Holliston Native Ventures to the Marshall Islands: Part 2 - Bikarej
"Life here is beautiful and very difficult. Internet and telephones are largely the stuff of dreams. Necessities as basic as water can be hard to come by. Food consists of fish from the lagoon and fruit that can be grown on the island. Volunteers live with a host family who provides a doorway into the complex and all consuming social structures that allow these communities to function. Classes are smaller and usually not as advanced. School supplies are limited at best. The outer islands are, by all accounts, a true adventure.”
While the lack of modern technology is striking, Boo underwent many other adjustments to this different culture. Bikarej, on Arno Atoll, is small, with only about 125 people – all natives - living on it. Of these, 80 are her students. Only a few of the islanders speak any English, none fluently.
Boo is a member of a wonderful host family – “Mama” and “Baba” along with their six kids. Baba knows a little English, and practices it with Boo. He is also a landowner – and has given Boo her very own Island. While Boo has not seen it and in all likelihood it exists only at low tide, the gesture is beautiful. Boo loves her time with Mama, who spends all her waking hours in the cookhouse, preparing food for the multitudes of Bikarej kids while chasing pigs and chickens and other creatures away.
The Marshallese love their celebrations and parties, card playing, singing and dancing. One of the biggest parties held this year was for Boo’s birthday. All the kids made gifts for her. The women made handcrafts – amimonos. These beautiful hand-woven baskets, coasters, wall hangings, necklaces, etc. are made from palm fronds and shells. Birthday songs and dances were performed.
Boo has learned to eat anything and everything without hesitation, because she’s afraid if she does she won’t be able to eat it. She eats lots of fish and rice. The Marshallese eat just about everything but the bones. Delicacies are when a pig or chicken is slaughtered for a special event, or when someone comes from Majuro bringing western food. When Boo’s Mom visited they bought three cases of chicken and two cases of hot dogs. Picture them carrying that on the small boat slamming through the waves on its way to Bikarej. Food can get low as the Island waits to be resupplied. On the outer islands one never knows when the next boat will arrive.
Boo shares her quarters with lizards, land crabs, unknown insect species or other creatures, while avoiding lizard poop and other inconveniences. While the Marshallese do not have the same love for animals that we do, they have bestowed many animal gifts to Boo. These include a baby pig named Garlic Powder, her own Rooster (short-lived as he became a delicious meal), two puppies named Mogli, neither of whom survived the – shall we say – differences of Marshallese culture towards pets, and her very own sea turtle.
