Woleai Report#027
Woleai Report#027
October 18
The first step in Woleai
Four days have passed since I arrived at Woleai. I got used to wear loincloth quite well. Everyday is full of interesting things for me.
There is no time of boring. I take it easy in the morning and have a class of World School at school in the afternoon. After the sun sets and the moon comes to appear, some local children call me to play with them.
Everybody gathers to work for the community every Friday. I joined the men of the island with making sea walls last Friday. The sea wall is a bank for protecting taro pots from a tsunami. We built up stone walls along the shore, ditched under the walls and strengthened there with cement. It is easy to explain but it was actually very hard work.
I kept working without a word just like a man at a construction site. However, it was much better to work under a scorching sun with hearing the sound of waves than to do the same work along side of a road with terrible car exhausts in Japan.
Moreover, how delicious the coconut juice I had at a break was! Though I sweated by the work with my pleasure in the day, I felt pain on my sunburnt back every time I turned from side to side at that night.
Young people in the island spend daytime in going to school, cutting tuba (juice from sprouts of coconut trees. It makes alcoholic drink.), or taking care of babies. After dusk, they start to play. It is needless to say that doesn't mean they have a spree at an amusement street with neon signs.
Here in Woleai, there is only gentle light from the moon and the stars far from haughty strong neon lights. They go fishing, look for crabs, or sing songs under such a soft light.
There is a girl who likes singing songs here. Lillian, 17 year-old girl, is a member of choir and she knows songs of Woleai and the Truck Islands. She can also sing Japanese songs and English ones.
The Woleaian songs have something about the sea and the quiet melodies are suitable for the sandy beach under the moon light.
I sang some Japanese songs too. They liked the song, 'Seto no Hanayome (A Bride of the Seto Inland Sea)' best. There might be something same as their songs. I played some games with them on the beach.
They had the same game as 'Touryanse (Please Go through)', one of Japanese games.We also played 'Eni Palau', which one person chase another one with saying "Eni Palau" in a circle formed by some people. It was exciting.
The most exciting game was 'Shug Shug', which two groups tried to touch the opponent's position by turns. It demands high strategy and stamina. Everybody of the island dashed with bare feet on the beach covered with shells and corals, but I couldn't. I dashed as fast as possible, with bearing the pain under my feet and holding my loincloth not to slip off.
We played until past midnight. How wholesome games they play at night! I went back to my hut past one o'clock. I was exhausted and lied down on the hard floor immediately, though some flies and mosquitoes were flying around me.
Reported by ISHIKAWA Naoki
(Translated by TANAKA Fumiyo)
Copyright World School Japan Committee & ECO-CLUB, 1996. No reproduction or republication without written permission