Yup, still here

March 28, 2006 – 8:58 PM – Roar!

That was my costume for the school play, a Marshall Islands version of Romeo and Juliet. I was the chorus, all of the chorus. It seemed simple enough to deliver two prologues, until I realized that I had to give them twice – once in English, and once in Marshallese. I made a valiant effort and I think most of the audience understood what I said. That’s about all I can ask for. The play itself was terrific. All the students were marvelous and worked extraordinarily hard. You’ve never seen resourcefulness until you see an abandoned outhouse converted into Juliet’s balcony.

In other work related news, some of my students received their TOEFL scores. The early returns are very promising. It looks like their scores all improved 30-40 points compared to their first practice tests. Especially encouraging was one student who attended every single TOEFL prep session and raised her score from 470 to 500. A 500 TOEFL score is required to qualify for the RMI scholarship which more or less pays for a Marshallese student’s complete higher education in the United States.

I went diving again a few weeks back. The first time I went diving I dove the reef shelf at Arno, an outer island/atoll. The reef was magnificent, completely pristine and colorful. This time I wanted to see what I didn’t see at Arno, lots of big fish. Thus, my dive master recommended that we dive this place he had nicknamed “The Aquarium.” Basically, we enter the water right outside of one of the deep water passes in Majuro atoll during high tide and literally hold onto the walls of the pass as the current drags all manner of sea critters through the pass. Sounded like fun to me. And it was! The thought of holding onto the coral to prevent myself from being swept away was a little intimidating but turned out to be perfectly harmless, and the abundance of ocean life that I saw quickly made me forget about any concerns I had. There were sharks everywhere, 150 lbs dogtooth tunas, and even a gigantic eagle ray. It sounds stupid but I never realized that the ocean had so much stuff living in it. I will definitely have to go diving again.

On a more somber note, my host grandmother passed away last week. I never actually met her but am close enough with my host family that many of their funeral obligations are also mine. Marshallese have a very intimate and special relationship with death. The day my grandmother died her relatives (practically all her relatives) were notified immediately and flocked to her house to begin the mourning period. Most of the immediate family (including my sisters and my mother) stayed up all night mourning and receiving guests who came to pay their respects. They stayed at the house as my grandmother’s body was embalmed at the morgue. After her body was returned, services were held at a church for roughly two days. For these purposes, services constitute the deceased’s children genuflecting and ostentatiously mourning in front of the casket while the deceased’s grandchildren sit to the side and receive guests while watching their parents mourn. Next the body will be brought to what I assume is a funeral parlor type establishment where it will once again be on display and the family will once again receive guests who wish to pay their respects. This will occur for three days. Finally the deceased will be buried and the final rituals at the burial effectively end the mourning period. It’s much more intricate and complex than anything in the United States, probably because family is much more important here than in the United States. I haven’t been present for all of the services like my sisters and mother have, but I’ve been present enough to recognize how significant the process is.

Finally, my flight back home has been booked. Around 10:30 PM on May 30^th, I’ll arrive at Midway. Hope to see many of you then.