Pohnpei and very much in limbo as to my future as a PCV. Well, it is what it is and what will be will be good.

And with that in mind, thank you for all the support and goodness that I receive from you. I’ll be in touch soon, and in the meantime, drop me a line and let me know how you are – what is your life like and what goodness lies around the bend in your path?

See for yourself...

2010-05-26T17:24:00.010+10:00

Some pictures from the last few months in Woleai...

Tiny!

Not so tiny any more!

She still likes to eat out of my hand, but she's getting too big to ride on my shoulder...so sad when your turtles grow up.

Where I go to watch the sunset.

There are many different kinds of sunsets...

Some are dynamic and awe-inspiring...

Some are purple and pink :-)...

Some are yellow...

Others are simply magnificent manifestations of light...

And some look rather like rubber duckies :-)

School Picnic (no, he's not a student...that's Santus)

School Picnic

Reunion with Gita in Woleai

High School Graduation

Sow-how in his first thu!

BIG FOOT...literally. Infection (cellulitus) - VERY unpleasant!! All better now.

Host mother and littlest brother (Yap) - gotta love 'em!

Opening up and Letting Go...

2010-05-25T16:37:00.003+10:00

(Written mid-April...)

I have been back on Falalus for just over a week now but time seems to expand here, so it has felt much longer (maybe it’s because being on the ship for a week seems to suck up time!). Plus, things are going well. One of the biggest differences for me here so far (other than not being miserable with a resident parasite in my gut) is that I’m following my dear, wise friend Barbara’s advice to be an ‘observer,’ which she said means letting go of the outcome. To me this means simply being present (which is made ever so much easier on an island where there really isn’t much choice!). It also means not letting what might/could/should/may/can be to crush or stifle what is.

And so I’m trying to let go. I’m trying to let go of the outcomes of this whole ‘Peace Corps Experience.’ I’m especially trying to let go of the outcomes of these next 2-3 months before the next training. Shoot, I’m even trying to let go of how my island cooking concoctions turn out! (To date, the tahini-less hummus was fabulous, the corn meal mush was satisfactory, and the polenta scrumptious.)

Of course, the task of letting go might be made much easier with some divine stroke of clarity or omniscience as to how the present will unfold and expand into the future. But then again, there’s something to be said for the Bend in the Road and all that lies beyond. Leaves plenty scope for the imagination, as my dear friend Anne Shirley would say. Besides, I’m finding that sometimes consciously letting go can be easier than unconsciously holding on. Some eggs can crack themselves if we let them ;-P

Each evening at sunset I have been heading to the ‘end of the island’ to ‘checkii yaai phone,’ or check my new satellite phone for messages (which works wonderfully so far! THANK YOU to everyone who has sent me messages so far, it really does make me feel connected and I’m sending you positive energy back!). Faalimaase, the name of where I go, is on the western side of the island. Everyone else thinks it’s haunted, so I pretty much get it to myself, which is a rare occurrence on this highly communal island. Being alone and in such an idyllic setting, I am able to have a daily check-in – with my friends/family via satphone, with my body via yoga, and with my heart via meditation. As I arose from a savassana the other day, I simply had to laugh at how surreal it is to find myself where I am! It’s moments like these that help me sink into the present.

Speaking of sinking, the island might be sinking – the beach is much steeper and narrower than before – or it might just be seasonal. Whatever the case, it makes it easier for me to run in the morning while it’s still dark (I have to run then when no one can see me) because there’s now a clear path at the top of the beach. (Special thanks to Uncle Tim for the great headlamp that a.) stays in place and b.) has great range so I don’t end up running into a coconut tree )

In my time on Yap I received a flabbergasting outpouring of support and supplies, and I can never be grateful enough! I have food galore, teaching resources, books, candles, yarn, you name it! I even have three choices of water filtration systems to choose from to help me stay healthy (plus lots of traditional and modern remedies). The water filter I’m using now is just about the coolest thing ever – it’s called the SteriPen (and comes from Blue Hill, Maine of all places!). It’s basically a UV light wand that I use to stir the water for about a minute and it takes care of all the germies! Neato!

My language skills continue to improve bit by bit, and the kids are learning English bit by bit. For instance, some of the kids now say ‘hi,’ which is something I had to teach them (there’s no greeting in this language other than “buutogo mwongoo,” or “come eat”). Anyway, it may seem small, but it’s good for my soul. I need to be careful, though, because I today I somehow found myself in the thick of an all-out discussion of all the English swear words my 7th and 8th graders know (and I may have unintentionally taught them some, I’m not gonna lie). Here’s how it went down. I began the class with a warm-up activity explaining the important difference between the letters P and B (thanks to PCV Mike for the example). Take, for instance, the following sentences – “I eat crab” and “I eat crap.” One letter makes a big difference in what you say, but most of the kids have trouble pronouncing the difference. In order for this example to really hit home, however, the kids needed to know what ‘crap’ meant…which led to a discussion of how “poop” was the good way to say it, “crap” was in the middle of the field, and “sh*t” was at the bottom of the ladder. This little discussion snowballed and soon I found myself throwing out all propriety and cultural norms in a full-steam-ahead discussion of “kepate ngawe,” or bad words. We covered everything from expletives and derogative terms for women to racial slurs and sexuality. Oy vey! I did my best to maintain a thread of integrity and pushed the importance of understanding and comprehending the words you use so as to not hurt people intentionally or unintentionally. One of the best/most awkward parts was that my principal/co-teacher walked into the classroom late in the heat of the discussion. He looked at the board, I sputtered out some explanation/apology, saying that maybe this wasn’t the best lesson for us to team-teach, and he left before even sitting down! It was one of those classic moments and I hope my students appreciated it as much as I did :-)

And with that yarn, it’s time I wrapped this update up. Thank you, as ever, for your love and support.

Whee! Emily

PS – Tiny is ever so much bigger than I expected, but she still likes to ride on my shoulder :-) She sends her love, too!

There again

2010-04-20T16:43:00.004+10:00

Hi, this is Emily's Mom letting you know that, after a five day boat trip and a day's visit with Porter and Gita, Emily made it back to Falalus (on April 8.) She spent at least two days unpacking and wants to thank everybody for the amazing gifts and communication and support you gave her. Special thanks to those who have already emailed her SAT phone. Emily can't use her phone to respond (we'll have to wait for her letters) but she loves hearing from you.

Back to Falalus

2010-04-04T15:20:00.002+10:00

Just a quick note to say that I'm off again to Woleai, healthy, hearty, and happy. Talk to you all in 2-3 months! WHEE, emily

It's like they knew...

2010-03-23T09:01:00.004+10:00

This blog post goes out to my wonderful parents, whose support is ample and just so darn well timed. We are in the midst of Tropical Depression 02-W, soon to be upgraded to a tropical storm, and to boot, I have a nasty head cold. (Which seems to be the trend, actually - the two times I've been sick on Yap we've had tropical storms, so I'll take the blame. Sorry, Yap). Anywho, wouldn't you know it, with it storming outside and me feeling like my head's in a cloud, I got a package from the folks yesterday with chocolate, soup, and movies. As my friend Laura said, it's like they knew! ('Cause they do, 'cause they're great like that and I love 'em.)

In other news, I've been thoroughly enjoying my time here on Yap as it's coming to a close. The ship is announced to set sail on April 2nd (mind you, transportation dates in Yap are never set in stone...even stone money...haha, bad joke...I'll blame it on the sinuses interfering w/ the normal pathways of wit and genius in my brilliant brain...except not quite). So I've got a couple of more weeks to prepare myself for heading back out to Falalus and reuniting w/ my baby turtle, students, and community. It'll be good.

Aside from the present head cold (darn my Wellness Formula being on Falalus!), I'm very happy to report that I feel hearty, healthy, and happy. This time I've had here on Yap has been a blessing in many ways that just keep unfolding. As always, I am ever grateful for your support and friendship.

Gai sa gashigeshige gemaase, remaweshe!
Cobrina LeHasugulmal
aka emily :-)

PS - a huge and hearty congratulations to Lo and her St. Patty's Day Baby! Yay!

Imagine...

2010-03-03T11:53:00.006+10:00

*Habele. I have received many requests from friends and family on how they can support my work as a teacher here in the Outer Islands of Yap. Check out these websites for Habele, an organization striving to provide Outer Island students with educational opportunities.
http://www.habele.org/
http://habele.blogspot.com/2009/04/outer-island-micronesian-students-hard.html (this has a good summary of their work)
http://habele.blogspot.com/

*Tsunami. Yap Day 2010 Celebrations were on March 1st and 2nd. The day before, us PCVs received a warning that a tsunami was going to try to crash the party, which is the biggest cultural to-do here on the island (lots of local foods, dance, and dress). But what with all the prayers and support from family and friends heading our way, I guess the tsunami realized that it really wasn't on the guest list. Thank you for your concern and support.

*Potholes. Driving to work in America, day in day out, one comes to know the road traversed with its few rough patches and occasional potholes. Here in Yap, one comes to know the occasional smooth parts of the road otherwise bedecked by the ubiquitous expanses of potholes.

*Public Transportation. Here in Yap, you don't get stuck behind school buses. They get stuck behind you, speeding and veering into the other lane to pass in a very un-Micronesian hurry. (I'm glad I don't have to take the bus.)

*Chef Boyardee. When I first came to Yap, I was worried about my diet suffering from my "favorite canned meat." Now, I love Chef Boyardee and it's enriched noodles. Let's just say I've been flexible and come a long way from my vegetarianism and Royal River Natural Foods. Damn, I had it good.

*Nature vs. Nissan. When I was in America, I used to feel exposed to the elements when driving through heavy rain in a car (even in my trusty Buick Buelah who never steered me wrong). Now, I feel more 'battened down,' so to say, in a car than most anywhere else (esp. my host father's Nissan company truck). Most life is conducted outside here, and even the inside feels outside in many regards. Ants, slat windows, humidity. It's just interesting to consider how much our modern 'amenities,' like cars and windows, separate us from the natural world. Here, whether we like it or not, the natural world is going to have its way, so we have things that crawl, unsealed windows, and fuzzy layers of mold on things. But we also know our food comes from the land we work and the sun rises and sets over the water that defines our island life. That's not something we want to keep out. Ants? Maybe. But feeling connected to the natural world? Nope.

*Peanuts. My host brother Lindsey was reading a story problem from his math book about a girl eating peanuts at a baseball game. I started to tell him how cool it was to eat peanuts at a baseball game 'cause you can throw the shells on the ground. I caught myself, though, because I realized that what was novel or cool about this to me is just run of the mill for Lindsey. We throw food on the ground all the time here. Our 'kitchen' and 'dining room' are outside under a tin 'beranta' and the ground is our floor. Our trash compactors and vacuums are covered in fur and have four legs. Lindsey wanted me to finish what I was saying, so I struggled to explain that in America, where we cook and eat are inside, so we don't go around throwing or spitting fishbones on the floor. Weird.

In other, much less pleasant news, I made the discovery this weekend that I have intestinal worm(s). It's nothing serious and I am experiencing no symptoms, but I'm still taking the necessary medicine and going to get some bloodwork done to be sure.

In other, much MORE pleasant news, fellow Yapese PCVs Laura, Kanani, and I had a thoroughly delightful belated birthday celebration for Laura this weekend where nothing seemed to work out the way we planned and it was all for the better.

I'm not sure when the next ship will leave, but I am very happy to be here now.

Gareteli gai sa gashigeshige gemaase (really, thank you all so very much) for your support and love.

