The two biggest celebrations for the traditional Marshallese are the first birthday (keemen) and the funeral. The keemen stems from the days of high infant mortality. When a baby reached the one year mark there was huge reason to celebrate. The baby could be named and relatives were thanked for assisting in the health and well-being of the child. The event is still cause for major joy and celebration today. The parents honor their guests by giving gifts to those attending the party. In return the guests give the baby gifts, generally a dollar as the baby sits on a traditional mat with the parents. As an interesting side note, one teacher told us that if the keemen is held in the family’s home, it is fair game to take whatever you want! This last week we were invited to a keemen as part of the school staff. It was more elaborate than a lot of wedding receptions we’ve been to over the years! The hotel room was decorated, the food and drink were abundant and there was entertainment. First a live band, then a group of boys who did a hip-hop sort of dance, and finally the traditional Polynesian girl dancers. The parents are obviously more well off than most Marshallese, but it amazed me that we were attending an elaborate party and feast where we couldn’t eat all we were given in a developing country! The pictures are below (I know that’s what you really want!).
Meanwhile, Happy Thanksgiving to all of you. Think of me if you go Black Friday Shopping the next day! We actually have a Thanksgiving lunch at school with turkey, stuffing and potatoes! We work on Thanksgiving because it isn’t a real holiday here but we do have Friday off. I am hoping to find all of the ingredients here for pumpkin pie because that’s my favorite part of the feast!
Take care, Love, Becky
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