8-12-2012
Updates of all sorts
I am well aware that these blog posts are way overdue. Mahk dohlul (I’m really sorry). Life is so new to me here that sometimes sitting in front of a computer for too long isn’t my most appealing option. Nonetheless, I have plenty to say and I am aware of our third Peace Corps goal, which essentially calls for volunteers to share their host country’s culture with people in the United States. I have so much to write about that this first entry will be on my present and future; a post immediately following will catch you up on the last month or so.
I’ll be starting at Ohmine Elementary School in Kolonia (Pohnpei’s biggest city) on August 20th. I have four teachers that I will be working closely with—one each from 5th-8th grade, and I have been asked to assist with computer literacy as well (Ohmine has a well-furnished and relatively new computer lab). Our goal is to raise student performance on 6th and 8th-grade level tests by at least 2% by the end of the 2012-2013 school year. I’ve taught in one faculty or another for several years now and I still have to admit that I’m a bit nervous. We have been told that apathy and low attendance have really hurt the schools here, and even aside from those issues I am working in a very different pedagogical environment than I ever have before. This will take patience and discipline, but I feel really ready. I talked to my parents some time ago about my strategy here, which basically amounts to a continual redefinition of “success.” If, for example, I decide that making bonds with my host family is of some lasting value (which it certainly is), then I have already succeeded. Frankly, all of us have succeeded because we are still here and willing to attempt integration into a foreign culture. Reality, as I have said to many of you in the past, is all about perspective. It is imperative on any of us, whether we are talking about an adventure abroad, moving to a new apartment, going on a diet or battling an addiction, to ensure that our perspectives and outlooks are primed to help us reach our desired mental and spiritual destinations.
Updates of all sorts
I am well aware that these blog posts are way overdue. Mahk dohlul (I’m really sorry). Life is so new to me here that sometimes sitting in front of a computer for too long isn’t my most appealing option. Nonetheless, I have plenty to say and I am aware of our third Peace Corps goal, which essentially calls for volunteers to share their host country’s culture with people in the United States. I have so much to write about that this first entry will be on my present and future; a post immediately following will catch you up on the last month or so.
I’ll be starting at Ohmine Elementary School in Kolonia (Pohnpei’s biggest city) on August 20th. I have four teachers that I will be working closely with—one each from 5th-8th grade, and I have been asked to assist with computer literacy as well (Ohmine has a well-furnished and relatively new computer lab). Our goal is to raise student performance on 6th and 8th-grade level tests by at least 2% by the end of the 2012-2013 school year. I’ve taught in one faculty or another for several years now and I still have to admit that I’m a bit nervous. We have been told that apathy and low attendance have really hurt the schools here, and even aside from those issues I am working in a very different pedagogical environment than I ever have before. This will take patience and discipline, but I feel really ready. I talked to my parents some time ago about my strategy here, which basically amounts to a continual redefinition of “success.” If, for example, I decide that making bonds with my host family is of some lasting value (which it certainly is), then I have already succeeded. Frankly, all of us have succeeded because we are still here and willing to attempt integration into a foreign culture. Reality, as I have said to many of you in the past, is all about perspective. It is imperative on any of us, whether we are talking about an adventure abroad, moving to a new apartment, going on a diet or battling an addiction, to ensure that our perspectives and outlooks are primed to help us reach our desired mental and spiritual destinations.
I’ll be
moving to my next host family on Wednesday.
The Dakanos are a Mwokilese family (Mwokil is an outlying island of
Pohnpei), and as such they will speak a slightly different language than the
one I’ve been learning. The challenge of
learning yet another language is as exciting to me as it is daunting. They have two children, both toddler age,
which will be a new challenge as well. I
absolutely love children though, so more than anything I’m really excited.
Other updates:
--Warer harvesting is one of the most unique and disgusting experiences I’ve had in Pohnpei thus far. Warer is a variation on sea cucumbers—to my Korean friends, we have the cucumbers you are familiar with here but the ones I am talking about are larger and have a scaly green crust to them. I was asked during a family picnic at Langur (an old Japanese airstrip) by an old woman to help harvest these things. Essentially what this entails is grabbing the creature and poking your finger through its stomach, and then squeezing the entrails out into your hand. Pellets of sand intermingle with a substance resembling mucous; you want to keep the mucous. The hard part is separating the sand, which warers digest, from the fluids you want to keep (apparently good for the bones of older people). I was not particularly good at this but I did manage to get a bottle’s worth of warer, which my host father was tremendously appreciative of.
Other updates:
--Warer harvesting is one of the most unique and disgusting experiences I’ve had in Pohnpei thus far. Warer is a variation on sea cucumbers—to my Korean friends, we have the cucumbers you are familiar with here but the ones I am talking about are larger and have a scaly green crust to them. I was asked during a family picnic at Langur (an old Japanese airstrip) by an old woman to help harvest these things. Essentially what this entails is grabbing the creature and poking your finger through its stomach, and then squeezing the entrails out into your hand. Pellets of sand intermingle with a substance resembling mucous; you want to keep the mucous. The hard part is separating the sand, which warers digest, from the fluids you want to keep (apparently good for the bones of older people). I was not particularly good at this but I did manage to get a bottle’s worth of warer, which my host father was tremendously appreciative of.
--I joined a Filipino rock band as the bassist, and ostensibly we will be covering Bon Jovi songs. This is real.
--Mail is going out this week, finally. I'm so sorry I've been this awful about updating and spereading love to everyone. All in due time.
More in a bit. I have a few crucial emails to send but I'll try to get another entry on sakau up today, as Kayla has asked some very good questions about it. Love and blessings!
Kaselehlie
BZ