Sa ila, remaweshe (bye bye, my dears) - Emily LeGasugulmal :-D

PS - THANK YOU so much for all the wonderful care packages. At this point, I have enough yummy and delectable supplies to last me for quite some time. So I'd like to respectfully alter my request for care packages to the simple gift of correspondence. Again, thanks everyone SO MUCH. (Of course, little things here and there will always be appreciated, but I've got a happy collection of goodies already. I can always use notes and letters connecting me to you - they never go bad and the rats don't eat them :-D! Peace and love, emily)

Better Later than Too Soon...

2010-02-18T17:23:00.004+10:00

As you can see from this post, I did not get on the plane on Monday. The plane, however, did leave with both Porter and Gita safely aboard. As for me, I simply was not ready.

But I want to go back. I wasn’t ready when the plane took off, but I was close. The startling change of schedule took the rug out from under me. It was a very hard decision not to get on that plane (the hardest I’ve ever made, actually). It could have been a cop out, an excuse not to go back to Woleai, in which case I should have felt relief. But instead of being relieved, it broke my heart to not get on the plane.

Which is why I asked for the chance to return to Woleai. And it never hurts to ask. I now have both the support of Regina, our fabulous friend and PA, and Kevin, the PC Country Director, to return to Woleai on the next ship. The next ship may be a month away (as is intended), or it may be more. It’s a gamble, but I have some cards to play.

My experience in Falalus has been extremely challenging, but like a runner nursing a sprain, I just need time to heal and regain my strength. In a way, Peace Corps Volunteers are like marathon runners. We’re in it for the long run and will face lots of struggles along the way. Whether it’s 26 miles or 26 months, if we don’t take the time to mend and regain our strength, our minor (and major) sprains will only lead to painful breaks that will bench us in the long run. In less than a week, I felt like I was on the mend and then suddenly told that the big race was moved to tomorrow. But I have started the race and I’ve worked hard for the miles I’ve logged. It’s exhausted me, bruised me, sprained me, but not broken me. I want to finish this race, which is why I am grateful for the chance to return to Woleai and the time now to prepare.

So now I am looking forward to my time here as a resource trip. I can use this ‘one stitch in time’ now to start working on a number projects that will enhance my work on Falalus. I plan on gathering the resources, contacts, and materials that I simply cannot while at site in Woleai. I'll be talking to the Dept. of Ed, the EPA, the Dept. of Health, and the Yap Women's Association, just to name a few. If you have any TESOL resources, send them my way. There is also a great need for a library on Woleai, so I will use my time in Yap to research and gather resources.

One of the best resources available to me here is contact with YOU - my family and friends. So I am elated to have the time to communicate with you over the next unknown expanse of time. I especially want to thank you for your infinite support that has given me strength and fed my heart. I most especially need to thank my friend Babs, whose providentially-timed email reminded me to listen to my deep heart and to always give myself options.

There is the expression that when God closes a door, He opens another (...or a window, or a box of Girl Scout cookies, based on who you ask). As for me, when the plane door closed on Monday, my heart was opened and glad to be at the center of my life.

Oh, and don't worry, my turtle-sitter's contract is open-ended :-)

Much Sooner Than Later...

2010-02-13T17:26:00.002+10:00

There has been a sudden change of plans and I am leaving this Monday. Training has been bumped up due to the ship leaving today. No, I am not going on the ship...yet. In an unexpected turn of events, we Woleaians will catch a plan on Monday out to Fais (an outer island) where we will meet this ship and then head out to Woleai (over 2-3 days).

I'm not sure if I am ready to head back out, but my stuff is on the ship and training has commnenced. I am very bummed not to have more time to communicate with more people, but I am hoping to be a more intentional letter writer in my time on island. I should be in again around the end of May/June. So soon and so far away at the same time.

A HUGE thank you for all the support I've received while being here. I received TEN (!!!) packages from family and friends yesterday, just in time to open them, be in awe at how generous and wonderful you all are, and then pack them up to go on the ship. As far as future packages and mail, it all depends on when the ship goes out. I have received PLENTY to tie me over for some time, so please don't feel the need to go over board. Honestly, I'm stunned at your generosity. Thank you.

I'm still a bit shell shocked by the whole sudden change in plans, so forgive me in my reeling state if I am forgetting something major. But rest assured that I will think of you often and keep you in my heart over the next few months, in all its ebbs and flows.

Wish me peace and luck!
emily

See for yourself...

2010-02-10T12:27:00.011+10:00

PS - check out the new links to other PC blogs to see things from another perspective!

“I feel like so much is going on but nothing is happening.” - Gita

2010-02-08T17:10:00.010+10:00

This might be a strange quote with which to begin my post regarding my first stint as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Falalus, Woleai, but in many ways it speaks to the truth. When I think about where to possibly begin sharing my reality over the last few months, I am at a loss. My experience has been a mixed bag in so many ways – from good to challenging to downright hard – and it has all taken place in a context as far removed from anything I have ever known that it seems it can’t be real.

One place to begin is the setting which, to be frank, is as beautiful as any sort of tropical island fantasy you can imagine. The water is warm, clear, and multifaceted in its blues and greens. Now place against this setting Christmas and New Year’s celebrations. I have spent a couple of holidays away from my family in Colorado, which left me feeling removed (and thankfully included by a great community of friends in Maine), but being on Falalus this Christmas left me feeling like I was in an entirely separate universe. Where is the snow? The twinkly lights? Mountains and Christmas trees? And yet, to answer many of your questions, yes, we do celebrate Christmas in Falalus. The preparations and celebrations spanned multiple days, including a “midnight” service at 2 am. The most beautiful aspect of it all to me was the fact that no one was left out. – everyone gave and got. Starting on the 19th, the community came together at the church to distribute gifts to certain populations, the students, the youth, adults, etc, in a Secret Santa fashion. Most gifts were handmade, mostly food (I popped a few giant pots of popcorn and gave some to each family compound - there are 12 in all - as my gift). Even though my name wasn’t officially on Santa’s list, each gift-giving day I left with tons of generous gifts. And now here’s the part that I still can’t get over. Amongst the coconut crab, taro with coconut milk, rice, and other edible goodies, I got one of the best gifts I think I may ever receive for Christmas – a baby sea turtle.

Her name is Tiny and she lives in an old buoy outside my house (although I just bought a gloriously big plastic tub for her and I can’t wait to show Tiny her new digs!). Everyone in the community now likes to inquire after ‘laai woongi,’ my baby turtle, asking if she’s big yet (I always reply, 'teiti farigiti’, or not yet). She and I bonded right away. I take her to the beach to shower with me every day. After she darts around for exercise a bit, she’ll climb on my arm to rest. She especially loves to sit on my shoulder as we bob together on the waves. It’s just about the most surreal reality ever. On New Year’s Day, I got up to feed Tiny, but she was missing. We looked all around for her and wouldn’t you know it? When we looked up from searching and there was Tiny, just strolling down the road like she just needed to stretch her fins. Fortunately she’s taking to stretching her fast-growing fins in water. When I left Woleai, I asked all of my students to turtle sit for me and make sure that everything is alright while I’m gone.

New Year’s was quite an experience on island, let me tell you. It is the one time of the year when the shoabuuto, or women, are allowed to drink (whereas the mwaale (men) drink every night of everyday – it’s like clockwork). I can vouch that the women make up for their whole year of drinking in one go. We sat on mats by the beach as the men took turns donating faluuba (fermented coconut nectar) and yeast (just what it sounds like – yeast fermented for a few hours in warm water. Safe? Not quite). I joined them as they drank and sang songs at the top of their lungs from afternoon till evening. It was interesting seeing the women, who work so hard each day of their lives, getting to take a break and enjoy themselves thoroughly singing song after song from generations past together. As for me, I appreciated having the opportunity to share this experience while also watching the full moon rise over the lagoon.

I’m sure you’re all wondering (like everyone else here) if I went hog wild and got bulaase (drunk) with the rest of the women, but the honest answer is no, I did not. You see, around Christmas I began experiencing stomach troubles that plagued for about a very unpleasant month. The pattern seemed to be: Monday mornings, wake up at 5 am to go running on the beach (the only time I can go running is when it’s dark and everyone is asleep); Tuesdays, repeat; then, promptly become stricken with incessant diarrhea and be miserable until Friday, at which point I’d take an “immobility agent” that would stop me up over the weekend and make me feel like it’d be a good idea to go running again on Monday. Thus the cycle continued until I realized I shouldn’t bother running. Instead I self diagnosed and took the prescription amoebacide the PC provides to all outer island volunteers. After week four of this, I felt like I would never get better – I could have sworn I’d always be curled up as one pathetic, burpy ball. My guess is that I got a parasite or amoeba that took to living in my gut and let me tell you, it was not pleasant. I spent much of January curled up with no energy or appetite under my mosquito net trying with all my might to be okay with eating five-times reheated bulage (taro). Fortunately the drugs seem to have evicted whatever was squatting in my lower digestive system and I discovered BBQ for the bulage. Praise the lord and cross your fingers!

What with the digestive maladies, the emotional vulnerability that comes with a weak body, missing the holidays with my family, and general feelings of 'why on earth did I get myself into this?' I have to say I am very glad to be here on Yap for some respite and rejuvination. In no particular order, I'm delighting like nobody's business in my host family, the food, and being able to be in touch with friends and family. Here''s a reflection on leaving Falalus for the first time...

I've taken to doing Yoga and watching the sunset at 'the end of the island,' but shhhh, don't tell anyone on Falalus (they'd really get to talking about the strange things their PC does...). One evening I was watching the sunset and not actually expecting much out of it by way of few clouds in the sky. But soon I was surprised to discover that there was a whole layer of clouds between me and the moon that I didn't realize was there. The sun had spotted it before me and decided to paint what I couldn't even see with the shades of fire. I walked back from the beach thinking about the sunset - how sometimes you need something to change in order to see something that's there the whole time. That's how I felt coming into Yap. My experience living and teaching on Falalus has been quite challenging and even in my short two and a half months there (granted, it didn't feel short at the time), I've wondered about "what's there," so to speak. How can this experience transform like the sunset? I needed something to change - to leave and come to Yap for training - in order to see some layers of my experience that I didn't realize were there. When I left, the entire community haulted their daily activities to throw me an impromptu farewell shindig and make sure I was coming back. Let's just say the sunset was beautiful that night and I'm getting ready to return.

With all that I am, thank you for supporting me on this adventure. The main thing I have realized over the past few months is that this experience is an adventure of the heart and its challenges. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Call for Communication and Material Support (aka Care Packages!)

2010-02-01T15:07:00.005+10:00

Hello friends! I am back in Yap after my first couple of months on Falalus, my new island home. I have many stories and other fun things to share about my experiences that will be forthcoming. Be on the lookout for new on Xmas/New Year's festivities and my pet sea turtle :-)!!

For the time being, I am simply writing to let you know that I am back in the realm of communication for the next few weeks (at least three-ish, if not longer). So now's the time to shoot me an email letting me know how you are and what's going on in your life. I'd love letters as well, time permitting. I am going to make several calls via Skype. Be on the lookout for an international call from your favorite topless islander :-P

The most urgent reason for this post, however, is an earnest request for care packages. Before I headed out, I was loaded with a bevy of booty that has served me wonderfully over the last few months (without which I may have lost all my sanity). As it turns out, the supplementary items from home gave me not only dietary support, but also spiritual and emotional support (literally, it's been soul food). So thank you, all of you.

