Watch the Walk

Documents to deliver for a stranger Here in the islands we have a somewhat unique issue of transporting goods. Seeing as how most people don’t have a post office box and, besides which, the postal system is rather slow, how do you get something from one island to another? A lot of families are split between different islands, and with the cultural expectation that better-off family members will help out those who are worse off, there’s a fairly steady flow of goods between islands. Additionally, there are often official documents that have to reach government offices on the big island. So, when you know someone going to another island, you often will ask them to deliver something for you. Or maybe you don’t know them, you just go to the airport and look for someone who looks trustworthy (hello, Abby!) You know how in the US, they ask you if you’re carrying anything for anyone else? Well… um… yeah. I’ve ended up carrying a variety of things for others. Most common is an envelope with m...

Sunset from a taxi In my class the other day we were on the topic of describing your hopes and dreams. Each student was supposed to come up with a couple of hopes for how their island would be different 20 years from now. The first student's answer really caught my attention: "My hope is for my island to have a good economic situation in 20 years. By that I mean that everyone will be paid at the end of every month." Yeah, let that sink in for a moment. As Americans, we often think about "the economy", but how often do we wonder whether this is the month we'll get paid? Can you imagine going to work every day for months on end, without getting a paycheck? Yet many islanders do. Some, however, get tired of it. Sunrise from my roof Recently the teachers in a couple of towns told their students that they weren't going to teach that day. If the students wanted to be taught, they needed to go on a parade and demonstrate, demanding their teachers be paid their ...

How often do you think about whether you should be on time, late, or early? Do you think about it, or not really? Here on Clove Island I often have to consider whether the event I'm going to calls for being early, on time, or late. Recently, there was an English certificate ceremony that I was supposed to go to which was planned for Sunday morning. They agreed to start at 11, giving my team time to worship and study together before going to the ceremony. Then the invitations were issued for the ceremony: the time on the first ones was 8:30, the rest of them said 9:30. Students we asked claimed that the ceremony would start anywhere between 9 o'clock and 10:30. They were planning to be there by 8. Well, you can imagine my anxiety-- am I going to be late to the ceremony? That would be embarrassing, since they have teachers sit at the front! I checked again with the administrator and he assured me that they would try to have things ready so that things could start after we arri...

How much is enough for you? Do you have goals in life? Places you want to go? Things you want to see or experience? People you want to involve? I've been teaching an advanced English class and we start each class session by discussing a proverb or saying. Often the discussions turn philosophical in nature. Recently the lesson was on money, and we started talking about the saying that "money makes the world go around." After discussing money and how central having things is to the way the world works, I started hearing comments like the following: "You know, you can get away with any kind of crime here, so long as you have enough money." "A poor person will never find justice for himself." "I want to have a lot of money so I can do anything I want." "I want to be president so I can have a lot of money." "Rich people don't have any worries in life." Now, you may be shaking your head at this. But aren't these thoughts...

My neighborhood cleaned up their trash pile What do you do about your trash? Did that question make you pause for a minute? Is trash something that you think about on a regular basis? Or maybe you pride yourself for recycling? Or compost-- what a great option! But some places the "options" are a little more complicated. I've probably complained about the trash-covered beaches here in the past, but maybe the real problem has been less than clear. See, we have no landfill here. Between the steep mountains and private property, they've never found a good location for a landfill. We also have a fairly large amount of imported goods. And since buying in bulk requires having a larger amount of money at a time, many people buy in single-serving packages that that average 30 cents apiece. And you can imagine the plastic and metal involved in the packaging for all of that. Then there's the organic waste. Some of it, goats and chickens will eat. But not everyone has goats o...

We were sitting, killing time while waiting for an English teacher meeting to start, and a young islander teacher decided to quiz the group on their English. "What's the meaning of 'Facebooking?'" he asked. The room was silent. Someone replied, "I know Facebook. It has something to do with that?" "Let me give an example," the first teacher responded, "for example, my Facebooking is for romantic purposes." The room laughed uncomfortably, especially knowing that particular teacher's reputation. He's already got two wives... is he looking for more romance than that? But it got me thinking. See, islander Facebook is rather fascinating in a disturbing way. Like a boys' locker room crossed with random political activists, crossed with girls who take selfies or self-portaits in front of every green plant or white person on the island. I think it's easier to see the unappealing side when it's not your own culture using the...

Cutting up a little jackfruit Do you ever wish for alone time? In the African cultures I've encountered, being alone seems not to be a value in the slightest. I've been in Uganda to renew my passport at the American embassy there. Due to my passport not arriving before my return flight date, I ended up rearranging schedules and being in Uganda longer than I'd told my islander friends here. So we'd already said goodbyes, but I was still in country. I got a message from one of them who'd heard from someone back in the islands that I was still in Uganda. He wanted to know-- why didn't you tell me you're still around??? Well, we'd already said goodbye, but he  wanted to meet up again. So we agreed to meet up on my last day, when I would be in his city before my midnight flight. We arranged for him to come find me around noon. Since he and his roommate had cooked last time, I figured I should buy them a meal this time. Taking pictures everywhere Eight AM roll...