Well, this is Ryan and my week of 5. Only 5 weeks left in the village! Crazy! This week was our last school holiday week as well.  Traditionally, all principals and teachers run break sessions for the class 6 kids to prepare them to take their entrance exam in two weeks. I walked up on our teachers arguing who was going to do it. So, I volunteered Ry and I. Oh baby, my husband was not happy when I told him that news. But, it was nice to keep busy and have purpose during a week we would have just sat and done nothing. It is actually kind of fun to have the school and kids all to ourselves. We can really let loose, enjoy them and let their personalities shine. Needless to say, we had a really great week with them.

Not too much else is new. Our principal Tevita’s son Tevita has been staying with us a lot. He lives in the next village over, and it is a pain for Big Tevita to drive him back and forth for night classes and break classes all the time. So, T asked us if it would be okay if he comes early in the morning and then stays with us ‘til the late afternoon. It is not easy having a kid around all the time, but I have really appreciated the time with him. Not living in our village, I think he enjoys it too. I died the other day when I noticed that he has completely adapted to our morning routine. The other day, I was just starting to make coffee when Tevita came in, cut the bread, went to the fridge to get butter and jelly,  made breakfast, put it on the table for us all, then wiped the counter and did all the dishes. He then took the solar light, went and put it outside, packed my school bag, pet the dog, and sat waiting to go with us to school. I didn’t even realize it was happening like that until it slammed me in the face. I just lost it…..could not stop laughing. It was just so damn cute! He even reminded me before we left not to forget to put on my watch. Man, it is crazy what kids notice and pick up on. Such a cool moment.

Ryan and I participated in our first going away feast with our church congregation this week. It was a very emotional experience—more emotional than I ever would have thought. I was crying after the first person’s speech. It was just so amazing to hear all these people stand up and say such nice things about you; tell stories about you; make jokes about the little things you do that we never would have guessed they noticed.  For instance Ryan was branded as an ‘anga-lelei husapanite’, a nice and well behaved husband because he is the one who hauls the water, goes to the store and walks from school to the house when I forget things!

Needless to say, by the time it was my turn to get up and speak, I was a mess. Ryan, of course, delivered his speech flawlessly. I could tell the people were touched by his words. My delivery was rough as I was practically hiccupping from crying so hard. But, nobody cared. I think they took it as a sign they did their job well that I feel so sad to leave this place.

Our PTA is planning one more final good-bye with the whole community the last week in October. That will be another very emotional experience for us as it will be the very last thing we do with the people here in our village. Being so overrun by feelings this week makes me feel like Ryan and I really put our all into this experience. The love we feel for our community here is stronger than I even think I knew. But, as we close in on our last month here, I am thankful for such a strong, physical reminder to stay connected to this life here and not focus too much on the future, because soon, this life won’t exist for us anymore.

Here are some random pictures from the last few weeks:

Me with some of the church ladies. 

Tevita making himself right at home with the cheese balls Ted and Jess sent to us!

The pop rock challenge! The Coops sent our class pop rocks to see how the kids would react to the craziness on their tongues. Needless to say the kids loved it.

Thanks Mark and Alissa!!

Class 6, weeks before the big test!

Well Lucky, how nice to see you there all prim and proper. Would you like to join me for some afternoon tea?

The kids have been coming down at night for impromptu study sessions. Lots of fun, though Ryan and Lucky get a tad grumpy about the intrusion :).

Hanging in There...

Well, time continues to march on for Ry and I. We are still a few weeks shy of the month mark, but time continues to fly.

The drought continues and many villages on the island are suffering. Ryan and I have been sought out by many people in our community this week to be told how to handle the water situation. We have been told by 10 different people that we should be filling every container we have with water when it is on. In the words of our town officer, “then you can flush the toilets and stuff even when water is off!” It is like they all were hanging out together and someone asked if the Peace Corps knew how to store water and bucket flush, they all decided no…we probably didn’t know that…so they all individually came to tell us the exact same thing. I think it is so funny.

The drought is on, which means bucket baths have turned into pitcher baths. Yes, it is every bit as pathetic as it sounds!

There was a really bad fire in our village bush this last Monday. Two village youth were messing around and lit the village’s kutu patch on fire. It quickly got out of control and turned into a blaze. The women are so angry as kutu was a special plant that only grows here because it requires fresh water from the lake to grow. Many women already had purchasers for their large floor mats, but now will be unable to finish them as the fire wiped everything out. Many men also lost their cows and horses as the fire got too big too fast to get them out. The town officer and leaders in the village had the police come to talk about the issues happening with the youth. The men put the fire out in about 8-10 hours. Luckily, no homes or people were affected. Unfortunately the fire reached its peak during our night school, diverting the kid’s attention and causing the class to go up in flames! (Oh my God I sound like my husband…time to get off this island!)

School is tiring right now as we have taken on extra classes to help get our kids ready for their high school entrance exam. We also have a slew of older kids coming over every night to get help with their homework as their finals are soon approaching.  Add this to the slew of women who have decided to camp out to lay claim to stuff they really want and sometimes our house reaches the level of chaos. But at least it makes the time pass quickly.

This week Ry and I will do our last church service with our family. Every Sunday, a different family is responsible for leading the church service. They read the Bible verses, the hymns, and do the sermon. Last year, Tuki asked us to pair with their family to participate and read.  True to form, Tuki has planned a special lunch for us after our last reading this week. We will go eat with her, Lolohea, Ane, the Pastor and his wife. She has come over many times to tell us what she is making. She said she is going to make us all the things she sees us eat the most of at feasts. So sweet. Ryan and I have prepared our good-bye speeches to say to them. We are really grateful to have this intimate setting to properly thank this group of people who embraced us as one of their own. Last week when we were hanging out, Tuki told us the story of how her and Lolohea first met and how they ended up getting married. Ane was so embarrassed and kept begging Tuki to stop telling the story. Ry and I were laughing so hard I couldn’t see through all the tears. It was one of those moments I just felt so connected, so happy to have people here in Tonga we love this deeply. So, this will be the saddest good-bye we will do. But, Tuki said we are going to do it early, get all the tears out, and then we can just eat and enjoy the rest of the feasts.

So, that is it from here. We are counting down the days ‘til we see you all again!!!!