The best way I can ask you to support me on this adventure is to keep sending care packages. I should be able to get whatever is sent in the next week or so before I head out. Plus, I will be able to receive them whenever a ship comes my way from Yap, which is around every 3-4 months. And the best way for you to send them is with USPS flate rate boxes. There is simply not much variety, nutrition, or frankly flavor in my local diet, so I can assure you that anything and everything will (and has been) appreciated. The easiest things are dehydrated or 'just add water' goodies and prepackaged foods. If a whole care package isn't feasible, letters from home feed my soul in just the same way. Here is a broad list of possible items from home that will make me jump for joy in my lavalava...but of course, please give as you like (I love seeing each of you in your different choices!):

Dehydrated fruits or veggies, preferably without sugar
Just Add H2O Creations (like Zatarran's, Rice-a-roni, soups, etc.)
Mac and cheese!!!
Instant mashed potatoes
Fantastic Foods brand goodies
Hummus mix (esp. Fantastic foods brand)
Snack bars (Kashi, Cliff, Lara, Nature's Path, etc.)
Fruit leather
Crackers, esp. Chedder Bunnies
Anything cheesy :-)
Pancake mixes, or mixes I can make dumplings with
Instant oatmeal
Corn meal
Small bags of flour
Agave nectar
Cereal (Kix, bran flakes, Lucky Charms, Peanut Butter Bumpers, anything really...I can eat it with homemade coconut milk!)
Bouillon
BBQ sauce (great on taro and dried ramen)
FLAVOR - seasoning packets, spices to add to dried beans, driend onions, garlic, etc.
Spirutein Packets (any yummy flavors) or other powdered healthy mixes to add to water
Tea (Good Earth, Chai, Constant Comment, Earl Grey, decaff is good)
Chocolate goodies and/or cookies
Candy
Tetra packed milk (shelf stable milk)
Snack mixes
Nuts
Surpise me

Non-food items include:

Books you think I might like
Fun yarn (despite the heat, people here love hats)
Fun pictures/posters/maps I can use in the classroom
Music you think might keep my spirits up (CDs work)
Any fun videos or movies you can get on a CD
Ideas for fun class activities/games
Whatever you want to send me!

This is a much bigger list than I thought it would be and please, do not feel obligated to follow it (or to send anything at all). There are lots of kinds of support, and I am thankful for your support in whatever form it comes.

Welimmwemii to My Island Life!

2010-01-18T14:03:00.017+10:00

A very (and probably very belated) Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all from Falalus, Woleai!! I’ve been in island since November 21 and it’s been nothing but new adventures (and some challenges) since. I’m very grateful for this unexpected opportunity to share it all with you!

I was very fortunate - the ship came the day before my birthday, bringing with it the best birthday present I could have asked for – letters from friends and family (I was so filled with joy I wept – more on that later). The ship, it turns out, makes two stops in Woleai each trip – one on its way to the other outer islands and one on its way back to Yap. Which is how I’m able to send this update to my parents who have posted it for me! But enough with logistics – it’s time to get down to the adventure that is my life on Falalus…

The best place to begin is the beginning, so I’ll tell you about my adventures on the

Voyager, the ship on which I spent five days (!)getting to my island. Now, we’re talking about a whole heap of people with even bigger heaps of stuff all on a moderately sized cargo ship. There were a few cabins on the ship, but most were r

eserved for the medical personal that were going island to island administering the H1N1 vaccine. So we did what most people did – found a space on deck and camped out. Gita, Porter, and I loaded our own heaps of stuff on the front platform and set sail for our journey. The ship practically jumped and skipped over the waves as it took us to our islands, and I am ever so thankful that I do not get seasick. We met some amazing people on the ship from all the different outer islands of Yap, plus we got to visit a number of them. We stopped at Mo

gmog where our fellow volunteer Catherine is serving, Fais to meet PCV Joseph, and Falalop, Ulithi, to check in with PCV James at his new site.

My biggest adventure on the ship happened on my way back from visiting James. The Voyager was anchored offshore and we were returning in a little boat as the sun was setting (think beautiful tropical sunset and you’d be right). As our boat approached the ship, I grabbed onto to the ladder suspended off the side. But as I did so, the boat started drifting away! I couldn’t let go of the ladder, and I couldn’t get back in the boat! Gita tried to help out by grabbing onto my legs, so for a few seconds I was bridged over the water, suspended horizontally off the side of the ship! She couldn’t hold on as the boat kept drifting away, but thank goodness I had a good grip. I ended up just hanging there, calm as a clam, half in and half out of the water for everyone to see! Some of the crew scrambled to pull me up and I was already laughing that I had such a crazy adventure and lived to tell the tale!

The rest of the ship ride was much less eventful. The Voyager arrived in Woleai at night in the rain, so the next morning when I arose, I had the most propitious first view of my island. There was a complete rainbow encircling the lagoon, right next to Falalus! (My island is back there, just to the right of my head…this is what it looks like from Falalop, the main island across the lagoon)

And, now, my life on Falalus.....

When I arrived on my island I was greeted by the whole community and covered with beautiful, fragrant mwaremwares and leis. But instead of going to my intended host family, I went to a different family. It turns out the community made the decision that I should live with another family because of the incorrect belief someone put forth that “kids are against Peace Corps policy.” That is very untrue and it is unfortunate that I wasn’t able to live with my intended family, but there was nothing I could do to fight the decision. That is how I found myself living at Niuroore (sp?), my new home. My host father, Steve, is a very large man and he’s the one person in the family who speaks English. Magdalena, his wife, is a very attentive and doting host mother. We have fun finding ways to communicate without a common language (yet). Their daughter, Priscilla (29), reminds me ever so much of a waitress in a late night café the way she fixes her bangs in a bouffant and jokes with me as she gets food for me or helps me with other simple tasks. We’re becoming friends quickly. She has a 10 year old daughter named Molly (who reminds me of a tomboy from the Bronx) and Seowiiling, a happy, giggly 5 mo. old. There is also Magdalena’s mother, Dolores.

There is a large local house where the family sleeps, a small hut next to it for weaving, guests, etc.,

and then our outdoor cooking/dining area. We eat on woven coconut mats on the coral gravel or sit on busted pots, logs, coconuts, or crates. As for me, I’m living in the old ‘stoowa,’ a tin and plywood building that used to be Steve’s store. It is actually a great set up. I have a plywood ‘bed,’ a piece of plywood and local mat on a platform, where I read and write by lamplight under my mosquito net (it’s cozy, I love it). There is plenty of shelving and even a display window I can prop up and feel like I’m open for business (the main thing I really want someone to buy is my roommates, the rats). My house is right next to the ‘road’ (think path) and is only 20 or so yards from the beach.

Just down my path, right next to the beach, the community built me an outhouse for my own, particular use. It’s a bottom-less oil barrel with wooden seat, surrounded by tin sides and a tin roof. The men had it up my second day on island, minus the door. I was so pleasantly shocked that they had done this that I assured them there was no rush. I was planning on going ‘local’ the whole time, so what’s a few more days? And so I did go local, using only the beach/ocean, first for one week, then another, and another. Now let me tell you a little about my personal thoughts on going local in this regard. For one thing, I find it inconvenient having to change my lavalava every time nature called (turns out you leave yesterday’s lavalava on the line for today’s bathroom use, but it still requires you to go home and change). For another, it’s a very public affair – on the small island there is always someone on the beach, usually some small kid who doesn’t want to leave me alone – and I’m shy in this regard. And finally, I’ll be brief. I find it quite unpleasant to be in the toilet bowl, so to say. It is also an unhappy thing to have to constantly be on my guard not to step in any number of piles of poo whenever I walk on the beach. Pleasant. Post-digestively, this is not quite paradise. And keep in mind, this is my own personal stance. Others might love it, but it’s not for me. I’m quite happy to now have a door on my ‘kelaisiisi.’

Falalus, in so many ways, looks just like what you would expect a small, remote tropical island in the Pacific to look like. There are local houses made out of woven coconut leaves. The sand is white and the sea is usually clear and ever-changing in its displays of blues, greens, and sparkles. The few ‘roads’ are paths that connect one family’s houses to another’s. There is plentiful shade on account of all the kinds of trees – coconut, breadfruit, plumeria, pandanus. When it rains, it’s heavy tropical rain. Local canoes line the beach. The men use them to go fishing when they’re not busy cutting tuba. The women spend their days weaving – lavalavas, mats, fans, bags – and preparing food – iige (fish), bulage (taro), yaroung (coconut milk), and mai (breadfruit). Everything here is done by hand and you can tell it’s the way it’s been done for generations. The kids are learning the ways from their mothers and grandmothers, just as they learned from the generations before them. Young boys are at home in 30 ft. tall coconut trees and everyone can cut a hair off a fly’s back with a machete by the time they’re six! The kids here are very capable – starting fires, opening coconuts, climbing trees, weaving. In many regards, I’m at the cultural level of an infant here.

The women wear lavalavas and the men wear thus. Most of the little kids either run around naked (washewashe) or wrapped in whatever fabric is available – usually extra thu fabric or tea cloths, which I love. Some of the little girls still wear the traditional grass skirt. Thu fabric is basic cotton, but it I love the colors – vibrant solid blue, green, orange, purple, and yellow. There are some tropical/floral prints, too, so all in all it’s a very colorful wardrobe

As for me, I’m enjoying wearing a lavalava, though it does take quite a lot of practice to a.) keep it from falling off or showing too much and b.) be able to move comfortably in it. My whole body moves differently in a lavalava and I am still getting used to it (plus there’s no public outlet for exercise…I’m going to weave a yoga mat so I can practice in private). Let’s just say lavalavas were not invented with maximum feminine mobility in mind. It is a good thing they are adjustable, however, because my host family jokes that I have the be the size of my giant platform bed, or roughly the size of my voluminous host father, by the time I leave.

As for being topless, it’s not uncomfortable. I actually find myself wearing a shirt or piece of fabric more often than not on account of the mosquitoes. So I do not have to live through the stereotypical ‘nightmare’ of being naked in front of the class – I wear a shirt when I teach. Each morning it still seems strange to go outside my house without a shirt – I get that “I feel like I’m forgetting something” feeling, then I remember where I am. Surprisingly, the thing that makes me feel the most exposed isn’t being topless, it’s toutou-ing in public.

‘Tou-tou’ means shower in Woleaian and it’s done in two stages, twice a day. First, there’s the toutouli taati, or ocean shower. This basically means going to the beach twice a day to hang out and play with the kids. After this phase, I walk back to the house where I toutouli shaaliu, or shower with fresh water (every few days I use soap – most people use tica, or coconut oil). The water we use comes from the giant catchment barrels by my house which, like I mentioned, is right by the path. So as I’m showering people usually stroll by. It’s going to take me a while to get used to talking to my students while I shower, or kepate me yaai sariiskuulo ileete gaangiu I be toutouli shaaliu.

Bit by bit I’m picking up more of the language. I have lots of mini-celebrations when I say something and people understand more or less what I’m trying to communicate. Plus, the more I know the more I can joke around and get to know the people here. Of course, there have been many comical linguistic mishaps, like in Yap the first time I ate turtle. I meant to say, ‘yes, I ate turtle,’ or ‘ngoa, I sa mwongoo woongi.’ But instead of ‘woongi,’ I said ‘waangi,’ which is a man’s hoo-haa. Everyone got a hoot out of what I accidentally said. While I was visiting Gita, I learned to be very careful when I say ‘correct’ – pashe. Not pashiu, which means horny. Of course, you don’t really say the last vowel of any word, so it’s a very slippery slope for a newbie.

