Along the Lazy Tagabe

I’ve spent the last two weeks back in the classroom for follow-on training with my fellow business volunteers. The absolute best part of it all was reconnecting with everybody in Group 23 who had left in November for assignments throughout the archipelago – and the next best part was the opportunity to meet the business volunteers form Group 22 who came in for the final two days of training. It’s amazing how quickly one can bond with others when everybody is far away from home in some unfamiliar place, learning a new language, and trying to adjust to unexpected cultural idiosyncrasies. But the exciting thing is we’ve all made it nearly to the 6-month mark. We did lose 3 business volunteers within the first two months who returned to the states due to medical issues – but we’re still a tight little group of 8 who were excited to spend some time together. Each of us was asked to prepare a presentation of our project, the agency we’ve been working with, and the locale in which we’re serving. Clearly those of us based in Port Vila are very fortunate with creature comforts like electricity, indoor plumbing, and refrigeration – but after listening to our friends based in the islands, it’s also clear that we’re missing out on a unique village experience quite unlike anything else in the world.



Much of the two weeks was spent in the classroom, but one day we all headed out on a community cleanup project at the Tagabe River – the source of drinking water for Port Vila. Basically we donned shoes for the water – typically flip-flops or Chacos – and then waded into the river with trash bag and sticks in hand to pull all kinds of rubbish from the river. As we walked downstream filling up the bags, we encountered many local families along the river along with lots of kids or “pickininnies” out for a day of fun jumping into the river to cool off. It sure reminded me that we are in a place where time seems to stand still, where kids can run out of the house to explore and play and not return until dark, and where families have the freedom to just go to the river for a day of lazy enjoyment.


It’s days like this that make me question just how much development and “progress” should really be put into place in Vanuatu…progress can sometimes be anything but!