Christmas in the Islands

Christmas is celebrated very similar in most parts of the world because it is all based on the same story. That story is the story of Jesus Christ at birth. Christmas is usually celebrated using a Christmas tree families usually set up in their homes with colorful lights, presents and gifts for everyone and lost of foods and parties held by each family. Christmas in the islands is almost a little different. We celebrate it in a normal way an American family would but much more in a relaxed, calm, and heart-felting way. We don't throw parties or feasts like we do out here. We simply go to church, pray and spend time with church members and families, exchange gifts if needed and go straight home. Christmas time is like family time on Thanksgiving. Everyone in the family usually goes to the family member's house that is the biggest and gather for prayer, a moment of silence, a reading of the bible, and finally the opening of gifts. This is what every kid looks forward to whether its here in America or in the islands. It's a very holy holiday to us and so we celebrate it just as we're celebrating Jesus Christ's birthday. That's exactly how I looked at Christmas growing up. We knew who Santa Clause was but never grew up believing that he even existed. There was never really an emphasis on Santa Clause growing up as a kid because our parents always read and taught us the story of the manger and the 3 wise men who brought gifts to Jesus Christ who laid in a manger. <http://www.lifeofchrist.com/life/birth/wisemen.asp> The manger was a little shelter for animals that Jesus was born into because the nearest hotel or home didn't have room for him. Therefore, his mother Mary and father Joseph took advantage of this shelter and used it for his birth. Out here in the states, I always hear kids talk about being good so that Santa can give them presents or not being naughty for the same reason. It's sang in songs, written in bedtime stories, and he appears in many Christmas movies. But kids grow up to learn that it is all fake. Where I'm from, we didn't learn about Santa. If we ever brought it up, my parents would always tell us he doesn't exist. Celebrating Christmas the way it should be which is in memory of the birth of Christ is something I value every year during the holidays and I think it is misused in some families and cultures. Here is an article of the significance of Jesus Christ's birth in a manger and the birth of Christmas we now celebrate as a holiday everywhere. <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/2012/12/30/the-meaning-of-jesus-being-born-in-a-manger/> MERRY CHRISTMAS!

My Trip To Western Samoa

   Western Samoa although is very different from American Samoa which is where I was born, they both still share very similar qualities. Even though the both islands aren't that far from each other, they still differ in terms of how the beaches and the land looks. For instance, the beaches in Western Samoa are much more clear and the sand is a lot lighter. The beaches on both islands are both very beautiful but majority would agree that the ones in Western Samoa are much more beautiful.
   Another difference is that Western Samoa has beautiful hotels that are appealing to the culture while American Samoa has motels that are almost like apartments. I found this very strange because I thought American Samoa would be much more Americanized compared to Western Samoa but it wasn't. When I was 7 years old, my dad decided to take our whole family to visit our other side of the family in western Samoa and that was when I got to visit the most beautiful parts of the islands and also where my dad grew up. The churches were built very large and the homes were much more like little huts on the beach.
   Usually, it is never really cold in Samoa so these huts were very useful for resting outdoors while being in the shade to where it never got too hot. On my visit to Western Samoa, we visited this village where many people went to, to swim. There was a lake surrounded by a brick of decorations and I remember going with my brothers and swimming until it was dark. Even when it was dark, there were torches around the water that were kept lit until everyone left.
   We visited all our family members and my dad finally told us why we did. He told us that we were moving to the states soon and he wanted us to meet them before we leave. The following year, we moved here when I was 8 and haven't seen my family since then.
The beach on this website is called Lalomanu and it is where my dad grew up <http://images.travelpod.com/tripwow/photos/ta-00b8-2650-e32d/lalomanu-beach-n1-apia-samoa+1152_12905938034-tpfil02aw-13815.jpg>. This article talks about Western Samoa which is also called Apia and describes how beautiful it is when you first visit. <http://www.princess.com/news/cruisingArticleDetails.jsp?id=800505657#.Uowiv79OSJU>