It’s been harder for me to learn more practical local skills, like cooking and using the machete, because of how busy I am with teaching and how people here ‘teach’ by doing. It’s more work for someone to take the time to walk me through something than to do it themselves, so I have to be persistent yet respectful in asking to learn something (aka everything!). So far I have learned how to start a coconut husk fire, wrap mare, weave a basket, and make coconut milk, a very intensive process. First, you have to gerigeri shooa, meaning grate the coconut. I really like this part. You use a little saw-horsey deal with a scraper on the end. Once you have the grated coconut, you have to wongiwongi, or milk, it by hand – add water, knead, squeeze handful by handful, add more water, knead, squeeze handful by handful. It’s very methodical and I like how ‘zen’ it is when you get lost in the routine…unless your hands get tired or your legs fall asleep. I’m actually having to actively combat bad posture here. It’s hard to sit up straight when there are no chairs and you have to sit in a lavalava, let me tell you! Send a lower-back prayer my way.

The main thing I spend most of my time trying to learn here is how to teach, which I enjoy but find challenging. I have four generations of teaching behind me, so I’m not too worried about it, but I still spend a lot of the time not really knowing what I’m doing. Fortunately this is a great place to figure it out. The school has three classrooms, there are three other academic teachers, and there are about 33 students. All good things come in threes, right? Oh, and I’m teaching three classes – English Writing Gr. 5/6, EL Writing Gr. 7/8, and EL Reading Gr. 7/8. As you can see, the classes are combined, which poses a challenge in itself. I have 11 kids in each class and they’re great, but it’s hard b/c they are very low-level English speakers. The kids are hanging in there, though. For example, the very first thing I decided to teach the reading class was a poem (I could write it on the board, which seemed like a good idea given limited resources). But the one poem snowballed into a whole unit on poetry, including literal vs. figurative language, alliteration, personification, and metaphor! I started these poor kids off with the hardest thing in the English language! But we survived, including me, and now we’re working on one of my personal favorites, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.

I wish I had time to tell you about the kiddos one by one, but alas, I don’t have the time or the battery power to do it. So instead, just look at some of my pictures. I know when you see them you’ll understand how wonderful they are and how much I like them. Most of these pictures are from a rainy day of volleyball this week.

If you have any teaching resources, ideas, or guidance, I’d love to have it. I’m teaching all my kids at about a grade three level in America. The hardest parts are teaching to multiple levels in one class and measuring comprehension. A lot of the kids can copy a model but not necessarily do what they’re learning on their own. Plus, they’re all ‘ma,’ or shy to speak English in the classroom. On the volleyball court, it’s a different story – they love using any English they know to taunt the other kids! It’d be easier in the classroom if I was actually co-teaching, which is the Peace Corps model, but that’s not happening. So for now I have to remind myself to speak very slowly and keep it fun and interesting for the kids.

Now here are some snippets of my life on Falalus...

- Flies. Everywhere. Almost all the time. The flies are so bad that I’m afraid with each bite that I’m going to eat one. The worst part is how they flock to the smallest of open wounds, which kids here can’t help but have given the conditions. Even personally, the smallest thing like an ingrown hair attracts flies and gets infected. I’m hoping that soon my body will acclimate to the conditions.

- Mwaale tugofai. It means ‘old man’ in Woleaian. It’s what my family calls oatmeal b/c they saw the Quaker man but don’t think they can say ‘oatmeal.’

- Booty shakin’ and soul singing. The kids here are preparing for the Christmas ceremony and I’ve got to learn some of their dances. Let me tell you – these kids can shake it! In a culture so physically open with their bodies, there are no reservations in movement. Let’s just say hips are central to dance here. And these kids can sing! What would you do without video games or tv? You might learn to love songs as much as these kids here and develop a beautiful set of pipes

- Culture classes. At the school there are also two ‘culture’ teachers. They teach local skills, like building a house for the boys and weaving for the girls, as well as ways of life, like respect and communal living. I think it’s neat.

- 'Going out.’ In America when you lose a round in a game, you ‘go out.’ Here, if you lose a game you have to stand up and dance a silly dance to a song they all sing. It’s hilarious and I love it.

- Maweshe. I can’t actually translate this word, but I can tell you it’s a kind of term of endearment. I like to think it means more or less ‘dear’ or ‘my dear.’ But to the point. It’s everywhere. Everyone calls all the kids, regardless of if they’re their own, mauweshe. I get mauweshed all over the place. I call my students mauweshe. It’s just about the sweetest thing ever.

- These families have tall trees. There are four generations of women at my house, which is a wonderful and interesting thing to observe. For example, they all have the same nose, and they all think that throwing rocks at someone is an effective way of dealing with someone (everyone throws rocks here…it’s ubiquitous)

- Names. Most people here have wonderful English names, like Dolores, Priscilla, Heffner, MaccDonald, but they usually go by their island name. For example, MaccDonald goes my ‘Moonkey’! When I was in Yap, my host mother and father gave me a local last name that some people call me here – LeHasugumal.

- Coconuts, coconuts, coconuts! I drink one for every meal, plus the community knows I love yaroung, or coconut milk, with just about anything. But coconuts are used for EVERYTHING here – firewood/charcoal, cups, alcoholic and sweet tuba, rope, oil, seats (just pop a squat on a coconut!), mats, roofs, walls, floors, bags, fans, brooms, you name it!

- Pigs tied to trees by the beach. They move around and make little ‘crop circles’ to claim their space. If in any life you’re born a pig, you’d want to be a pig here on the beach!

- Faalimaase – ‘the end of the island.’ It’s probably the most beautiful place on the island, and that’s saying something. It’s where I have permission to go check my sat phone every day. It’s also where I can see the sunset and say hello to Mark, one of the sweetest old men on the island.

- Family. The whole lagoon is related somehow, which means everyone is welcome anywhere, anytime. Everyone shouts to anyone passing by to come eat. Food is prepared at one house and distributed all over. When the men go fishing, they share the catch with all the family. The best way to describe how this all feels is flow –there’s a comfortable flow of people everywhere on the island. This is a family as much as it is a community.

- Set-up. The beach faces north-ish and looks out onto the ring of happy islands in the lagoon. The rest of the island is surrounded by rocks.
- Chick, chick, chickens! There are maliuge, or chickens, everywhere. I have learned to sleep through the roosters’ crows, so I guess I wouldn’t make a very good farmer.

- STARS! That’s all I have to say about that

- Climate. It’s rainy season here and boy, can it rain cats and dogs! Between the rain and all the trees on island, it’s actually comfortable most of the time (as long as you’re not directly in the sun).

- The ‘Dentist.’ A man came on the ship to check the kids’ teeth. He set up shop in the office and for two days in the afternoon he asked if any teeth hurt. If no, he applied fluoride. If yes, he pulled. He pulled tooth after tooth as I lesson planned. Yikes!

- Everyone shows affection for each other by pulling lice out of each other’s hair. Things have gotten especially bad lately and a number of people are running around with fully or partially shaven heads. Today as one woman had her head shaved, I tried to communicate that I once opted for that ‘do…don’t know if it translated.

- Island sounds. There are kissing lizards, crickets chirping, frigate squawks, chicken clucks, dog barks, guitars playing, kids singing, rats crawling, waves rolling, and people hawking.

I celebrated my 25th birthday in total LOCAL style, let me tell you! There I was, sitting topless in a lavalavaon a woven mat, chewing betel nut, and drinking a coconut. Soon I was practically buried with floral marmars and leis, covered with turmeric, and painted with lipstick on my lips, cheeks, and eyebrows! Now, “all dolled up with no place to go?” you might ask. Not quite. All the students sang to me then we spent the day playing volleyball on the beach. The perfect birthday on a tropical island, if you ask me.

Falalus is bigger than I expected but further away the islands than I thought. Still, Gita and Porter visited our second weekend here and I got to show off my new digs. Last week, I returned their visit and caught a ride to Falalop in all the funeral hubbub (the ship also brought the body of a local man. Here, most everybody is related somehow anyways, so funerals involve the whole community). It was such a heartening visit for me for so many reasons. We celebrated a belated, dehydrated Thanksgiving feast courtesy of my wonderful family (THANK YOU!). When we talked about what we are thankful for, we all agreed we are thankful for my family thankful for the roots that support me through this experience, both old (like you) and new (like Gita and Porter). We listened to Christmas songs as we rehydrated everything in 5 minutes. It was fabulous.

The next day at the funeral, as I sat observing the rituals, someone handed me a package addressed to the Woleai PCVs – MAIL!! The wonderful Miss Laura put our mail on the ship and it made it to us – the day before my birthday, no less! It was the best birthday present I could have asked for. The letters from my friends and family were like no treasure I’d ever received and made me realize how disconnected I really do feel at times. But they also made me realize how many happy surprises the universe has in store. For example, my dear friend Courtney sent me a t-shirt from the third annual Yarmouth Pumpkin Run, an event we did together last year. She doubted if I’d ever actually need the shirt, but she sent it because of the spirit of it all. And let me tell you, it comforts my body and my soul! Wearing it practically takes me to crisp fall leaves and cold weather (and yes, some nights it’s temperate for me to wear it). There are many comforts from home that I miss and this brought many of them to me. The main other comfort I miss is quick communication – if only there was email on this island! I also have a list of forbidden thoughts that I try to stop myself from having, like:

- Nachos and other forms of Mexican food

- Portland’s Farmer’s Market

- Coldstone Creamery, or any ice cream, really

- Couches

- Garlic

- Private showers

- Harry Potter

- Snow

- NPR

- Cooking in my kitchen at 68 Winter St.

This, of course, is a list of material things, but the thing I miss most is each of you. If I’m lucky, the ship will come semi-frequently so we can stay in touch via mail. I was able to get a lot of letters out on the ship, but there are still many more I want to write. If you don’t get a letter this round, know that one is on its way sometime…maybe not soon, but sometime. As always, I am filled with gratitude to be on such a wonderful adventure and to be able to share it with you. With all my heart, thank you for support and thank you for coming along with me – whee!

Bon Voyage!

2009-11-13T08:35:00.002+10:00

My ship, The Voyager, is set to depart this evening at 6 pm. It will take me to Woleai over the course of four or five days (Falalus is the island in the bottom left corner). I am excited for the journey to my new home. It may sound like a long time to be on a crowded ship in an expanse of blue (and I'm sure it's going to feel like it, too), but right now I'm looking forward to the voyage as a transition into my new experience. I imagine myself floating "away from the things of man," as they say in the movie Joe vs. the Volcano. But then again, I'm exciting to be floating towards the people - my new family and community. It is sad to have to leave my host family here on Yap - they've been a wonderful family and I'm going to miss them. I've been busy making hats so they won't forget me - my legacy is a crocheted one :0)!

Well, I need to be off to do some last minute packing, make some final phone calls, and hopefully get a letter or two in the mail while I still have access to a post office.

Thank you everyone for your tremendous support. It's because of you that I have the strength and excitement to get on a boat and begin this big adventure out in Woleai. It's called 'ubuntu' - I am because you are. It will be some time before we're able to connect via conventional means, but think of me now and then, as I'll do you, and we'll connect often.

In a spirit of ubuntu and gratitude,
emily

It's Official. Emily Hurianek - Peace Corps Volunteer.

2009-11-10T12:37:00.016+10:00

Friday night was the swearing-in ceremony for us Micro76s, as my group is affectionately known. It marked the transition from lowly trainee to mighty and powerful volunteer. Well, maybe not quite that big of a change, but still, when Elizabeth, our Program and Training Officer, announced that I was now a Peace Corps Volunteer, I felt a thrill. The ceremony was beautiful. The seven of us new PCVs in Yap all 'went local,' as its called, and we were stunning. I had brilliantly colored, fragrant, and skillfully-made mwaremwares, or leis - two on my head and three around my neck. Each different language group - Yap, Ulithi, and Woleai - presented traditional songs and dances. Singing is NOT my forte, but I was happy to be sharing our song with my host family. It's called "Three Birds," which we wrote in English and then had translated and set to a Woleaian tune. Our song says that we are three birds from far away nests, and it talks about our journey - how we're learning to sing new songs and build new nests here. I may have been offkey, but my sentiment was right on when we sang our thank yous to everyone who has helped us here.

