Another Sample of the Palauan Singing

For whatever reason, I was unable to upload this to the prior post (which is where I wanted it).  It shows the congregation singing a hymn acapella. 

Sunday with the Palauans

John Aitaro

I awoke at 5:45 a.m., a metal crossbar from the futon "bed" jamming into a rib.  With gratitude, I reminded myself how I would take a too-hard bed over a too-soft bed any day!  I was also thankful to be able to awake so early and feel "good."  If you know me, you know I'm a night owl, and normally would avoid 5:45 a.m. like the plague!!  But, my inner clock (still on California time), was registering 11:45 a.m.!  :)  Gazing out of my colleague's apartment window, I viewed the crystalline sea only 200 yards away--a reminder of the splendor of God. This was Sunday on Guam, Saturday in the states.  I was especially excited about this Sunday because I would be worshiping with the Palauan Church.

Promptly at 8:45 a.m., the Pacific Islands University van, filled with some of our Palauan students, picked me up.  Again, I was filled with gratitude for the blessing of not only being reunited with these precious students, but also being able to worship with them.  Arriving at the Palauan Evangelical Church of Guam, I was met with an enormous smile from the church's greeter and a former student of mine who has since graduated from Pacific Islands University.  John informed me that he and his wife are prayerfully considering moving to Portland, OR where there is a great need for a Palauan pastor.  I was super excited to hear this, as I have no doubt that John would make a FANTASTIC minister.  

Soon the service started.  The Palauan church has services in English twice a month, and services entirely in Palauan twice a month.  (Oops!  This is not accurate!  Thanks, Julie, [Pastor Andrew's wife] for giving me the "real scoop" on the Palauan church.  Please see Julie's note at the end of this blog.)  This was an all-Palauan Sunday.  Immediately, I was enraptured by the beautiful music sung in three part harmony.  Since moving back to the states, I haven’t been able to put my finger on why I have been a bit disappointed in church music.  At first I thought it was because of the amplification of multiple instruments which results in a MUCH louder environment than what I was accustomed to.  Then I postulated that because the lead vocalists were amplified so loudly, I couldn’t really hear myself singing.  And, I love trying to add beauty to the music by harmonizing—a difficult task when you can’t hear your voice over the amplification.  Well, as I sat in that service, savoring the music, I figured out why I LOVE Micronesian worship so much . . . . . . .the congregational voices play an equal, if not more significant role, in the music.  Voices are PART of the “band.”  Several songs were sung acapella, and I didn’t even realize there was no instrumentation until I reflected back on the song.  The strong harmonic singing was so full, that there was little distinction between songs sung with accompaniment and those sung without.  I enthusiastically joined into the singing, thankful that I knew how to pronounce the Palauan words for God, Jesus, Savior, etc., and I relished the exquisite harmony, and the sense that my own harmony was contributing to the beauty of glorifying God.

Pastor Andrew

Another fascinating aspect of the Palauan worship service was the interaction between the pastor and the elderly parishioners.  Their pastor, Andrew Immanuel, was born and raised on Palau.  He has his bachelor’s degree from Columbia University and his master’s degree from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (both U.S. schools).  As Pastor Andrew would read the Scripture, the elderly people in the congregation would correct his pronunciation.  There was no offense taken, and both the pastor and the congregation were clearly very comfortable with this format.  When, after the service, I asked our Palauan students why this was happening, they explained that the Palauan Bible is VERY difficult to read.  The Palauan language does not have enough words to communicate the many concepts of the Bible.  Therefore, many of the words are obscure or even borrowed from other languages (even Japanese).  The students explained that it is especially difficult for younger people to read the Bible because the language is “Old Palauan.”  I got the impression that this would be like having a young person read the Old English style of the King James Bible.  Because the pastor is fairly young, he needs the assistance of the elderly in the congregation to help him correctly read the Bible.  Interesting, huh?

 

Eating at a food court with the students after church 

That evening, I spent several hours playing volleyball with the the female students.