How It All Started

I didn't realize how crazy everything turned out to be as I grew up in American Samoa. I thought that was the only Samoan island there was but I was wrong. One day, my grandpa took my siblings and I along with all our cousins who lived downhill from us for a ride on the back of the truck. In Samoa, were were allowed to sit or stand on the back of a pickup truck and I miss that a lot. But roads were much more limited out there compared to riding around the freeway here in the states. Anyway, he took us for a ride to the top of a mountain that was about 20 minutes away from home. He wanted to show us something and we were very curious. When we got to the very top, we ran around and explored the new side we've never been to before. My grandpa then gathered us together as took us to one spot that overlooks the ocean. He pointed out very far into the ocean another land that you wouldn't be able to spot out from the bottom of the mountain. All the kids went crazy and were curious as to what island that was and as young as we were, we never knew another island existed. Grandpa told us that he use to ride canoes back and forth from there to the island we were looking from. He said that people use to ride and back and forth to visit families and friends but it was very rare to do it now. We were all wondering if we could maybe someday do it as well and he said it wasn't entirely forbidden but it just wasn't something to do for fun anymore. But ever since then, my parents would tell us stories of how their parents, grandparents, and ancestors all met and started the family clan there. My parents were the first generation to move to American Samoa and start a family there. Then after them came their own parents who came to seek more opportunities. Western Samoa or Apia is what that island is called and it the actual Samoan country because it is independent and on its own. My parents told us that they came to American Samoa to give birth to us and raise us there so that we have can become international citizens of the United States and someday hopefully move to the States and embark onto new journeys. And that is exactly what we did when I came here at 8 years old. This article talks about transportation which is usually by boat, car, or plane and the boat they talk about is usually how my parents sent and receive many things to families from all around polynesia. <http://wikitravel.org/en/Apia> Another spot my grandpa loved to take all my cousins and I and told stories before we started swimming is the beach viewed on this website. <http://www.weltrekordreise.ch/bilder%20as/007-P1000098.jpg>

Here is an image of a part of Western Samoa I've been to and walked around at with my family. This is where my parents grew up.

How To Dress

There are many rules that come with how girls and boys are to dress in certain occassions back home. It is very different here in the states and young people get away with dressing inappropriately very often than not. For example, girls are not allowed to wear short shorts during any soecial event that older people will be attending. The shrotest she can wear her shorts are halfway down her thighs and that is it. Here, it is very normal for girls to wear short shorts around and people are okay with it. If for some reason she wears her shorts very short, she is to wear a long cloth around her waist to cover it. We call this an "ie" which is very similar to a sarong. Every family in Samoa owns plenty of these and always has them handy at all events. A formal wear for the ladies is called a "puletasi". This article shows talks about it and shows images of what it looks like. http://www.mapsofworld.com/samoa/people-culture-festivals/clothing.html) It basically covers the full body as a sign of respect to family members and elders. This outfit can be worn to big events, dances, and to church. For men, they wear a button down shirt of tribal design and a skirt called "ie faitaga". It has pokets in it and usually covers everything down to thei mid-calf. The purpose of these outfits are to look appropriate for any occassion and to cover the entire body. There are many different designs, colors, and ways to sow and style these outfits and it is shown in the bottom image. One more clothing that both men and women wear is called the "lava lava". It is similar to an "ie" or a sarong that is basically wrapped around the body to cover anything that needs to be covered. Girls can wear these to the beach and tie it aroudn their neck into a dress to cover the full body and guys can wear it around their waist to cover the bottom half of their body. This piece of clothing is worn daily by everyone in Samoa up until this day. This article talks a lot about the different types of "lava lavas" or "ies" but in the end, it's all the same thing that everyone wears daily. < http://www.samoaobserver.ws/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/7426-samoas-dress-code-ie-faitaga-ie-lavalava-ie-solosolo-ie-ie>

                                                                                                                                     

The Samoan Dance

Every culture has its own way of celebrating an event, a birthday, a holiday, a religious day or whatever it is they are celebrating. But what I admire most about mine is the way we grow up to learn how to celebrate, prepare, and enjoy the festivities that come with each celebration. My culture is very traditional when it comes to certain events because of the strong family base that we all have in each of our clans. If one family prepares for an event, the whole village helps prepare even though they're all guests to that day. The same thing happens in the church. Everyone is always lending a hand and it makes life so much easier on that family. As a little girl growing up, I helped out in the kitchen with my mother and older cousins. All the girls were either in the kitchen or cleaning the church, or hall where the event will take place. The guys would be the ones preparing food in the underground oven. We call this the "umu". It's basically cooking food in a hole they dig in the ground with hot stones and leaves. This is another traditional way of preparing food for big festivals in the islands. Back then we didn't have ovens so this was our way of making food. Until this day, people still hold onto this tradition. Another big aspect of preparing for the event is the entertainment. This is huge and still is important here in the states in most or all Polynesian events. One special thing about the Samoan culture is that we all grow up learning how to dance all the dances of Polynesia. I learned Samoan, Hawaiian, Fijian, Tongan, Tokelauan, and Maori dancing. Most Samoan kids know most or all of these dances. And it was really nice to be able to entertain everyone with a colorful mix of dancing from Polynesia and that is something I will always treasure. This youtube video is an example of a Samoan dance at a huge festival (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuO1ktxvmy0). Dances are usually done in a big group that includes teenagers to young adults is matching uniforms. In addition to being a Samoan lady, the event usually concludes with the chief daughter dancing her traditional dance called the "taualuga". In this article (http://www.thebigidea.co.nz/show/videos/74080-taualuga-the-last-dance-shigeyuki-kihara), a lady performs this dance to symbolize many things but most importantly to bring everything to an end.

