It’s been an imaginative week; this is what happens when you live in seclusion in a jungle on a small island. The school days are much like any other job, you have your duties, you greet your co-workers, you gossip in the break room, you flirt with each other, get some work done, then you go home. Back in the states going home used to mean going back into your life outside of work but here going home means returning to the jungle and going pleasantly mad until a new day comes and you have to act at least somewhat sane. I think Ryuta feels it too because I see the same loony glaze come over his face everyday around 3:00 when the sun is hot and the two of us are trapped in our jungle home with no contact with the outside world. Sometimes we climb trees with machetes and laugh maniacally and sometimes we avoid each other all together and he hides in his room while I sit downstairs drawing pictures. To be honest I do really like it here regardless of my delusional fits; the moment school lets out on Friday I am the first in line at the bus stop to either explore the island or get debaucherous in Apia. This usually does enough to last me until Monday morning when I sneak back into the compound and put my best game face on for work. I met Izumi, my soon-to-be roommate next week, a little bit ago when she came through with a few trainers from JICA. She’s a cute little Japanese girl who seems very excited to be here. A few awkward bows and broken bits of English were exchanged and we because new friends, I bet the three of us rock together. So this is life in Leulumoega: apart from the work routine, I get plenty of exercise climbing on things, I read often, draw bizarre pictures, explore the jungle, sneak into the ocean, chase pigs, practice meditation with Ryuta, and basically slip into this otherworldy state of mind that I have never experienced before coming here. There are many delicious things to be found in the trees beyond my house: star fruit, papaya, mango, nonu, and this peculiar fruit that is somewhere between a lemon and a lime. Just the other day the students at school were practicing some sort of song and dance routine at this old church nearby. It was very long and my attention span began to dwindle so I took to wandering the old church. I stumbled upon a dilapidated bell tower with steps missing and handrails that I wouldn’t trust. Carefully I maneuvered up many flights of crude stairs to a wooden platform that narrowly led across a devastatingly high chasm. At the end was a rickety old ladder extending yet another twenty feet or so up to the topmost region of the tower. I came this far and couldn’t turn back so I made my way up the ladder into an old room that probably hadn’t been visited for twenty years. It was covered in spider webs and dust but sure enough right in the middle was an enormous old bell. I couldn’t resist the temptation, so I flicked the bell ever so softly which in turn let out a loud roar that the village probably hasn’t heard for eons. The slightest strike of the bell made me shake in it’s presence and it was time to go back the way I came. Later that day I heard two of the teachers talking in Samoan about how they heard the bell ring and it brought a smile to my face: mission accomplished. People are kinda loony in these parts and I think I understand why the Peace Corps sent me here. Anyone in a different state of mind could find room to complain about things but I seem to be jiving well. I’ve had an awful lot of déjà vu and I’ve been told that means you are on the right path. The dreams are as lucid and incredible as ever and I still wake up confused having to trace back important life decisions to remember where I am (I see water.. I think I’m on an island.. oh that’s right, Samoa). I feel fantabulous. The weekend approaches and the wild monkey inside of me is released. I might go to Manono Island this weekend or I might stay in town and debauch. Cheers for now, the sky is on fire and it is going to be a glorious night.
A personal old favorite from the land of the sleeping dragon. This picture really has nothing to do with anything but it makes me happy.
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