Tino, our langauge teacher, Porter, Me, and Gita singing our song!

Now I have a few free days to prepare and relax before the ship comes to take us out to Woleai. Rumor has it that it's supposed to arrive tomorrow and leave either the 16th or the 18th. It's vague and likely to change, as most plans here are. For instance, our ceremony on Friday was supposed to be at 1 pm at YFTI, then 2:30 at the Youth Center, then 7 pm at Oasis, and then 7 at the park, and finally 7 at O'Keefes. Let's just say that, if you make a plan, make sure you pencil it in and have a good, flexible eraser :-)

I'm all packed up and I am stoked to be so prepared. I have TONS of yummy food to supplement my diet for at least three months, my guess is longer. It's a nice feeling to be prepared, and an even nicer feeling to know that I'm getting on my way. I've been on two islands now for two months, but I have yet to see my new home for the next two years.

I've been finding it difficult to be present in the here and the now since I've been constantly preparing for Woleai, but there are moments that just smack me in the face and make me pay attention to and appreciate life. Last night, for instance, I found myself driving home from my brothers' semifinal basketball game in the back of a pickup truck, mouth agape and eyes glued to the stars. Never, in all my life, have I ever seen such stars. I hope you sometime have the chance to find yourself on a tiny island in the middle of the ocean at night. There are also countless moments with my host brothers, where they just smack me in the face with how amazing or funny or quirky or insightful they are. I am really excited to be a part of this family for the next two years (any time I come back to Yap Proper, they're my family). I've been busy busy crocheting hats for them as thank you presents - thanks Grannie for the yarn, it's perfect! I've finished 6 hats so far and have about 6 more to make. I just can't wait to put down the crochet hook and pick up the scuttle when I learn to weave lavalavas. Just think, in three or four months you'll be getting updates about all the fun mishaps of me learning island skills!

Here's a brief review of what I know about the future...After I depart for Woleai, I will not be back to Yap until the end of Feb/beginning of March for what we call IST - In Service Training. This first year, I'll be in about every three or four months (depending on the ship or plane) for IST or 'resource trips.' That means I won't have internet access for three-four months at a time. Mail will get to me whenever there's a ship/plane that comes out. Each week, I'll have a SSB chat with Regina, the PA, to make sure everything is going well (there's a satellite phone and epirb for emergencies). I'll try to use these chats to get news to my good friend Laura back on Yap, who will then communicate with my mom, who may then post to let everyone know I'm alright. But in case this doesn't happen or isn't possible, just assume no news is good news. Of course, I'll do my best to write to each of you, and I'd love letters in return! Basically we'll have to see what things are like and then go with it. But what's new?

Okay, and now it's finally time to show you a little bit of what life here is like (one of the great perks of being an official volunteer is use of the office computer!). So here goes, starting with the most recent first!

Me and my host family before the ceremony - these women made these gorgeous mwaremwares!

Me, Divine, and Lindsey on Halloween

The "Local Boys" on Halloween - My twin bros Rodney and Riley and friend Lawrence

Halloween in Maap - fending off evil spirits :-)

View from Maap, Yap (Halloween)

Gita and Porter, my Woleai-mates, on Water Safety Day

Water Safety Training on Halloween

Sunset at my house

Sunset on the lagoon that the Yap Canoe Festival

Jaden (4), Lindsey (12), and Divine/Duck (8), some of my host brothers in my room

Laura, Gita, and Porter in our lovely PC office in Yap!

Gita and I at a basketball game our second day in Yap - the first thing I could do after food poisoning!

The Mirco 76 Group - all 30 of us plus PC staff!

Lauren, Laura, Me, and Porter at the Mand waterfall (ropeswing!) in Pohnpei

JR, my 3 yr. old host cousin in Pohnpei (my room in the back)

Me at Nan Madol - ancient ruins in Pohnpei

PATS - our traning cite in Pohnpei

Enjoy!

PS - Hi Kathy (Rob's mom!)!! Thanks for reading!

Halloween and Gratitude

2009-11-04T16:37:00.000+10:00

Halloween in Yap
For 23 years of my life, I’ve woken up on Halloween to crisp leaves and chilled air, to candy corn and bare trees. Now imagine how this could be as different as possible. That was my Halloween this year. I woke up to tropical sun, heat, and humidity. I spent the day in the most translucent water I have ever imagined. Coconut trees and snorkeling, salt water and beach. Instead of looking up to bare branches, I looked out to clouds showing the curve of the earth on the horizon. And then came the scary part because, after all, one must be scared at some point on Halloween. It involved knives and death and guts. It was gruesome. It was horrid. It was me gutting my first fish. The horror, the terror!

After we gutted loads of tropical and brightly colored fish, our wonderful Program Assistant, the one and only Regina, treated the Yap Volunteers to a barbecue on the beach. While our supper was cooking, I took the opportunity to climb my first coconut trees (we were on a tourist beach away from locals, so it was ‘okay’ to climb as a woman) and then we made our plates out of coconut leaves. Sun-kissed and satisfied, we piled in the back of a pickup truck to be dropped off at our host families.

It was dark by time I arrived and instead of finding my host brothers and other sundry neighborhood kids, I found witches and goblins and ghosts! I had just enough time to through on my snorkel and mask as a costume before heading out to our neighborhood in search of booty. Here’s where I started to feel in my element. The kids were planning the route to hit the best houses first. We would travel in packs, the little ones lagging behind and holding my hand. Every once in a while, my host brothers would go missing only to reappear by jumping out of the trees at a gaggle of young, shrieking girls. At one point I caught up to a group of kids in a circle close together commanding “cover, cover.” By time I got close enough to figure out what was going on, a sparkler erupted and sent the whole group of us stumbling backwards with glee. A few houses, handfuls of candy, and screams more, the entertainment turned to running around and dancing with signal flares. Now would be a good time to comment that safety standards for kids are much different here than in the states. That’s all I have to say about that. Anyway, no one was hurt and fun was had by all. All in all, an A + Halloween.

In other news, which isn’t actually news, because it’s a well-established, practically antiquated fact, I have the best family and friends. Ever. Not only did I have a tower of FOUR packages to open today, I have received the most packages out of anyone by far – thank you so much, I feel the love! And now I’m typing on a huge chunk of that love right now. My wonderful family has given me a new Netbook with lots of trimmings. Oh, and a whole box of Thanksgiving trimmings. I’m rich with trimmings. And with technology (I even have a solar panel and battery for my electronics!). And with dried grains and beans and bars and nuts and candy and deodorant. Which has actually worked out perfectly b/c I am well-stocked now for my first voyage out to Woleai. It looks like my next trip back into Yap will be sometime around the end of February, and I am happy to report that I am supplied adequately, if not downright sumptuously, until then. Really, thank you.

I will do my best to communicate any future needs, but for now, your job is done, Care-Package Givers. I think it’s best to try to coordinate future packages for my resource trips back to Yap so as to avoid packages sitting around, just begging ants to infiltrate them. In the meantime, letters are as good as any physical food because they’re food for my soul  I am sorry that I am unable to reciprocate all your generosity with souvenirs and even frequent letters from my end. Once training is over, I will have much more time, and hopefully resources, too. But please know that I think about you all daily. It’s a treasure to have such fond memories to connect me to you over the distance.

To paint a brief timeline of my immediate future, I have a language test tomorrow morning (PC wants us to be at an ‘intermediate low’ level…fingers crossed). Then Friday is our official swearing-in ceremony that will mark as passage from trainee to Volunteer…oh la la. Fancy. The three of us Woleaian Volunteers are singing a song in local dress for the ceremony. Which means a.) I have to sing in public and b.) I will be topless. Trust me, between the two, being topless is by far the lesser of two evils. I’ll let you know how it goes. But until then, send some tune my way, because I have none. Seriously.

Thanks all for following along my adventure. It feels like it has yet to begin, yet in many ways it already has. I appreciate all your thoughts, prayers, packages, and letters. They nourish and support me daily.

May you find some hidden, special nourishment in your day today! Blessings from Micronesia and a big, almost topless WHEE!
emily

Learnings...with 2 weeks to go

2009-10-28T15:12:00.004+10:00

Laughter. People here are serious about laughter. There's lots of it a lot of the time. For how culturally traditional people are here, they are unreserved with the fun. People are also unreserved with their bodies, which is, to be fair, what one might expect of a culture in which women go topless and men wear loin cloths. But it is interesting to observe families' physical affection towards their kids. Massage here is a tafeeli faliuwashe, or a local remedy for the majority of minor aches or illnesses. My favorite example of this to date occurred between my 24 yr. old host brother and his buddy Catowin. Now, let me set the stage a little. My host brother looks like a professional tight end and I'm sure he's come out the winner of any skirmish he's been in. Catowin, on the other hand, I first met when he was showing off his scar from when a shark attacked him at the age of ten. It's gnarly looking and he supplemented it with a tattooed cartoon shark with its mouth around the scar. Not to mention that he's built of muscle. (How do I know this? Let's just say it's one of the advantages of young men wearing only a thu.). So these are the characters and here is the rest of the story. A couple of weekends ago the fam and I were hanging out under the beranta (the outdoor living 'room'). My brother and Cat were sitting next to each other as everyone was chatting. The next time I looked over, there was Mr. Shark-Bite himself giving the Woleaian Shannon Sharp a coconut oil massage on his arm with total nonchalance and absolutely no awkwardness. All this to say that I am really appreciating the small parts of the culture upon which I'm slowly, and hopefully not too clumsily, stumbling upon.

Here's a random update on my thoughts/observations about gender roles and respect in Yap. In Woleaian culture, women cannot be higher than men. As a result, for example, they are not supposed to climb trees. Another manifestation of this is that when a woman's brother or uncle passes her on the road, she must cross the road and squat down. My current understanding of this is that these behaviors are how respect is shown here. In the States, we often spout ideologies (myself highly included) about respect - about equality for all and showing every person the same level of respect. But how often do we really "show" our respect for one another? I'm honestly hard pressed to think of specific examples that bring my respect for people to the surface. Here, however, I can see the respect that women show for their family. The tricky thing is whether I will also be able to detect ways in which other people in the culture are shown respect or disrespect.

Adventures in mwongoo...Mwongoo is the most common word I say and hear here. Why? Well, we've been told that mwongoo is love. So what is it? Food, of course. Interestingly, there is no common greeting in Woleaian, no 'hi' or 'good day.' Instead, people say 'buutogo mwongoo' (come eat) whenever someone approaches. Needless to say, food is central to life in this culture. My most recent adventures up to date include 'al dente' (read: barely cooked) ramen with ant floaties galore (more protein, right?); delicious fiiyefiiye, a sweet rice, pumpkin, coconut pudding drink; a bite of sea turtle (it's a frequent meal in Woleai :-( ); and a declined offer of gelaagu...dog. I tried to do my best to respectfully decline and explain that, to me, dogs are part of the family and it just wouldn't seem right to eat part of the family!