                  

First Day Back on Island

November 12 (First of the seventeen days I’ll be on Guam):  

Standing in front of the baggage claim, I diligently searched for my 50 pound black, nondescript suitcase containing 15 pounds of candy and chocolate (for my students), my lecture materials, and essentials.  I immediately realized my mistake.  I should have put something unique on my bag to make it stand out from the myriad other black suitcases.  After 20 hours of traveling, the last thing I wanted to do was lift each and every unmarked heavy, black suitcase searching for clues as to its identity.  Clearly, I wasn't the only one whose black bag was devoid of obvious clues of ownership.  On some bags, I actually had to unzip compartments to determine ownership by the contents!!  The elderly Chamorro man next to me noticed my predicament and immediately began hauling heavy, nondescript, black suitcases off the carousel and we entered into the easy banter I had so missed since leaving Guam.  Ahhhhhhhh.................  I felt myself relax as I once again entered into a culture that has become more comfortable than my own.  Soon the helpful man and his wife were kindly lecturing me on the importance of clearly marking my bag.  I noticed how naturally my speech had slowed and my vowels became more elongated--more in line with the accent of this region of the world.

Wayward bag found, I headed through customs and was greeted by the beautiful brown faces of several Pacific Islands University students and the women's dean.  Off we drove to the apartment I would be sharing with a young PIU English teacher.  In her sparsely furnished place, I was grateful for the futon "bed" (more metal than mattress) where I could lay my head.  Her generous hospitality would free up funds I would have otherwise had to spend on a hotel.  Plus, I would give her some money so she could run her air conditioner while I was at her place.  This was a luxury she rarely allowed herself because of the horribly high cost of electricity on Guam, coupled with her meager budget.  I was glad to bless her in this way, and happy myself that the air conditioning would allow me to sleep in the sweltering heat.  It was 11:00 p.m. Guam time (5:00 a.m. California time) when I finally dropped off to sleep, a prayer of thanksgiving on my lips.

  

25 Noted Differences--Uh, Make That 26

Having to constantly remind ourselves to speed UP so we won't get a ticket!! (Guam: 45 mph max, California: 75 mph max)

 

A Typical Market

Gazillion choices in food—especially fresh produce and affordable meat. 

Style in clothing is much more important (and intimidating!).


Shorts are MUCH shorter! (Katie has to wear those super short spandex shorts for her volleyball uniform on her high school team.)


You will most likely eat inside the house when invited to a home for a meal. On the island, eating most often takes place outside under a canopy.

Under the canopy

The incredible joy of fresh, cool air!  Wonderful being able to open the windows while driving or sitting in the house--way too hot to do this on Guam at any time--24/7, 365 days a year! 

On Guam, the older you are, the more respected you are. Here, it seems like the older you are, the more marginalized you are.  

“People aren’t as friendly in CA. Like, if you accidentally bump into them in the store and you say, ‘Sorry’ they barely acknowledge it, but on Guam, they’ll say, ‘Oh, that’s okay’ and they may continue to carry on a conversation with you.” (Noelle, 11 years old)


The beautiful sound of birds chirping and the great varieties all around us. Because of the invasive brown tree snake, the bird population on Guam has been nearly annihilated. (It is hysterical to watch the cat we brought with us from Guam. She has never seen birds hopping and flying all around and is clearly fascinated and perplexed!) 

Invasive brown tree snake
found near PIU's men's dorm

Lots of different colored people.  On Guam, it's essentially one color--brown.

On Guam, it is assumed that kids will be included in EVERY event.  It is the opposite in CA--assume kids are not invited unless otherwise stated.

Sales tax--yuck!

No boonie dogs to give household scraps to.  There are 40,000 boonie dogs on the island, yes, I said 40,000!  These are stray dogs:  20% belong to someone but run free, 40% are fed by someone even though the dog is not their pet, and 40% just roam around. 



Boonie Dogs

LOTS of Spanish being spoken—especially in schools and in stores. We never heard Spanish on Guam, even though the Spanish ruled Guam for 300 years! 

The pleasure of sitting outside without being munched on by mosquitoes.

