From my journal: April 3, 2010
I will be coming home soon, but I just wanted to add one more comment. I have just finished reading Surviving Paradise by Peter Rudiak-Gould, another World Teach volunteer who wrote about his experiences from a few years ago. It’s very entertaining and I can relate to a lot of his experiences, although in some parts he comes across as pretty negative and I disagree with certain of his views. A lot of the difficulties he writes about just seem like normal everyday life to me now. It’s hard to remember what I felt like when I first got here and didn’t know the language or how to be a teacher. Now I love it here and I love speaking Marshallese.
Over all, though, I ended up really liking it because he wasn’t so cynical like most travel writers. I feel like most travel books I’ve read contain only sarcastic anecdotes on hilarious mishaps that don’t necessarily paint a very positive picture of the local culture. This book however does a good job of describing many aspects of Marshallese culture and problems without needing to have funny stories on every page. He put into words many of the observations and feelings that I myself have had here. So if you want to get a good picture of Marshallese life I recommend reading it.
His own experience as a teacher was quite different from mine. He discovered that he was not meant to be a teacher, while I discovered that I am most definitely a teacher and can’t imagine myself being anything else. I love teaching; he did not. He is also a man so his experiences included making copra and going fishing, while I have participated more in the realm of women’s work like cooking, cleaning, and making handicrafts.
The book also made me get very emotional about leaving Ine when I read about his own departure from Ujae. I try not to think about it, but people bring up my departure almost every day now, asking if I’m going to come back, what I’m doing next year, all the handicrafts they’re going to give me, will I find a boyfriend in America (they’re very concerned about the state of my love life), and will I take a Marshallese baby home with me.
I just give them the typical Marshallese response, e jañin alikkar, it’s not yet clear. I do know that I will be back someday to visit. I love it here too much to leave forever.
