Tribewanted: Vorovoro

We’ve been very busy on our little island. The entire tribe went to Ligua Levu for an afternoon of Magic and Meke, a smaller audience to entertain, but just appreciative and hospitable then the last. They watched with wide eyes at the magic. Thanks to Kathi who has been an admirable assistant as her stay will be as long as mine and she is willing to help set up and stuff the secrets in their proper places since everyone is anxious for the show to begin.

Before the show we attend the welcoming ceremony and everyone is greeted and prayers are said over the group. We do our show and are treated to more grog. At some point we are excused to dress for our meke. The group expects to entertained in some form, singing or dancing. We have learned our meke so we are decorated with banana leaves and flowers and return to the room where we sit quietly until asked to perform. We have learned 5 short mekes and we begin. After each we are told more. Continuing with each twice through until thy say more and all are done at once. As the performance is on the men are kissed and draped in sulus, we are all powdered with talc and given cigarettes on our ears and flowers in our hair. We finally complete the mekes to rounds of laughter and clapping. Then our host says, “one hour rest, then you come again and more”. Meaning we are expected to perform again. More laughter knowing we don’t know any more than we had just done. We excuse ourselves and the ladies of our village and the host village serve tuna sandwiches, cookies, rolled thin pancakes and crackers with jam. There is also sweet lemonade juice to drink. The children ask if we can go to see their school and we join hand in hand with the children to trek to the closed school. Each wants to show their classroom or the bell or the swings and seesaws that they play on. They show us the garden of the green club and the compost pile. Each has two children on their arms and the swarm around like buzzing bees trying to take it all in. They want to take pictures and look approvingly at themselves and then take pictures of you that they smile and point at. This one little boy only wanted to be picked up by Tom, a large gentle giant. He took the child in his arm and away they went. We all thought he would be going home with us. It grew late and it was tie to leave so we headed for the boats and it was the traditional soaking with the water. Cedric had a bandage on his leg that couldn’t be in the water was doused on his back. He had no escape from the boys.

It’s not all fun or a free for all as you might think we still had jobs to do, Beach clean-up and Kathi chose to complete a beautiful sign for the Labasa Airport. She was still working on it while we went to town for supplies. (You need to check Carol’s blog for that adventure.) She used breadfruit a type of sponge effect to get the tribe wanted logo on the sign. It was very effective. The sign will go up on the next trip to town.

The chicken coup is coming along with center posts and a lot of the fencing done. We still need some cross member supports to go in. It’s looking very good.

That trip to town was an experience to everyone involved (the long version is on Carol’s blog, this is the short synopsis). The rains were continuing all day and a low pressure system kept us from leaving. We started out late in the afternoon and by the time we got to the mouth of the river the seas kicked up and the waves were coming over the boat. One big one hit and filled the boat and our captain had enough and turned towards Labasa. Se settled into rooms and at 1:30 am pounding on doors woke everyone on the river side and we were evacuate to the board room on the second level The Vorovoro Emergency Management Team stepped into action, removing mattresses from the room that were now with 6 inches of water and rising. They went back to raise refrigerators off the floor and put beds on tables to keep them dry. The next day they were in the upper hallways while personnel were hosing down mud from the rooms. You can see the dock that is usually 4-6 feet above the boat was under water by about a foot the night before and still high with the river full of mud and silt. We were about to attempt the ride home. The boat was loaded in another storm and since the water was high there was a second path to the sea through the mangroves. The captain looked around the bend and we sat for a while and then with a wave of his hand we took are places for the wild ride back to our home on Vorovoro. One at the front holding a rope and looking much like cowboy riding a wild bucking bronco as we slapped the waves with one hand held high guiding the captain, not half as wild as the ride that turned us back to Labasa. I could only think of George Clooney in “The Perfect Storm”.

Back on dry land we found out they had sent a search party around the island to look for us, since the phones did not work on the boat. We had called back when we reached shore.

We relaxed by making food covers out of old mosquito net. Gen and I are sewing the covers in the pictures. One of the ladies asked for one for the other village. Maybe we have a cottage industry, maybe not. They are already being used.

I forgot to tell you about Va’s Birthday celebration. We had wonderful Banana cake after she joined us for dinner and had a round of harrahs. She got a lovely woven mat.

Some of the kids on Vorovoro will be leaving for another school so we gave them book bags, pencils and paper to start their new year. We are planning to help clean the school Friday, but there’s a storm brewing. We’ll see.

Ben is off to the UK for the beginning of the television series. Best of luck and return safely.