Being cold on the beach (and even colder in the water) compared to being too hot on the beach and barely cool enough in Guam's warm ocean (86 degrees).

It's no longer easy to spot our girls in a crowd--there are plenty of other blond "haoles."


It used to be easy . . .

 Having a million forms to fill out and liability waivers to sign in order to do anything (e.g. enter school, play a sport, transported in a vehicle, etc.). This is probably a result of the high liability risk in CA. Good luck suing an institution on Guam, therefore, little fear of being sued!

Seemingly everyone (from middle schoolers to adults) has a Smart Phone, and quite often not just a Smart phone but an Iphone.
 
Not “giving grace” before eating at ALL events. On Guam, even at government sponsored events and public sporting events, if a meal is served, a prayer will be offered. (This also connects back to the Spanish/Catholic influence.)
 
Having street lights and sidewalks!


Typical Island Street


Activities are EXPENSIVE in CA. Cost for high school volleyball on Guam: $0, Cost for high school volleyball in CA: $300 plus additional fees for transportation, sports banquet, coaches fees, etc. About $500 total. Cost for Club Volleyball on Guam: $25.00, in Santa Barbara: $4500-$6000

Recycling

It hasn't rained since we've moved! Being a rain forest, Guam has rain nearly every day, and activities (e.g. soccer games) continue, rain (even monsoon rain!) or shine.


End of season soccer game and family party

 No balutan! In Guam, any time food is served, the leftovers are divvied up, and sent home with the guests.

Feeling like a VERY small fish in a VERY large pond!
 
Yipee!  No more monstrous, gargantuan, practically man-eating cockroaches!!  

Need I say more?

Riding the Camel

“For I am doing a work in your days that you

would not believe if told.”

Habakkuk 1.5

The Parsonage

This is the sentence that began the letter we sent to our supporters, alerting them to the big changes coming soon. Well, soon did indeed come quickly, and we found ourselves rushing from our furlough in CA back to Guam to pack our possessions into a twenty-foot cargo container. That cargo container is presently on a ship being transported across the Pacific Ocean. We sincerely hope it will make it to us with no further delays (yes, they’ve already delayed delivery by a week). In the meantime, we are living in a beautiful 1800’s era parsonage that has been deemed a historical landmark in Santa Barbara County. We are grateful for the loaned air mattresses and table with chairs so we can sit down and sleep on something besides hardwood floors! We are anxious to have our school supplies, kitchen goods, books, bedding (and beds!), toiletries and furniture so we are ready for the pending school year. Our girls will be transitioning from being home schooled to attending the local public schools. I will be transitioning from being my kids’ teacher to formally teaching only students at Pacific Islands University! I am excited to more fully devote myself to this, and I’m currently preparing for the counseling class I will be teaching via Skype in a week. I am also excited to continue my role as mentor for PIU staff and to provide counseling via chat and Skype. I marvel at the amazing windows that modern technology opens. Too bad there isn’t a way to coach a volleyball team using technology! I am saddened that I will not be able to continue coaching weekly practices with the PIU women; I guess I’ll have to schedule intensive practices during the weeks I am at PIU each semester. In the meantime, I’m contacting some companies to see if I can get donated balls and equipment, and I’m hoping that a Guam friend may be willing to take my place as head coach.

Several people have expressed confusion as to what exactly this physical move means in regards to my work in Micronesia. I will continue to serve PIU and the people of Micronesia with the same commitment as when I was physically living in Guam. The difference will be in HOW I go about my work. To accomplish this, I will rely heavily on modern technology, travel, and I am now blessed to have access to resources that will enable me to do the research necessary to develop strategies to address the tragically high rates of sexual abuse, domestic violence, and suicide throughout Micronesia. Eric will be working full-time as the pastor for adult ministries at Community Covenant Church of Goleta (part of his job description is coordinating the North Park Seminary Extension classes that utilize the church’s classrooms, so it’s similar to what he’s been doing). As his schedule allows, he will continue to provide pastoral training to remote island pastors (currently, we are planning to be in Yap in February), and he looks forward to cultivating ministry among Micronesians who have relocated here to the states. He will also be providing the lectures for the fall class he was slotted to teach at PIU prior to us knowing we would be in a new location!


