Girl Power!

One really great opportunity we have as Micronesian JV’s is the opportunity to have a summer placement. For the summer, Peaches and I are in Pohnpei for Xavier’s Higher Achievement Program, a summer school-like program for soon to be 7th and 8th graders who want to go to Xavier. They are the top students at their schools and we practice English, Reading, and Math skills with them in order to prepare them for the Xavier Entrance Test they will take in January. We also get to live in community with the Pohnpei JV’s Rachael and Molly and live as they do for the summer.


Pohnpei is about an hour plane ride away, but much more developed then Chuuk, and we saw this immediately when we got off of the phone. One of the first signs of this was the automatic door. I was about to push the door open when it, almost magically opened by itself! It seems so strange, I have seen many of these throughout my life, but was somehow blown away but how this door. We have heard all about Pohnpei and how much more developed it is, but this was something I really had not expected.

Moving out of the airport, and still today, little things amazed me. Sitting right now, Rachael and I are at Coco’s Resturant, while the Hawaiian (granted it is 2 weeks late) is playing and we are sipping Iced Coffees! The roads, are drivable and we can even go over 25 miles an hour! In the stores they have what seems like a surplus of fresh fruits, veggies, and even yogurt. There are ten times more restaurants, a movie theater (were going tonight!), and a field for baseball, soccer, and ultimate Frisbee leagues.

Power is something else I have grown pretty used to not having in Chuuk. Even we when did have it, I knew it was only seconds, minutes, or if the power company was being nice, an hour before it would go out. We had gone days without power in Chuuk. Now in Pohnpei is experiencing power problems (not having power for maybe 3 or 4 hours), but it still seems so much better then what is going on in Chuuk. Here I am always expecting the power to go off, and when it doesn’t, it’s still really surprising! It’s really crazy how much of a difference power, roads, and food can have on a person!

Another thing, and this will be really tough when I go home, is I am not used to seeing so many white people. For the first time in my life I am the minority. It’s something I have grown really used to and not really thinking too much about. I think total in Chuuk I have seen between 20-30 white people. Here they are all over the place; working at for Embassy, World Teach, Peace Corp, college teachers, or just ex-pats who own local bars, restaurants, or hotels. Its really crazy, I am still the minority, but not used to having so many people look like me.

One of the great things I have really come to enjoy about Pohnpei is not something that can be seen downtown were all of the action is. Rachael has been able to take me out to her host family and I have also seen a couple of my Xavier students families houses as well. Even though there is so much infrastructure on the island, there is still something so great about experiencing the local setting at a real Pohnepian families house. It looks very similar to Chuuk and they still live on the bare necessities; no beds, no furniture, a TV or two, a cook house, and enough clothes to share amoungst the many family members who live there. Its really great to see that when it does come down to it, it’s just a more glamorous version of Chuuk, just with fruit, veggies, power, and roads. The true Micronesian is still there underneath it all.

There are so many other things I could say about how Pohnpei and Chuuk are different and all of the culture shock I am experiencing just an hour away from Chuuk, but this summer has not been all about the how Pohnpei and Chuuk are different. I have also loved working and being with my community.

Working is very different, then the typical Xavier lifestyle. Instead of teaching 15 hours a day and dealing with teenagers, I only work 3 ½ hours and teach soon to be 8th graders. In the afternoons we have a chance to experience the Pohnepian culture and get to know the island and our students a little bit more. Even though I am teaching Math, I have found it to be a lot of fun and much more interesting then say an English skills class. The 8th graders are also a lot more fun. I feel more like my “goofy camp counselor” self with them, as opposed to the eye rolling I get from the high school students. And I really do love the high school students, but I have really enjoyed the innocence and immaturity that these kids bring. I also really miss all of my high school students, especially the ones who just graduated and the soon to be seniors. They are wonderful and this experience has taught me how lucky I am to get to build such a strong relationship with those who I am serving.

