[playing moa at recess]

Updates

Life in the South Pacific is wonderful. The air is cooling off, winter is here and I am loving the rhythm that I've had going recently.

I am 4 weeks away from eva pe-ing (wandering) to America for a brief visit and have so much to do before then. 

Here are 5 little moments that had me smiling this week: (In no particular order)

1. Last Sunday was Father's Day here in Tonga and I went to the Wesleyan Church to celebrate. During the service all of the fathers were asked to come forward and each of their children put a giant candy necklace around their necks. On their way back to their seats, three of the dads thought the palangi (me) looked like she needed a little sugar in her life so I ended up walking out of church covered in candy. Goodtimes.

 2. Touna (pictured below) came up to me every morning this week and gave me a huge hug. She loves to take her clothes off and yell at me from across the school grounds. It makes me laugh. Every time.

 3. Nigeria (pictured below) read with me during every lunch hour. She is in Class 1 and only knows Tongan right now, so we read Tongan books and she taught me new words.

 4. My students and I sang "Mmmm-Ahk! went the little green frog one day!" every day this week. They loved it and it was great to practice saying color names.

5. My principal and I had a great meeting about the success of the students so far. She is happy with the work I am doing. It felt good to hear that. 

Hope you have a wonderful weekend. :)

 

Peace Corps BBQ at Don & Nori's.

As much as I love staying in community (in my village) and hanging out with my neighbors, sometimes it's nice to meet up with other Peace Corps Volunteers. I'm lucky to be a PCV in Tonga, where we all really aren't that far away from each other. There are 9 of us that live rather close to each other in this part of Tonga. I have heard that in other countries where PCVs serve, they can be days away from the nearest volunteer.

On Saturday the PCVs I live near were able to meet up at Don & Nori's. Don & Nori's is not a restaurant, rather a home away from home. This lovely couple moved to Tonga 30+ years ago and raised their family here. They are originally from America and are some of the nicest people you will ever meet.

We spent the late afternoon enjoying each other's company, eating great food and watching the sun set. I have referred to where we live as "Neverland", but Saturday night it really did feel that way.

An Open Letter to My Momma on Mother's Day.

Dear Mom, 

We both know that as a child I may not have appreciated you and your wisdom as much as I could have (or should have). For this, I am so sorry. It's taken moving to three different states and one very tiny island in the South Pacific to really truly begin to understand the things you have taught me. Everything makes a lot more sense now. 

From a very young age you taught me to always look for the positive - the thing to learn in a rocky situation, the silver lining, the smiles. Even when life gets tough, positivity and smiling really go a long way. It has also ensured that my very first old lady wrinkles are pretty awesome looking laugh lines. 
Speaking of laugh lines, I appreciate you constantly waving your freak flag when we were kids and even more so, now. Whether it's lip syncing to Beyonce Knowles in the middle of a department store or doing yoga in the Department of Motor Vehicles while I was trying to get my driver's license, I have always appreciated your goofiness and your confidence (maybe not as a 16-year-old, but I sure do now!). You show everyone your true colors and it is this honesty -  this openness that inspires me. Finally, above all else thank you for helping to cultivate my self-worth.
Growing up I wasn't sure what I wanted to be. As a 9-year-old the plan was to be a tornado chaser (until I saw my very first one) and then I was set on becoming "the next Barbara Walters". It didn't matter what crazy plan I had - you always told me that the sky was the limit. You made me feel special and loved, and also showed me the importance of looking for the beauty in everyone and everything too. In terms of the bigger things in life, you have never forced me to fit into a specific mold - you allow me to be who I am. Thank you for introducing me to yoga and the different ways we can be spiritual. We both know I don't have everything figured out yet and that I'm still growing and finding a path, but I love that I know that no matter which way I choose, you will always be there - my biggest cheerleader, my greatest friend.
I love you, Mom. I love your laugh and how crazy loud it is. I love that every time you cut up an apple, you don't mind when I steal a piece. I love that you still will dance to "I'm a Rover" in the kitchen with me. I love that you are still so in love with Dad. And I love how passionate you are about fakahuhu (breastfeeding). But mostly, I love that you are my mom.

Love always,
Your Panda Bear 

Sundays.

Since moving to Tonga, I have developed a love-hate relationship with Sundays.

Everything slows down here. The culture dictates that there are only three things that are appropriate to do on the seventh day of the week: eat, sleep and rest.

There are no afternoon trips to Target with your best friend.

No coffee dates at Starbucks.

Forget about hikes in the foothills.

No frantic planning for teaching during the coming week.

I sound like I’m complaining. But this is something I am getting used to and something that I need to embrace. I still get restless. I still feel like I should be doing more on this day, but instead I’m slowing down. This is good for me.

The last couple of Sunday afternoons, some could say that I have “cheated”. I spend an hour doing yoga, but to me this is a form of relaxation, so though some Tongans would say “Oua Mandy! ‘Ikai fakamalohisino!” (Don’t Mandy! No exercise!) I’m saying that this doesn’t count. It’s just practicing living in the moment and finding some peacefulness.

That is, until today. I was about thirty minutes into a very relaxing yoga session, when I had a visitor. For those of you familiar with yoga, I was in the downward dog position (my body forming an upside down V on the mat) when I opened my eyes, looked between my legs and met the gaze of the largest rat I’ve ever seen.

Peering his head around the corner, seeing if he had a clear getaway to the outside exit located underneath the sink, I met his gaze. I mean he wasn’t even scared of me. He was the size of a small squirrel and was just hanging out. His beady little eyes seemed to be judging me. That little bugger.

Needless to say, Mandy vs. the Kuma: Round 3 commences tomorrow. While preparing for this match I was looking for the rat poison and found that my little friend had left presents in my cupcake holders. One little present in each. You're so going down, Mr. Kuma.

Pizza Time.

Term 1 is officially finished and last week the little primary school I call my home and place of work, began Term 2. This means that the school year is already 25% over.

Time flies when you’re having fun!

And I have only 20 school weeks to get my Class 6 students ready for a test that will determine what secondary school they will earn admission into.

No pressure.  

Similar to America, these students take the test long before the school year is finished. So like I did in America, what is supposed to take all year to teach is consolidated (and rushed) into 30 weeks of teaching.  And when you take out all the reasons school gets cancelled (rain days, hot days, ANZAC day, funerals, the King’s Birthday, … etc.) we are talking about much less time.

The Ministry of Education here in Tonga introduced a new English curriculum last year. The school year is broken up into 8 units – each unit has a different theme and a different set of standards to master in 4 weeks time (the suggested time it should take to finish a unit). These eight units really need to be taught before the Class 6 exam so I have organized my schedule in order to complete them all prior to the second week of October. I will be teaching night class (a common occurrence here) in order to get it completed on time. Sometimes I can’t help but think that students need a break, time to play and have fun – I believed it when I taught in Wisconsin, Florida and Colorado and I believe it even more now when so much is resting on the results of this test.

This week we started Unit 3 - “Instructions and Directions”. Each class is working on the language needed to give and receive instructions and give and receive directions. And what better way to learn these things than to learn it through FOOD.

Because… really, people… everything is better with food.

My Class 5 and 6 students began the week by learning the language needed in order to cook. Mix, roll, stir, put, place, boil, and bake. Then they practiced creating “pizza lo’i” - literal translation is “lying pizza” (or fake pizza). This pizza was made out of laminated construction paper and each student became a chef. By the end of the week they were writing and creating their own recipes. They tested them out and “kai lahi” (ate a lot). The next day we made “pizza ma’oni” (real pizza) and the kids loved it!

Wordless Wednesday.