Dogs in Micronesia are aplenty, and we're not talking pedigreed pooches here. We're talking about nearly or totally wild canines that are scrawny and mangy and battle-worn. When walking about, one must be weary of dogs and either carry a stick or rock for self-defense. On the whole, I've found that dogs are better treated here in Yap than in Pohnpei due to two factors. One being the availability of free vet clinics to have dogs spayed or neutered, and the other being that dogs are seen more as pets than pests. My family has a dog named Spike plus a few others who have island names I can never remember, plus a new puppy. Notwithstanding, dog is an occasional guest on the dinner table as well as a constant guest under the table. (Side note to my cat loving friends: there are cats as well, but they are just ignored, which is probably safer for them to be outside the realm of mwongoo potential.).

This weekend was the first annual Yap Canoe Festival. I got to hang out at it on Friday and I volunteered on Sat. It was fun to get to help out and my favorite part was getting to hang out with the local kids that were volunteering. The kids here are wonderful - they'll start teasing you the second they meet you. I spent most of the time working with a kid named Jake. He's sixteen but could be some lost relative of Hagrid. He is big, big-hearted, and a barrel of laughs. This weekend was also fun b/c it helped me realize how many wonderful people I've met and friends I've made. For instance, there was a wrestling demonstration Saturday night and I knew probably half the boys. My twin brothers wrestled against each other and one was recognized as a hopeful for a great scholarship opportunity to Singapore. There was such a spirit of fun and instead of competitiveness and jeering from the crowd, there was camaraderie and cheers and laughter from the crowd. Like I said before, laughter is one of my favorite parts of this culture.

In other news, I've started reading A Walk in The Woods by Bill Bryson. I've also discovered that Yapese ants' favorite food is the Just Tomatoes brand of freeze-dried veggies. It's intense how they always seem to go for it and none of the other tasty treats around it (thankfully). Well, I best be off to start my second to last week of training.

I hope you are all well and thanks for thoughts! Whee!

emily

Feel the love...

2009-10-22T13:21:00.002+10:00

Just a quick update. Everything is going really well...language training has calmed down a bit and training in general is a little more relaxed. I'm enjoying my host family and community here, but I'm also really looking forward to getting out to Woleai so I can really settle in and get my feet set for the next two years. Everyone I tell I'm going to Woleai replies with one of two things - either "take a mosquito net" or "lucky! It's so beautiful!" I'm stoked.

I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to my family and friends who have sent letters and care packages. At the PO today I had four packages and I could definitely feel the love! It's really great to hear from friends and I love opening packages in front of the other PCVs, who have all declared that they're taking notes from me on what to ask from their friends. They keep saying I must have really great friends, and I tell them YES. I ABSOLUTELY DO! So thank you thank you thank you!

Oh, and just as a quick side note on the wardrobe...I have not yet 'gone local' to the full extent. I have been given two beautiful lavalavas, but it's not tops-off until the swear-in ceremony. It's been fun to hear the little stories about all the fun and laughter my new lifestyle is causing :-) I'm happy you think of me when you laugh. There are many, many moments here where I smile or laugh just thinking about you and the memories we have.

I have another post in the works, so be on the lookout for Mr. Shark-Bite and what a man-eat-dog world it is here. Stay tuned...

Snippets of my life here:

2009-10-14T12:05:00.011+10:00

[posted by MOM]

= Not always getting what I expect. Case in point: ordering the veggie burger for the first time at Oasis (one of a very few restaurants here). The veggie burger, it turns out, is a pile of suateed veggies on a sweet burger bun. It was good and I enjoyed it, but I also learned that a menu in a foreign country contains all sorts of mysteries!

= Where everybody knows your name. Yap is a small, insular place and a group of seven new Peace Corps are nobody's stranger. Many times walking in town I'll have people say hi to me by name and I've never met them. Case in point: the other day I was eating lunch with Gita and Porter, the other two volunteers going to Woleai, when a young woman approached us. The first thing she said was, "you're going to Woleai" and all we could say is, "yes we are, what's your name?"

= Raw gums. I mentioned before that betel nut chewing is ubiquitous here and constant. Which means people will be speaking to me in another language while chewing betel nut and spitting red in the middle of a sentence, which may be a contibuting factor to why Woleaian is so hard to learn. I've tried it a few times myself and the gums on the left side of my mouth are raw from the lime, which ppl sprinkle in the middle of it to purposefully make their mouths raw. Why? Because it let's the 'buzz' properties of the betel nut get into the body and cause a mini little high.

= Death by volleyball. I have six host brothers and we play volleyball together a lot. Now, you might think that as their host sister they'd give me a break. Or you might be like me and underestimate their abilities. But boy oh boy. When I step onto the court (read: patch a dirt with a clothesline as a net and bounded by rusty metal pipes) they have it out for me and get a huge kick out of spiking the ball in my face, esp. Riley and Rodney, the 16 yr. old identical twins. In the states I can hold my own on the court, but here I cower in fear. Sad, but true.

= Kissing lizards. We have countless house lizards that eat bugs and make kissing noises at you. When we first arrived in Micronesia, we were told about nightcrawling, where young men crawl outside thier sweethearts' rooms at night as a form of dating ritual. We were warned that it might happen to us and several of the girls here mistook the kissing lizards to be nightcrawlers.

= Christmas carols. I've heard several since coming to Yap. What can I say? They're catchy.

= Picture imperrfect moments, like the sun setting after a run and Gita double-fisting a can of spaghetti in one hand a cup of chocolate water in the other.

Here is a run down of what communication is going to look like once I'm on Woleai:

-Mail about once a month

-Phone and email about once every three or four months

Here's a little more detail. There are two ways to get to the atoll - by plane and by ship. The plane goes out very rarely, only when the are enough passengers or when there is an emergency. The ship is supposed to come about once a month. Any time either of these makes a trip to Woleai, any letters/packages for me will be brought out to me and I'll be able to send mail back. Also, I'll have a number of resource trips or training sessions throught the next two years that will bring me back to the main island.

As far as communcation available on Falalus, there is an SSB radio and I'll have a satellite phone for emergency purposes. I'll have weekly checkins with my program assistant on Yap with the sat phone, but all other communication is going to have to be written.

Im going to end this quickly to send off while I'm still connected to wifi. Be well, thanks for following along, and keep in touch!

whee !

emily

EMILY'S NEWS IN DETAIL [posted by MOM]

2009-10-08T15:59:00.014+10:00

Week one of six of PST 2 on Yap - check. This week, marking my first experience of Yap, had a rough start to say the least. It began quite well at first after a day of travel and a cool, breezy night at a hotel. The next day, however, I got a bad case of the burps. Many of you who know me know that usually means bad news, and let me tell you, these burps meant BAD news. Unfortunately it coincided with meeting my new host family. What a first impression. I show up and immediately curl up in a ball for a few hours until my system starts to revolt, at which point I proceed to expel any and everything in my system to the point that my family insisted that I go to the Yap Memorial Hospital. Fun. And if that weren't enough, Tropical Storm 19W decided to extend an extra hand of welcome. Magotin - welcome to Yap.

As unpleasant as this experience was, I'm happy to report that many a good thing came of this episode. For one thing, I am 100% certain that I have the most wonderful host mother in all of Uap - Ramona was such a comfort and support during many first experiences, incl. horking from a car, getting full-blown food poisoning, and visiting a hospital in a foreign country. Another good thing is that, even when I felt like my body was trying to explode, I didn't have even an inkling that this isn't where I want to be.

So let me tell you a little bit more about where I am and what I'm doing. I have training every weekday, shich consists of at least four hours of language training with Tino, or Augustino. Porter, Gita and I are in this together, but it's still rough at times. Our afternoons are spent with the other Yap volunteers for technical trainings or meetings with the CoE and whatnot. My family drops me off and picks me u0p every day, so pretty much everything I do is planned by and in the hands of other people.

Like I said, I have six weeks in the state of Yap, the western most state in the FSM. Yap on the whole seems to be a very traditional and relatively quiet island. There remains a strong sense of family, a social caste system (where outer islanders, like me, are at the bottom), and gender roles that prevail in determining most aspects of daily life. Now, I know this is a very loaded generalization and one that initially gave me reservations before coming here. I have the next two years and five weeks to explore this further. So far, I have come to see (and been told) that a sense of respect guides the culture and, however different it may seem from how I would establish a way of life based on the principle of equality, each person is seen as valuable. I also want to qualify that I haven't been here long and have not had the chance to really observe in depth how these aspects of culture play out (plus they're not obvious). All this to basically say, I have not yet reconciled myself to or understood the social structure at work here (and It's likely to be different once I'm in Woleai) but it is different and much less of an issue that I would've anticipate. Like I said, I'm leaving room for future investigation and reflection.

I am living with a Woleain Family in order to begin the slow learning process that will hopefully equip me with the linguistic, cultural, and technical knowledge I'll need when I get to my post (read: island). I say slow for a couple of reasons. The main one is that woleain is HARD! For example, here is how to say thank you: go sa gashigashige, pronounced along the lines of ho sa hasihehasihe. Yes is ngoa. It's a language with mostly unvoiced vowels and vowels up the wazoo. Plus, being the language of only a tiny Pacific atoll, there aren't many resources to turn to. Wish me luck. My family is very helpful, but that hasn't stopped them from laughing at me many, many times.

I live with about fourteen people. There's my host mom and dad, theri six sons (including one set of identical twins), two other couples, and two other women (cousins, I think). Our house (imwashe) is comprised of two open platforms, one of which is the cookhouse (mwaluumwu), and two buildings. There's an indoor toilet and both an indoor and outdoor shower. We have power and fans, and overall it's a nice setup.

My friend Gita, one of the other PCVs going to Woleai, Lives two houses down from me so we've been learning and getting laughed a lot together. Yesterday we went for a run and were laughed at outright by the neighborhood kids. Exercise isn't a normal concept here (& I can't blame them with the heat), but we did get most of the kids around to play a game of volleyball at sunset. It was one of those beautiful moments in life where there's so much goodness and beauty around you that you can taste it. Life is delicious.

Another such moment happened Thursday night when Elizabeth, the PC Program and Training Asst., treated all the PCVs on Yap - past, present, & future...M47s-M76s to beer and pizza at a restaurant on a ship. It turns out a favorite pastime at Mnuw is to jump from the top deck into the bay, which is roughly a three-story distance. The Woleai Trio - Gita, Porter, and I, took the plunge together, and me in a lavalava no less (sorry mom). It was another beautiful moment.

Oh, yeah, what's a lavalava? It's the traditional skirt worn by the outer island women of Yap. It's a handwoven piece of fabric that is wrapped around and folded on the waist held in place with a "belt" (I use a shoelace). It comprises the whole of the warrobe for women, as it's a topless culture. I'm already very used to the women in my community letting it all hang out so to say, but I have yet to join them. My family is going to wean me off of shirts slowly with the cunning use of smaller and smaller leis :-) The men here similarly have a one piece wardrobe that consists of a thu, more or less a loincloth created by any number of ways of folding. I love seeing people conduct their daily business so comfortably and causually. For instance, several of the DoE representatives with whom we met today were wearing thus. My favorite was a macho young man strutting around like nobody's business at a birthday party wearing a thu and a tank top that said "I love my attitude" as he handed out melting ice cream cones.

Diet here is mostly imported - my brunch after mass today was Chef Boyardee cold out of a can. There are lots of root crops like taro and tapioca (very much like a potato). Breadfruit is in season and I've had it a kajillion different ways. It's a big skikey fruit that has an almost feathery flesh. Canned meat is ubiquitous, as is turday tail (which I'm convinced entails no meat, only fat). I've been fortunate in that I haven't had to have much of either, but it'll be a long five weeks. I have ramen for breakfast, lunch in town, and then any variety of fried food with peraasi (rice). I haven't seen a vegetable in days. The other staple of the Yapese diet is betel nut, a little green nut that people sprinkle with lime and wrap with a pepper leaf. They chew it constantly and spit red all over the place (you don't actually eat it). It gives you a little buzz, but it also makes your mouth raw. I tried it this weekend and I'm no a huge fan.