Other then work and Pohnpein life, one aspect of my life in PNI has outshined everything and made my summer one of the best yet. The community of girls I live with Molly, Rachael, and Peaches has been so life giving and wonderful. Immediately have been calling ourselves the “Girl Power Summer Community” and have been having so much fun. Whether we are being silly and dancing to our favorite jams, shopping at thrift stores, watching the baseball games with the locals, dance parties with the host family, sleepovers with Princess movies, or just being our goofy selves, which ends up in all of us laughing until it hurts. We have been blessed to also have deep, meaningful conversations that bring us closer together both intellectually and spiritually. This is what I have always wanted out of community in JVC and I want to bring all of this hope and joy for community back to Xavier as our newbies, Jay and Gabe. Community reall has been the biggest blessing for me this summer and I cannot imagine myself being any happier.

I have also been doing a lot of self-growth here. Prior to summer, I have had so much trouble being myself. At Xavier and in Chuuk, I don’t really feel like I am able to be myself. With the students, fellow faculty, and Chuukese eyes on me, I am the opposite of what it is to be Micronesian. I am loud, talkative, emotional, and a girl who can’t get enough sports! Here, especially with the community, I finally feel like I am more of myself then I have ever been in Micronesia. I not only feel accepted for who I am by the community around me, but I also feel as though my students, and the local people are more excepting of who I am as well. I feel like I am finally getting my grove back, just in time to go back and live up my final year here, the best way possible.

My summer goals have been going strong, even though I know I could practice the guitar a lot more. But I do try and practice Chuukese a couple times a week and have really explored Pohnpei, jumping off waterfalls, hiking, visiting host families, and just exploring. There is a whole lot more to see here, and I have really tried to make the most of it (by still living simply of course)! And on Wednesday, Mom and Dad arrive! I only hope they are ready for PNI and the adventure it will bring!!

Summer Lovin'

Having a BLAST in Pohnpei for my summer placement! The 7th graders are amazing and teaching math is actually really fun!

The "Girl Power" community is so life-giving and we are having one of the best summers ever.

I will update very soon!

You Made Me Laugh, You Made Me Cry, But I Hate Saying Goodbye

Wow, what a week it has been! We just finished up the school year and I am officially done with my first as a teacher!! I cannot believe how fast time has flown by! In the past week we have had our last Honors Assembly, Baccalaureate Mass, and Graduation! And to top it all off we said goodbye to Alex yesterday and she made her way back home to continue her journey. All of this reminded me of how short this experience is and how fast it goes by. I feel like it was just yesterday we were at Orientation at Boston College talking about how we would live simply if we found treasure buried in the Pacific Ocean that we might stumble upon during a snorkeling adventure. Soon we will also have to part with our second years who have supported us and given us so many irreplacable gifts and memories in the past year. But knowing how close we have become, I know I will see these people again, I know these goodbyes are only for a little while.
Then there are the students: OH, the students. I have to say if I were to teach anywhere in the world, I am so happy it has been at Xavier and with these students. Having spent a year with the seniors I am very sad to know they are moving on to the next chapter of their lives. I cant help but think, did I teach them enough, did I prepare them enough, do they know how much I love, care, and respect them as individuals, and most especially, do they know they will also be kept in a very special spot close to my heart and I will never forget them. They are wonderful individuals and I have tried my best to be all that I could be for them everyday. I know I will not be the best teacher they ever had, but I do hope I taught them how to be good Christians and live their lives as moral people. I guess that might be something I will never find out or ever know. And I know for a majority the goodbyes I say to them are unfortunately forever, but their memory will be everlasting.
Saying goodbyes and knowing how much change will come in the next few months only reminds me how short-lived my experience is here. Coming here, after spending 4 years in college, 2 years seemed as if it was such a long time. But I have only still begun my journey here, I have only begun growing as a person, and I am excited for the year ahead. I know where to put my focus. I know how to balance my life as a person, JV, teacher, daughter, and everything I am apart of here. I am sad to say all these goodbyes and sad to know how much things will change, but I am excited for what the next year will bring. I am excited to get even closer with the students and I am excited to see the change.

So all in all, times are changing and I am saying more goodbyes then I thought I would have to. But, change can be beautiful and I am excited for what is ahead of me. One year down, one more to go and I know this next year is going to be something more beautiful then I can ever imagine!


