5k Kate

I love, love, love Mondays. They are my actual favorite day of the week unlike Thursday which is what I like to say is my favorite day.  This Monday was particularly wonderful because it involved so many of my favorite things: a schedule, a to-do list, heaps of productivity, new notebooks, and a tale of female bravery overcoming a horrible situation.  Warama shares many of these favorite things and yesterday when I went for a visit and to pay him for his outstanding transcription work, he showed me a blackboard on which he had drafted a potential daily schedule, beginning at 8 am with morning prayer, including breaks at 10:00, 12:30, and 3:00, and ending at 4:30. I loved the idea and so started a fresh moleskine notebook with lists of all the tasks that need doing, followed by five daily schedules for the coming week. In the schedules is room for to-do lists and notes. So in the morning, a time for planning the day is penned in after “opening prayer” where all language workers...

Merry Christmas! It’s been a long few first days here in Limol, culminating in a great Christmas celebration.  Preparations for Christmas begin weeks before the actual day as families move around in the gardens and sago places, camping in the bush and gathering food for the holiday. Those who live outside of the village begin making their way home. On my first day here, the 23rd, I was able to help Wagiba make preparations. We went fishing (net dragging) down at Karama swamp and caught six fish! We went down a bit late though (8am). It would have been less hot (in the 30s/90s) and the fish wouldn’t have hid in the floating grass. We carried those fish and a bunch of taro home in our spalek bags. I thought I would faint in the heat but we made it. After a nap, we went to fetch water in the roller. It’s much harder without Grace to help me pull it up the hill. As soon as we got back it poured rain. We filled up all our buckets with rain water and had a nice shower too.  The next...

Walking a mile with someone else in your shoes.  Saved my exercise today for the evening - I helped my dear friend Manaleato carry heavy sago bundles to the canoe place. They were halfway down, so we carried lightly halfway, then heavy to the canoe spot, back empty and heavy again to the canoe. Women carry the loads on their heads, but I feel most of the weight in my elbows as I try to lift the pressure off my head and neck by lifting the straps near my ears. I then had to say goodbye to Manaleato. Wagiba told me a verb for when you talk but you have emotion in your voice and your words come out all cracked. This happened when Manealeato said goodbye.  I then helped Wagiba by carrying the leaves she picked and fish Manaleato gave me back to the village but gave her my shoes halfway because her feet were really hurting her. She asked me to get her some sandals in Daru and it's hard to know what to say, because everyone asks me for sandals in Daru and I can't just bring 300 pair...

Had to skip my run this morning because of heavy rain - it made the trail very slippery. I did however walk nearly 7km with a heavy load to and from the canoe spot on my first fishing trip! Everyone went, but our fishing party was Wagiba, Wendy, Lauren. Grace, and me. Many other woman and small girls also walked down with us to go fishing. When we got to the canoe place, we bailed the rain water out of the canoes, spent a little time digging in the mud for worms, then settled in to Wagibas big canoe and took off. Others were throwing lines but we were going to drag a net to catch fish. Riding in the canoe was beautiful but frightening. I was so worried I would topple out.  I helped Wagiba throw out the net properly, we tied one end to a stick in the mud then paddled out into the clear part of the swamp tossing the net out as we went and back to the stick in a big circle. One side of the net had floaters and the other had sinkers. Then with the circle complete, you drag the net in f...

Beautiful but hot run to the canoe place late this morning. The canoe place is 3.33 km away from the edge of the village. I ran to the end then back to where Grace and Lauren were walking behind and back again for a little more than 5k. I felt strong and didn't walk, but it was very hot.  It's a Saturday today and the goal is to rest but I just want to work. There is a big community meeting happening today and Joshua and Saly came from Malam to see us. After lunch with them I took a nice long nap in the hammock with my computer. I wrote up some pages on vowel harmony and fell asleep. When I woke up it was nearly evening. Grace and I attempted to pass out cooking oil in a plastic funnel but it failed. I took Joshua to rerecord a story of his fathers but a loud fight with lots of yelling started so we paused.  Then a man came by asking for some medicine for his daughter who got a terrible cut on her buttock from a shovel (we learned later that he had hit her). Fortunately we wen...

Today was our first full day in Limol! Everyone was tired today from the journey. Although many people brought us food from their gardens, Wagiba was too tired to cook for us and so I didn't eat until dinner. We also ran out of water in the morning but had to wait until evening to go to the well. The well is quite far away but has good water.  Anyway this resulted in another "rest day" from running because I couldn't run without eating or drinking. Things will settle in soon :) My favorite part of today was in the afternoon. Manaleato and Kauga came back from Malam and I ran to them to give them hugs and kisses. Manaleato is wonderful - she has a beautiful spirit and nine sweet children. Her husband, Kauga, is the school teacher. We all gathered at the new language house, which is twice as big as last year. At one point, I brought up the photos from last year that I printed and everyone wanted to see them. I set them out along the tables and big groups of peop...

Wow, we just arrived in Limol and I can't believe it. What a long, difficult journey filled with surprises and gratitude.  Musato found us a boat and boatman to take us to Limol Saturday morning. Our original hire had been thwarted by the infamous Sam George who took us to Limol our first year. We went down to the wharf on a prayer, hoping that a boat and boatman would appear. Before ours did, a boat came in with a man who had fallen off the boat onto his motor. His arm was very badly cut, and a big crowd surrounded him as he was helped to the hospital. When our boat arrived, we had also amassed a crowd for much happier reasons. The boat was smaller than we would have liked - we had to leave some people behind - but we did fit all of the gifts and supplies that we bought for Limol under two large tarps. I was very pleased with the packing except two large pots with handles were placed behind my seat of honor to dig into my back for the next two days.  The ride through the Paci...