Speaking of diet, now might be a good time to implore health food care packages. I've received some amazing care packages from the fam (incl. this iTouch I'm now typing on) that have lots of freezedried fruits and veggies from Just Tomatoes...they're super light and ship well. Other great items I'd kiss you for include:

( bran flakes [fiber is SPARSE!]

( nuts - especially walnuts and cashews, mixes are great, too

( quinoa

( dried beans, esp. garbanzo and black beans

( just add water mixes, like hummus or beans

( seeds for veggies and herbs...I'll ask you to do the research for me on what will grow well here

( spices

( dried fruits, i.e. mango and cranberries

( bars of any variety, like Kashi, Clif / Luna, or those green superfood ones

( popcorn and nutritional yeast :-)

( canned spinach (weird, I know...just call me Popeye)

*quick note about packages / mail: we have a US zipcode and all domestic shipping rates apply. Check out flat rate boxes and make sure to ship by air. It seems to take between 1 & 2 weeks for me to get things here on Yap proper...it'll take longer once I'm in Woleai - I'll hopefully get mail at least once a month. I'll definitely be excited for any mail.

Thank you everyone for following along. I've been busier than I expected here and so I've fallen behind on all the letter writing I wanted to be doing. If you sit down and write me a quick note, I promise I'll get back to you with some inside sotry or little trinket. I'll be learning how to weave soon, so maybe you'll get something handmade! Here's my address:

Emily Hurianek, Peace Corps Trainee

PO BOX 190

Colonia, Yap FM 96943

Be well, be happy and keep in touch! My love to you all and a great big Woleain WHEE,

emily

Go sa gashigegashige (thank you)!!

2009-10-07T16:46:00.002+10:00

Thanks to everyone for posting and reading! I typed up a nice long new post on my new iTouch, but I'm having trouble getting it online. Cross your fingers for me and be on the lookout. In the meantime...

The good news is aplently, including:

I AM SAFE! I know there were a lot of natural disasters in my neck of the ocean, but I steared clear for the most part (my host family moved me to a church one night just as a precaution)
I AM HEALTHY! I guess it must have just been food poisoning. It passed :-)
I AM CONNECTED! Well, somewhat. I will be here in Colonia, the capital, for the next five weeks and there is access to internet. My fam sent me some great packages - thank you! - including an iTouch, and I'm hoping to use it to receive/send email and make some calls via Skype. Be on the lookout for an international number

Like always, I'd love to hear from you, esp. as communication now is going to be much easier than in the future. I'm very isolated here, so I'm hungry for news from the people and places I love :-)

Kristin - congrats on the move! Be prepared to entertain my qusetions about possibly tackling the AT when I get back

Jamie D - glad you're healthy. I did see 500 days of Summer...I loved the dance scene and the Hans Solo reference. Otherwise, I'd say I just liked it.

Jamie O - miss you too, can't wait to be penpals!

Cate - "When elephants fight, it's the grass that suffers"...read this today and thought fondly of you. Keep a list of all the movies we'll have to watch together in two years :-)

Mary - I hope you figured it out. I know mail can be a little tricky. Kick butt at poker for me!

Everyone else, thanks again and be well - I'll hopefully be in touch again soon!

emily

Woot. Except not.

2009-09-28T13:51:00.002+10:00

We - meaning the other 6 Yapese volunteers and I - arrived in Colonia two nights ago. Our first night was spent at a hotel and yesterday, in rainy rainy weather, we met our host families.

I wish I could say it was smooth sailing, but I seem to have contracted some degree of food poisoning. The good news is that my new host mom is a wonderful mom, taking care of me on my very first day with her like I am one of her own. The worst has past, but I'm still recovering. My fingers are crossed that it's nothing parasitic, just food-related.

Just a quick review of my experience so far: the first three weeks were spent in Phase 1 of PST, during which we had daily class sessions on culture, TESL, and community-development. Not very specific or terribly useful. However, PST at PATS (the facility in a rural municipality on Pohnpei called Madoleniemw) was a very special opportunity to bond with my fellow PCVs. It made branching off into our smaller training groups difficult, but it was wonderful to establish the community that we did. Plus, my training group here on Yap is super.

I know I posted about my 'buzz' adventures in paradise, of cliff jumping into the ocean and rope-swinging into tropical waterfalls. But there have been many more edifying and positive experiences on a smaller scale, such as JR (the 3 yr. old) finally warming up to me; the sound of the 'kissing' lizards; the taste of fresh vegetables and kimchi paste; of the rain and the support from other volunteers.

Well, good news to report - I have just eaten my first solid food in a day and things are going well.

I hope that you are all well and let me know how you are doing.

Yap-tastic

2009-09-27T00:52:00.005+10:00

Just a quick note to say that I arrived in Yap safely. It's dark and I haven't seen any of the island, but we had a great reception at the airport from other PVCs and the island has a good energy.

My last week on Pohnpei was stellar, filled with my wonderful host family (who drove up to Kolonia to see me off today with marmars and shell leis), savoring the last days with all 30 of us PCV's Micro 76 group, snorkeling in the beautiful and colorful blue lagoon water, and more watefall jumping.

Please take note of my new address and don't be a stranger. It's harder than I expected to feel connected to the world back home, but I really want to keep in touch. Email and maybe even phone/Skype *may* be more accessible over the next six weeks, but once I'm on Woleai, snail mail is going to become my bread and butter.

But enough about me. It's been at least a month. What's going on with you? New stories and adventures?

PS - sorry no photos yet. I've got some wonderful ones to hopefully post soon.

Kasalehlia!

2009-09-21T14:09:00.002+10:00

From now on, consider no news to mean: I'm having a wonderfully positive experience, but internet access is VERY rare.

This is my first chance in three weeks to get online and I don't have much time, but I want to cover some basic updates. I'll start backwards...

This weekend was full of tropical adventures, jumping off rocks into the ocean at ancient ruins (Nan Madol) and swinging into waterfalls with lots of local kids.

These past two weeks we've been on Pohnpei going to school (Pre Service Training Phase 1) and living with host families. My family loves to laugh, celebrates and feeds me local foods (vs. imported canned meats :-(), and has all sorts of adorable kids running to and fro. I get at least one coconut a day, which I now know how to open on my own - I'm turning into a true local, my family says.

There's a group of 30 of us, and I have to say, we make a great group. I'll be sad to see us go our separate ways next week when we divide into our smaller training groups based on where we're going...

On Wednesday we received our site placements and I'm heading to the...drum roll please...

WOLEAI ATOLL in YAP!!!

I won the jackpot, because Woleai is a collection of 22 outer islands that still strongly maintain their traditional culture and at the same time, I'm going with two other wonderful friends and PCVs (we we're known), Gita and Porter. It flabbergasts me just thinking about the experience I'm having and will continue to have over the next two years.

Here's what's on deck for me. I have one more week on Pohnpei, then I head out to Yap with the other Yapese PCVs. We'll be there for 6 weeks of intensive language training, as well as cultural and technical training. Then I'll head to Woleai (the island of Falalus) in November after I'm sworn in as an official PCV (right now I'm technically a PCTrainee).

Oh, a few more finer points. Well, I'm not sure how to say this, but part of Woleai's lingering traditional culture affects what I have to wear over the next two years. Or what I don't have to wear, to be more precise. I just have to lay it out there - Woleai is a topless culture. Hello, world, here I come!

Once I'm there, I won't have electricity on my island (there's electricity on Gita and Porter's island) and there's no internet, so MAIL. I would GREATLY appreciate mail and/or packages. Here's my NEW ADDRESS:

Emily Hurianek,
Peace Corps Trainee
PO BOX 190
Colonia, Yap 96943

And on a similar note, here's an updated wishlist should you care to send me anything:

LETTERS AND PICTURES, first and foremost
Dried fruits and veggies
Nuts
Dried beans
Quinoa
Chedder Bunnies
Other goodies that will travel well and be able to withstand humidity and hot weather (did I mention it's hot here? I've had to resort to conventional deoderant...the rock just ain't cutting it)
Fun resources for my classroom, like flashcards and posters...I'll try to get more specific once I know more.

Okay, this isn't everything - there's so much more to talk about like the stars and the house geckos and the betel nut and the dhoudhous (showers) - but I've got to get going.

Thank you everyone for your support and for keeping up. It doesn't look like the blog will be very active, but keep an eye out for it and become my snail mail pal!

KALAHNGAN (thank you) and WHEE!
e

2009-09-07T13:22:00.002+10:00

Kaselehlia! {Pohnpein greeting similar to ALOHA!]

After SEVERAL flights, over three days, I'M IN MICRONESIA with my Peace Corps group beginning training.

I flew to LA on Wednesday, Sept. 2, and met the group at our 'staging' event. I got to see Katie O. and met people who will definitely be longtime friends. On Sept. 3, we flew to Honolulu, stayed in the Ohana Hotel near the airport, rode a bus to Waikiki Beach to watch the sunset, and then got a little sleep. We got up at 3 AM and took off on an 'island hopping' trip to Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia.

We spent a couple of nights and a day, figuring out how to communicate with family and friends, having our first interviews, and catching up on sleep. (Somewhere over the Pacific, we "lost" a day and several hours of sleep.)

Now, we're at the Training Center. We'll be in this area for 6 - 9 weeks staying with our first host families. I will have VERY limited phone or email access. So, the best way to communicate with me is by USPS mail. FSM and Palua use a postal system similar to the U.S. - costs of mailing letters and packages are the same. Airmail takes about two weeks (things that go by sea take months.) My address is:

Emily Hurianek, Peace Corps Trainee

Peace Corps / Micronesia

PO BOX 9

Kolonia, Pohnpei FM 96941

I'd LOVE to hear from you!!!

THANKS for all of your support! The adventure is has truly begun!!

Emily [posted by MOM]

WISH LIST

2009-09-02T17:06:00.002+10:00

If you feel so behooved to send me a care package, here are some friendly suggestion:

LETTERS and PICTURES! This is by far the best thing you could send me.
"Just Tomatoes" freeze-dried fruits and veggies
Annie's Chedder Bunnies
Bars: Cliff, Kind, Luna, Lara, etc.
Dried fruit, ie berries, mangos
Tea - I like black teas (can do loose, I'm taking my tea straw); Good Earth is good, too
Games/Cards
Tofurkey Jerkey
TLC Cookies and bars (I like oatmeal choc chip)
Nut Thins

Keep in mind it takes 2-3 for packages to arrive. The address on the side bar is temporary - I'll update it when I know more about where I'll be.

And with that, I'm officially ready to depart!

Love and gratitude to you all!

Bags packed, Crocs Painted, I'm pretty much ready to go!

2009-09-02T02:51:00.003+10:00

Good news to report: I have arrived at my last day and all is well! My bags are packed (except for some last minute goodies) and I'm looking at around 40 pounds of check luggage and two carry ons - woot!

On my dwindling TA-DA list (just swap an 'a' for an 'o' in to-do and it becomes infinitely more exciting) remains:

Make doughnuts with Mom (equipped with matching doughnut makers, no less!)
'Bequeath' my scooter to Dad
Finalize my music selection for the next two years and load up my iPod Shuffle
Print out and MAIL my deposit slips and checks b/c there are no depositable BoA ATMs in the states of Colorado :-(
Make a last call for addresses and finish my address book :-)
Make my Wishlist and publish a list of goodies and supplies that would be very welcome in care packages over the next two years, hint hint... [Side note: check out USPS flat rate boxes - you can even ship w/ domestic rates!]
Enjoy a final farewell fiesta with the fam!