White Sunday

Just as we celebrate Mother's Day as well as Father's Day, in my culture, we also celebrate Children's Day and we call it White Sunday. It's still a tradition that is remembered and celebrated here in America, but only by the Samoan communities and churches. White Sunday is basically a Sunday to honor and praise all the youth of that church including any visiting guests. All the kids, teenagers, young adults (not married), and youth leaders are to wear all white or mostly white, formal clothes to church. Usually a month or two prior to the service, the youth of the church or village is preparing and practicing a whole show for the church that very Sunday. This Sunday is usually mid-October or the last Sunday of that month. Speaking of which we just had White Sunday this past Sunday at my church in Long Beach. The worship and praise (singing and dancing), that usually starts off the service was led by singers picked out from the youth. These singers are to sing gospel songs to get the crowd going and participating in worship and praise. Throughout the program, the youth is to perform a number of mimes or dances to entertain the crowd but also as a means of praise, glorifying God. Then there's a point in the service where a chosen young adult from the youth is to give the Word of God, which is also called the Sermon or the preaching. So basically, everyone in the youth runs the entire program throughout the whole service because it's their day and it is all about them. This day is huge in the islands and everyone in the village attends church to watch the service put on by kids and the youth. This has been a tradition for many years and it is really nice to still be able to participate in it, coming to America and also see that it is celebrated by all Samoan churches here in the States. In addition to dancing and preaching put on by the children, there are also skits that are usually re-enacted from the bible as stated in this article (http://www.adn.com/2013/10/14/3124120/in-samoan-churches-white-sunday.html). Even though its a tradition to have big feasts for every event that happens, the kids day is also considered very important to everyone in Samoa in celebrating kids and their childhood. This article talks about how grocery stores and markets prepare in advance for when white sunday approaches because people do celebrate big. (http://www.samoanews.com/?q=node/13219).

Here's an image of how kids in Samoa would dress in their traditional and formal wear on White Sunday.

As The Oldest Girl

Things are very different here in America versus being the oldest girl living in Samoa. In Samoa, all the girls in the family are to take care all of the chores and nurture their younger siblings if neither of their parents were home. That's how I grew up in the islands. 

Both of my parents worked full time jobs and I would always take care of all the chore around the house. But our chores aren't like the simple chores kids complain about doing out here. Chores in Samoa included things like showering the little kids, cutting the grass with a sharp blade that we would use, sweep the house numerous times in one day, go hiking in the mountains to look for a certain vegetable or plant usually used to make food, wash all the dishes, and help prepare all meals and clean as soon as everyone is done eating. 

These were all done by the eldest girls in the family or usually all the girls if the younger ones are capable of helping. Moving here was very different for me because I always expected myself to help out in the kitchen or on the yard or in the back, but when I tried helping, my grandparents always told me to just go relax and let the adults handle it. It was a huge change for me but I couldn't complain.

I grew up with two older brothers and they never really helped out in the house. The only time the boys were expected to help out was when we would prepare a feast on Sunday mornings. Other than that, they were outside playing football or running around with their friends somewhere we couldn't see them. Sometimes they would do it purposely so that my parents wouldn't call them for help. 

So I basically learned a lot as a young kid because I came here when I was 8 and my sisters were still young. And as I watched them grow up in the states, they never had to do anything because things were so much easier to take care of and mom and I would always do the cleaning. But I'm glad I grew up learning everything I did because it'll carry over to when I own my own home. For instance in "Females" slide of the presentation in from this hyperlink shows how women usually stayed at home and that was it (http://www.slideshare.net/comst101group04/samoan-culture-final-pp-comst101-group-4). But as I read more articles on women's role in the US, this article shows that until this day, women still do all the work in the house and will be for a while. (http://business.time.com/2012/06/28/more-women-are-in-the-workforce-so-why-are-we-still-doing-so-many-chores/ )