Pohnpei Summer Goals:
Study Chuukese
Learn to Play the Guitar/Uk
Read whatever I can get my hands on
Climb Shoke's Rock (mountain top in PNI)
Jump off all the Pohnpean Waterfalls!
Drink Sakua
Shop at Black Sand

Love,
Ems

Peace, Grace, & SHARKS

The past semester has flown by, and my adorable seniors will be graduating in about a week! Though time is flying by and I will miss the people who are leaving, I am excited and ready for what this next year is going to bring. New students, new faces on staff, and I am continuing to grow into a new me.

The past couple of weeks have been very busy! The week of Holy Week we went on Re-Orientation and Dis-Orientation. We went to the beautiful island of Pisar, a small island on the edge of the reef. It is possibly the most It is the closest thing I will come close to as a Paradise or “Private Island.”

This was one of the best retreats that I have ever been on, and though that only leaves a few to compare it to, I still feel completely spiritually and mentally satisfied and fulfilled. My cup and it was running empty and I needed something to fill it back up, and that is what the retreat gave me, an even greater supply of “living water.” I found myself reflecting on not only the passage or prompts given but also on my life here at Xavier and in Chuuk, who I am and who I want to became. In that, what I need to get myself free of, what I need to let go of, and continue to get negative or painful things out of my life. Though I thought I was living an extreme Christian lifestyle in Chuuk by following the JVC values of living simply, living in a community, sharing my faith life, and learning to do justice by just being, this retreat reminded me that though I was living in these ways, that I still was not role modeling a Christian lifestyle, or at least the Christian lifestyle that I hoped to truly live out here.

Since the retreat I have found an inner drive to be there and do all that I can, while continue to take more breaks and lazy days then I ever thought I would do at Xavier. I have found a confidence that I did not know I possessed and an inner strength that I also thought would take years to achieve. I remember someone saying that through the experience at Xavier and in Chuuk, we would not only grow 2 years older, but 10 years through the struggles we overcome and memories that we make here. One goal I have given myself is to wake up everyday and say to myself, “I am a JV, I am here to serve my students and the people of Chuuk. I only have 1 year left, so make everyday count.” So doing that, I can remember how this experience, as frustrating as it can be at times, will not last forever and therefore I need to live it up everyday. Sometimes working as much as we do and having so many obligations I forget that I will not be here forever and these little frustrations are only making this experience less beautiful. I hope this will continue to make my experience here even more special and life-alternating.

The week we returned was a complete “catch up” week as we returned back to classes, grading, and lesson planning. That weekend we had Worker Appreciation Day where we celebrated our local workers with Mass, a cookout, and all sorts of fun and games! It was such a great day! It’s a really wonderful experience to feel a personal connection to the people here…when they do funny things or dance silly, its feels good to know that you have a connection and a love for that person. For my first 6 or 7 months, I did not feel that connection at all. It took 6 months to find a host family and I was still transitioning into the culture even then. But for one of the first times I felt such a connection to local people. That same weekend our soccer girls played in the Championship Game and WON!! All of our girl’s sports teams placed in the top 2 this year which has been very exciting! About a week ago I throw a “GIRLS PARTY” for them and we ate cake, ice cream, and pizza! It was a lot of fun and I think the girls were really excited! 

This past week was our last teaching week of school and we start finals tomorrow! The seniors have finals for two days then go on senior retreat and I was lucky enough to get asked to on retreat with them. The rest of the school will be taking finals Wednesday-Friday whil we are on retreat, back on the island of PISAR!

And then there was today…Alex organized a trip for us and the Saram JVs to Jeep Island, one of the resort islands so we could snorkel all day! It was the best snorkeling I have ever seen and I cant believe how many fish we saw! We even got to swim with SHARKS!! They were little, not as big as us, but they were SO COOL!! It was definitely a once in a lifetime experience!!

So as exciting as my life has been, it has been super busy and doesn’t seem like it is going to settle down before graduation! I hope everyone is doing well and I cant wait to get some updates (through email J) on everyone!!