In other news, yesterday I discovered that one can very successfully transform an otherwise highly un-scrumptious colored (think neon) pair of Crocs into a very attractive and rubberized red! (Fashion opinions aside, Crocs are a wonderful island and travel shoe, although I wish they'd comp me a pair.)

Thanks to everyone who has wished me well on my new adventure! I've changed the settings on the comment feature on this blog, so it should be up and running and I'd love to hear from you!

And with that, I'm off to finalize my preparations, crossing my fingers that I've done my best to prepare myself to be unprepared!

"Fate leading, she must needs go on and on,

Blindly, yet fearing not, till the goal be won."

Stoneflies, trees, and me

2009-08-26T10:11:00.005+10:00

From Ellery Akers "Metamorphosis" -

Oddly, touchingly, it reached over to its old shed skin, still perfect except for the split down the center, and began stroking it all over with its antennae, as if in some kind of farewell. Then it made its way back toward the stream, stopped, and stood facing the water where it had spent so many months. I began to feel afraid for it again: it looked so flimsy.

As if in response to an inner signal, it dashed to the top of the rock, lifted its wings, and fluttered off. Drifting into a weak patch of evening sun, the stonefly seemed to catch fire: for a few seconds I watched with longing as it flared in front of me like a living spark. Then it wobbled off into the shade, and out of sight.

From my Peace Corps Aspiration Statement -

So how do I plan to adapt to a new culture with respect to my own cultural background? By maintaining the core integrity of who I am while allowing myself to grow and change as I live and serve in FSM and Palau. In other words, I plan to mindfully transplant my roots to the rich cultural soil of FSM and Palau, fully understanding and anticipating the need to adapt according to the realities of my experience. Many of my branches will change their shape or the color of their leaves; some may reorient themselves to face different sources of light; some will grow higher than I could ever imagine; and perhaps some will beat against certain cultural windows or not grow an inch. My trunk will sway and my roots will grow deeper.

As hard as I may try, I cannot anticipate all the ways I will need to adapt to my new culture during my service and the process will not be easy. But I can be mindful of my adaptation; within that mindfulness, be open to new experiences and directions; and when faced with challenges and struggles, be confident that my trunk is strong yet flexible.

Call for addresses and contact info

2009-08-19T15:26:00.006+10:00

I realized I really don't have any sort of address book. That needs to change within the next two weeks and I need your help! I'm calling on friends and family to email me their contact info. Here's the communication scoop. Snail mail is the only means of contact with the outside world that I am guaranteed. There is, fingers crossed, a chance that I will have access to the internet, so it may be possible to stay in touch through email and Skype. So...

Please email me your address and/or Skype name at e.hurianek@gmail.com

I am also compiling a contact list if you'd like me to email you whenever I update my blog. Please specify if you'd like to be included on this list (wow, that sounded official).

And in other news...

Yay yay yay for my uncle Tim! He fixed my computer, which the Apple store called 'vintage.' Now, thanks to my skillful uncle, I guess you could say it's an oldy but a goody!

Did you know it is possible to condition a 10 foot pew with one cup olive oil and half a cup of lemon juice? My pew has never looked better.

PS - I have my ticket - I fly to L.A. for staging Sep. 2nd! And the good news is: I've finally unpacked, so now I can start packing! Other than that, my focus is simply on preparing myself to be unprepared :-) Whee!

Road Trip '09

2009-08-15T08:42:00.015+10:00

Road Trip '09: Success.

With the help of my two dear 'tub' friends, Dorothy and Tori, I traveled from Maine to Colorado in a 22-foot Penske rental truck, aka The BFT.

Adventures were aplenty and laughter abounded over the course of 6 days on the road.

Highlights include:

Pre-Game: Dinner in Boston with the gang

Me, Dorothy, Erica, Tori, & Jamie

Day 1: Picking up the truck, saying goodbye to Buelah the Buick, then inadvertently exploring the back roads of Maine thanks to our free-spirited friend GyPSy. Fortunately, we happened to find the Colbrook County Club in NH - not a bad place to stay

Trading in Buelah the Buick - I'll miss her - for the BFT. And yes, that is the truck completely packed.

Day 2: The Speculator Farmer's Market and driving through Vermont & the Adirondacks

VT = Vermont. Clever, we are.

Night 2: Staying with Rachel in Constantia, NY whose crotch chairs around the fire and hospitality will not be forgotten any time soon :-)

Day 3: Niagara Falls & Crossing into Canada

Day 4: Watching the sun rise over Lake Erie - Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario

Night 4: Depositing the BFT at an inner city WalMart and going out on the town in Chicago to Christine's Wine Bar, Websters

Day 5: The Most Intense Thunder Storm of My Life, 60 miles east of Des Moines, including phone calls to the family for final farewells and weather reports

Day 6: Stumbling upon Fern Thomas (Green Fern, Doubting Thomas) and her beautifully quaint antique store outside of Kearney, Nebraska

Night 6: The Welcome Home Sunset over the Rockies

The home-stretch

And we still like each other. A lot.

Ladies, thank you for your tremendous friendship and for sharing a journey full of laughter and adventure!

And thanks to everyone who wished us well on our voyage - it couldn't have gone better.

Some of What I Know...and Some of What I Don't Know

2009-07-07T07:24:00.019+10:00

It's official. I've jumped.

This past week I moved out of my apartment of two years and pseudo-officially ended my job (also of two years). This is it. The ball of change (or delight?) is most certainly rolling. As much as you might expect one to be freaking out when faced with mega life changes such as this, I am actually surprisingly happy with where I am right now. I mean, I've got a month in Maine to savor and play and prepare!

The sun, while MIA most of June, has made a brief appearance - it's a wonder how much more summery summer feels under the sun - although even the soggy weather is comforting in a way, it's so Maine. While I no longer have the comforts of my own home, I am so very appreciative of my time in my wonderful apartment - the meeting place of Winter and Spring (streets) - and very thankful for the gracious comforts of others' homes. Directly after moving out of my apartment, I landed in the most perfect sanctuary for peace and relaxation...or maybe just the perfect tub? I was house sitting in Freeport and was able to read, bathe, eat, bathe, hike, and bathe. You get the idea. Now I'm living with my temporary room mate and full-time friend, Courtney, and I'm looking forward to spending lots of good, goofy, quality time with her before I leave Maine.

It's odd to think that my time in Maine is short. There's so much I want to do before I leave! So if you're in Maine, let's do something. Let's catch a Sea Dogs game, munch on some Duckfat fries, go for a hike, eat at the Green Elephant, toast to the future in the Old Port, play volleyball, meander at the museum for free, anything!

While it will be quite hard to say goodbye to Maine (yes, the whole state, the entirety of which I have been intimately acquainted for two years...well, almost), I'm looking forward to my roadtrip back home to Colorado in August. Two of my dear and delightful college friends, Tori and Dorothy, are flying out to help me get me and my stuff back home to Niwot, CO before I officially ship out (early September). We've got a beast of a moving truck - a 22-footer - and are planning to take our time seeing the country on the back roads: Burlington, VT, the Adirondacks, Syracuse, Ontario, and Chicago (past Chicago?? If you have any fun suggestions, please let me know). And one of the best parts - we get to go to the circus before we leave! Magical!

Okay, now for Some of What I Know...and Some of What I Don't Know

Where am I going?
The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and Palau. Where!? Well, check it out...

But here's the catch - we're talking about two different island nations with many, many tiny little dots on the map, each of which is different. So where EXACTLY will I be living for two years? No idea. And I won't know until after the first phase of training. That'll make preparation a tad more interesting, but I do know I will be in FSM for the first phase of training...I'll get that info posted soon.

For how long?
By serving in the Peace Corps I am committing myself to 27 months - three months of pre-service training (PST) and two years of actual service. Afterwards? We'll see. I ain't got no crystal ball, and even if I did, I wouldn't use it except as a paperweight...I'm opening myself up to the wonder and mystery of the future.

What will I be doing?
I have been assigned to a Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL)/Community Development Program. Again, I won't know the meaty specifics about what exactly I'll be doing until after I am officially placed during PST.

Where will I live? What will I eat?
I will be living with a host family, one or two during both phases of PST and then another for the duration of my service. These families are prescreened by the Peace Corps and receive a small payment from my monthly stipend for opening their home to me. I'll get my own room, but beyond that, their life is my life. Including their diet, which I foresee to be the tricky one. I don't mind bucket showers or outhouses, but I've been a happy, healthy lacto-ovo vegetarian for over three years now (meaning I eat dairy and eggs, but no meat, including fish) for a whole host of reasons. I've done small experiments to reintroduce meat into my system, but I'm finding it difficult, quite frankly, to afford the kind of meat that my belief system supports, ie local and organic. Plus, I've never been keen on fish. Ultimately, I'm not losing any sleep over this, but if I had to pick something to worry about, I'll put my worry-chips in the fish'n'chips pot.

Finally, I'm new to this whole new-fangled blog contraption that the kids are raving about nowadays, so I'm not 100% sure how you can best stay up to date with my posts. The best bet may be to 'subscribe' to my blog, which I believe means you'll get an update whenever I post something new. If anyone is interested, I can also start an email list and send out a personal email whenever I post. Oh, and you can post comments here as well, which would make me really happy. Whatever works best for you works for me, as long as it helps us keep in contact.

I know this is an adventure of my lifetime, and I'm excited to share it with you. Thanks for ready and until next time, whee!

Preparing for my next Big Adventure!

2009-06-14T06:55:00.003+10:00

Hello friends! I am excited to invite you to this blog as I begin on the path towards my next big adventure. I haven't seen some of you in years, others of you I saw just the other day. Regardless, I am glad to have you in my life, especially as my life is about to completely change! In a few short months, I will be moving to the Pacific Islands - Micronesia and Palau - to begin my life as a Peace Corps Volunteer.

As you can imagine, I am filled with excitement and anticipation (claro!). I am also filled with equal parts nervousness and sadness as I am leaving behind many wonderful people and places in my life for a great big Unknown. When it comes down to it, though, I am ready to run boldly into this cosmic Unknown; I will thrive on this new adventure. Until then, my goal is to use my time this summer to play and honor my experience here as I say goodbye while preparing myself for the wonder, mystery, and challenge that lie in the two years ahead of me.

Fortunately, I already have some experience moving to a far away place and living independently for two years. After graduating from Whitworth with my *ever-so practical* Philosophy degree, I moved to Maine where I have been working at a wonderful community-based natural foods store. I have made many friends that have enriched my experiences here: going to the Common Ground Fair and climbing Mt. Katahdin; scooter-pooling on Earth Day and riding my motorcycle to the beach; contra dancing and poker night; snowshoeing downtown and Spring walks to the Old Port. I first came to Maine on a whim, and what I found has been whimsically and spiritually enriching in many ways, challenging in others. All in all, I am quite glad to call Maine home for the past two years.

I am also glad to have been able to maintain many relationships with friends and family across great distances. At the same time, I'm bummed that I haven't been as good at keeping in touch with many others. So I sincerely want to be intentional about staying in touch as the distance between us is about to increase...a lot. My hope is that this blog helps with that (I will also provide other forms of contact info as they become available). Even though I'm the one boarding a plane in September, I whole-heartedly invite you to come along with me.

Until next time, whee!