Less than 24 hours ago Reese and I were walking the shores of Hawaii during a 10 hour layover on our return from the Marshall Islands. It was a gorgeous day, warm and sunny, 85˚. This morning I woke up and it was -12˚. A bit of a rude awakening to say the least. Although a 97˚ change in temperature is pretty extreme, nothing could prepare me for the extreme change we encountered going from here to the Marshall Islands. What a culture shock. Seeing Taylor for the first time in six months was truly amazing. To see that gorgeous smile and wrap my arms around her for the biggest and longest bear hug, was the best. Oh, how I've missed those hugs. But, for the next two weeks she was all ours and I couldn't wait to settle in and hug her as much as I wanted. We flew in to Majuro, which is a two hour boat ride from Taylor's island. Taylor happened to be in Majuro for mid-service training and was able to pick us up at the airport, so it worked out perfectly. Majuro was quite the eye-opener for Reese and me. Although I've seen the pictures, read the blog and spoken with Taylor, nothing could have prepared us for what it was actually like there. The extent of the poverty on Majuro was unbelievable. Driving back from the airport we were struck by the living conditions of the majority of the people there. And the garbage. Taylor had told me about the garbage problem but until you see it, it's hard for words to accurately describe what it's like.
The beaches are used as the dump. You can't swim on Majuro.
A common sight - trash bins that never get emptied.
Luckily, the car ride was about 20 minutes, giving us time to let the shock set in a bit before we set out on foot. Taylor took us on a walk to the homes of some of her students and other World Teach volunteers. It was funny to see the reaction of the small kids. I'm not sure if they had ever seen a young white boy before, but he caused quite a stir. In addition to following us down the street, they all wanted to touch him. Reese wasn't phased a bit and gladly interacted with them.
After a few too many days in Majuro due to the boat not working, we finally left for Arno with Taylor assuring us that it wasn't anything like Majuro. She was right. From the minute we arrived in the harbor you could tell it was different. The shores weren't completely littered with trash, it didn't smell, the road wasn't lined with sad, lost looking people. The scenery was gorgeous, the people welcomed us with warm smiles and open arms. Taylor's smile broadened a little more knowing she was "home".
The dock to Arno
The one and only road in Arno - an hour and a half walk to Taylor's
The next two weeks were, shall we say. . . interesting. I have to hand it to my daughter for living this life for so long. It's not easy. Yes, you do and can get use to it, but it doesn't make it any easier. A simple cup of coffee isn't simple anymore - it involves gathering coconut husks to start a fire and fetching water from the catchment container. I remember Taylor telling me how much her hips hurt sitting Indian style on the floor at meals. I didn't pay much attention to it until I had to sit Indian style and realized just how uncomfortable those woven coconut mats really are - they hurt. I now have sympathy for her. Almost every imaginable thing that we do here and take for granted, takes longer and is more difficult on Arno. Bucket showers in the tropics - doesn't sound too bad - until you realize that the rain water is pretty chilly and standing around naked pouring cold water on you cup by cup isn't that much fun. Sleeping? Getting used to sleeping with tiny bugs crawling all over you came much quicker to me than I thought. When I looked at my sleeping mat and saw how many thousands of bugs (and I'm not exaggerating) were crawling around, I thought I would die. Taylor assured me I would get used to it. I did. Sort of. I had no choice. I put my head lamp on that first night to read and wondered why Taylor was giggling. It didn't take me long to figure out that the bugs are attracted to the light and made it impossible to read. There were so many bugs, they were going up my nose. She gave up reading before bed the first night she was there, I did too. Thinking of sleeping in? Not a chance. An orchestra of roosters start at the crack of dawn and they live right outside your window.
Reese, not too sure about the dish washing station.
Taylor's house - our home for the next two weeks.
Dinner being prepared in the cookhouse.
Momma showing us how to eat whole fish.
It didn't take Reese long to get used to using his hands to eat. . . he loved that part.
All in all, it was an amazing trip. Now, having been there, I have even more respect and admiration for what my daughter is doing. I knew she was a tough cookie to begin with, but now I'm even more amazed at her strength and determination. It's not easy living down there, it's a life filled with constant challenges and frustrations. Somehow, she's handling it all with grace.
1 comment:
I have been waiting for this post.
Looking at the picture of Reese "note too sure about the washing station", I laughed. And then I cried. I laughed and cried about the whole thing. It is so amazing that you two were able to go out there and share with Taylor. I have seen tons of big smiles on Taylor, but I have never seen smiles so genuine and so big on Taylor's face as I did in those pictures. Those two weeks must have been so special, and will be forever. Your daughter is amazing and strong and I sure do miss her. Thanks for posting... I'm still crying.
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