Love and Peace

em

P.S. I should have pictures up on Facebook SOON! <3

A Fast Last Quarter and Year

My first year here has flown by! In less then a month I will done with my first year of teaching!! Its crazy how fast time has flown by here! Looking back at this past year, I cant believe its already April and in two months I will be saying some goodbyes and Peach and I will be heading over to Ponphei for summer placements with Rach and Molly!
This week is SPIRIT WEEK and we are getting ready for Track and Field tomorrow. Tomorrow and Friday will be the biggest events on the island...ALL of the high schools are competing in the events from all over the island and neighboring islands. Our students are pumped up and ready for the competition but to get them even more ready we have all sorts of craziness happening. Monday was Mute Day in which no one on campus could talk and we had to be "creative" with our lesson plans. Tuesday was Career Day and the students dressed up for their future jobs. Today is Switch Day....students switching genders and teachers switching with students. Mike and I switch so I look manly and he is in one of our MuMus :) The students thought it was pretty funny. Peaches is also dressed up as a student in the uniform. Alex and Rose both switched with students and Greg is wearing a skirt. Lots of craziness and fun! Tomorrow will be a half day of classes and then we will all go down for all the preliminary races and Friday is an all day event under the hot sun! But the Sarem community will be there which always makes it a little more fun!
 This Saturday our home office will also be coming in for our Re-Orientation and Dis-Orientation as well as to observe us in the classroom and as a community. The Ponphei community will also fly over with the office. It will be hectic having to entertain as well as continue working our 15 hour days. Over Easter Break we will also head out to the outer island of Pisar for the actual Re-O/Dis-O. It will be a tough week or so, but once we get back we only have 13 days of classes left! Which is just crazy since I still have SO much to cover :) but it will all work out in the end :)

With the school year coming to a close and the office coming to visit, I have really seen how fast time has gone by here. Time really has been flying by....maybe its the constant summer weather or maybe the 15 hour work days...either way, I feel like it should only be December and its April! I look back to how much I have grown already and learned about myself, my community, my students, and the would and I think of how lucky I really am to have these experiences. God really has blessed me in so many ways and I am so grateful for these experiences. I have gained such great insight into life here and have created so many relationships that will be everlasting. And knowing I still have one more year to grow and develop here makes me SO happy! I am so blessed for this experience and the people that surround me. I am also so blessed that I have such supportive friends and family back home who have been there for me whenever I needed them.

Thats just a quick update, I wanted to be sure to write something prior to the office arriving and Easter on Pisar.

Love from the Islands!
Em

A Hidden Secret

For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; neither was man created for woman, but woman for man..... In the Lord, however, woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God. -1 Corinthians 11:8-9,11-12

From past experience of visiting Nicaragua and Ecuador and hearing stories from volunteers, I knew living in Micronesia or any developing country, would be tough, especially since I am a woman. I knew there would be things I would not be allowed to do anything, I would not be allowed to dress how I normally dress, and I would be restricted the cultural way in which the women behave. And I was ready for the challenge.

Living at a boys boarding school, I have had many experiences with those ideas of not being able to fully be myself. No I cant play the Annual Capture the Flag game because the boys would feel uncomfortable having a girl play, no I cant sleep over on an outer island with the boys when all the male staff are invited, no I cant climb coconut trees, no I cant pound breadfruit, no I cant ride in a local style canoe, and no I cannot help built a native hut. All because of my gender.

No's and Cant's are words heard here often by members of the female faculty here at Xavier High School. Though at times we argue that it is unfair or sexist, but it is a part of the culture that many of us have grown used to and became familiar with. As a "tomboy" I have had some troubles with these realities but realized how much more not participating in these things puts me in solidarity with the women of Micronesia who have to be submissive the majority of their lives.

In February I was invited to attend a funeral with my family. Funerals in Micronesia are a big deal and a huge family affair. My grandma's sister past away and as tradition goes here, the women of the family have to sleep in the room where the funeral was, usually a meeting house or hut for 9 days. I was invited to sleep in the meeting house for one night and was finally able to see something beautiful about the role of women here. I was finally able to see something women Can do, and men Cant.