Certainly, we are surprised by many of the changes that have come our way, but we remain confident that God is directing our course. I had a dream just last night that I think symbolizes this concept well. I was riding a camel (no I have NEVER ridden a camel) and the camel didn’t even have a bridal in its mouth by which to control it! I knew I was supposed to keep the camel moving up a twisting and turning path with many caves and rock formations and hundreds of path tributaries. I wasn’t exactly sure which route to take to get to the top. Was one a short-cut? Was one riddled with danger? Add to this that my camel wasn’t particularly cooperative. The dromedary especially wanted to stop and eat any grass it saw and it often acted ornery. I had to be creative to keep it moving and I wished I had a clearly marked map. As I reflected on this dream, I realized that one thing was certain, I KNEW I was suppose to keep heading up the mountain. And so it is, “I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.” (Acts 20:24).


Addendum: Since we wrote this, our cargo container arrived and all the contents were transferred into the parsonage where we are living. So, as we type this, there are unpacked boxes throughout the house, and a lot of chaos. We are extremely grateful to God that our belongings have arrived safely, and we'll be even more grateful when they are all put away so that we can devote ourselves more fully to our work.

In Case You Didn't Know . . . .

You may have noticed a lull in our communication recently. There's actually a good reason for this. Within about a month after arriving in California, we did a 180, went back to Guam for three weeks, and began a mad-cap adventure packing up our whole household to be shipped to Santa Barbara (besides trying to deal with two cats and two cars). That's right, after four years of incredible ministry living in Guam, we have now made the transition back stateside for a new adventure. Eric just began work on the staff of Community Covenant Church in Goleta, CA. It seems long ago and far away now, but before we left for Guam in 2007, Eric was serving as a regular pastor at a regular California church when the invitation came to begin a seminary at Pacific Islands University (PIU). After her initial reluctance, Karyn grew to welcome the challenge, and we signed on to a three-to-five year contract to work among Micronesians in Guam. The irony is that while Eric feels satisfied with the fulfilment of his obligation, Karyn feels like her work is on a roll. Thankfully, in an unprecedented move, the Evangelical Covenant Church granted Karyn permission to continue her work from 6000 miles away, our new home in Santa Barbara. So, while Eric strolls next door to his new office, Karyn parks in a chair at the parsonage and takes every advantage of the marvels of modern technology. Via Skype, phone, the Internet, and Continental Airlines, Karyn pursues her work as mentor, teacher, and counselor to students and staff at PIU. Of course, it's going to be a lot easier when our 20-foot long cargo container arrives with all of our earthly belongings! Stay tuned as within the next day or two we share more about the changes. For now, enjoy a few pictures from our crazy summer.


Inside the Cavernous Container





Mo, student with a servant's heart







"I get by with a little help from friends."





Shutting the door at last!

Sparing the Sparrows

 In the quiet moments that punctuate the busyness of life on Karyn's parents' ranch, someone wandered out the front door only to become the hapless victim of a dive-bombing sparrow.  After the nearly successful Kamikaze attack, he took a glance at the wreath adorning the adjoined door and beheld a tiny nest, complete with eggs.  Some creative flying fiend had determined that this innocuous looking decoration would be a good hideout, but little did she know the earthquakes she would have to put up with as the door is continuously opened and shut.  Nevertheless, the little mama has persevered and her chicks have hatched.  There's no place like home!    

"Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young" (Psalm 84.3).  Of course, the nest is a metaphor:  The best home for us is in God's immediate presence.  The Psalm begins, "How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord Almighty!"  Like Mama Sparrow, who longs for her nest and protects it with her life, I hope we can each say, "My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord . . . .  Blessed are those who dwell in your house" (verse 4).  Despite the earthquakes of life, I hope the metaphor and following pictures remind you to nest in the Lord. 

The Ranch House



The Front Doors



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The Wreath



No Place Like Home