It was the women not the men who were allowed to sleep in the house together, over 50 lovely ladies singing songs, playing the ukulele, and celebrating life and the love they had all lost. I was able to see how beautiful the bond the women in a family have and how much fun they have with each other. It was all singing, smiling, and giggling the whole night, as the men sat outside and watched the house. It was one of the coolest experiences to this day that I have had here in Micronesia. Prior to this, I was always focused on the Nos and Cants of the women here in Micronesia and that night my eyes were opened to what a beautiful thing the women in Micronesia have going on here. They have this close family connection to each other and are some of the strongest and charismatic people I have ever met. It doesnt stick out or is out in the open, it is something so hidden, but so marvelous at the same time. 

For many areas of the world, it is a reality that men and women will be treated different. As a woman, it continues to be a struggle for me, but when I see something as wonderful as what I experienced that night, it reminds me that women  might not be shown publicly as strong figures, but they really the rulers of the houses and some of the strongest people I have ever had the chance of meeting.

My apologies for not updated this in over a month. Things on Mabuchi Hill have been very busy and today is the first time I have had a chance to sit back and write this. The past month has been full of service projects, retreats, visits to my sponsor family. 
About a month ago the Sophomore students worked side by side with the Sapuk community and helped to fix the road (as much as we could possibly fix). When I signed up for JVC, it talked about being in solidarity with the people which we were serving. I had not really seen much of that until that day when I helped the sophomores work with the Sapukese to build a better road. We had all sorts of tools and worked from 9am, took a lunch brake, and continued on until evening. Unfortunately, I did not stay and help, I left around 3 or 4 to go to my sponsor family. 
I have become really close to my family here. Recently my father won the election and is now one of the State Representatives. He is a really wonderful person and I am very happy for him and my family. That weekend I also found out that my grandmother had won a boat in one of the raffles downtown and we would be going to Pisiwi for a picnic the following weekend! 
The picnic was so much fun and I got to see how to have a picnic 'local style.' We had a delicious BBQ and people were being thrown in the water or buried in the sand.  It was a lot of fun and I was so happy to be apart of this family fun. It was one of the best local experiences I have had in Chuuk and I loved every minute of it.
The following week we took the Junior Class to the island of Tonas for the Junior Emmaus Retreat. It was at this retreat that I began to realize my life in Chuuk gets better and better the more put myself into those experiences. On the retreat so much about our lives and where we see God was shared and I saw my students in a different light. They are whole people, children of God, and though at times I can get so mad at them, I need to remember the wonderful and inspiring individuals that they actually are. They are so impressive and it is my goal that after that experience I try and see all my students in that light and remember how unique and wonderful each and everyone of them are to not only me but to God.
We returned to that island a week later for our JVC retreat. The focus was seeing God in all things and finding Grace in Darkness, something that we have all struggled with here in Chuuk. It was nice to take a weekend away from the hustle and bustle and just have to time to reflect, think, journal, and pray. It brought a lot of clarity to me and reminded me how much I really do enjoy Xavier and Chuuk. It can be overwhelming and frustrating and life here isn't fair sometimes, but it really is just preparing us for life. It is showing us there are injustices that cannot be fixed and things will fall apart and go completely wrong, but that the world keeps going. It has also shown me that I can do anything if I put my mind to it: I mean I am teaching Chemistry....a class I hated in high school and avoided in college, yet I am teaching it and not only am I up there everyday lecturing and talking about it, but the students are actually learning from me. I really have to strength to do anything. 
This past weekend we were all able to kick back and relax...Well almost....Friday was the Tsunami warning and it was a little paniky here for a couple hours but then settled down. Luckily there was no damage to our island or anything inside the lagoon. Thanks for all your prayers though! Please pray for all those that were affected, especially in Japan.
It is the end of the 3rd quarter so grades are due, so everyone is scrambling together to get their grades done. Me and Peach went into town today and got some pizza at Lei Side. It was so yummy, and reminded me of all the great food at home!

Well thats all for now! Hope everyone is doing well. Please remember to pray for all those affected by the natural disaster, especially in Japan.

Lots of Loves,
Em