Micronesian Meandering #2

Micronesian Missive #2

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Greetings from the Pacific Island of Kwajalein. This is a Christmas card, an update letter, and my attempt to keep in touch with friends I don’t get to see in person nearly often enough. For some of you it has been years (and in some cases, years and years). To be read at your leisure - it seems I am going to be in one place - actually THIS place - for at least the next two years. And at the very end there is a fund raising appeal to help a Marshallese Catholic Church on Ebeye. (You knew I was going to be asking for help for someone, right?)

Contact information:

US mail - PO Box 1711 Mail from Nigeria - c/o 39 E 83rd St
AP APO 96555 New York, NY 10028

Email: johnrsheehan@Yahoo.com
Or
John.sheehan@kls.usaka.smdc.army.mil

Phone: 805 355-2116 (office)
805 355-4535 (home)
805 355-8408 (FAX)

BUT REMEMBER THE TIME ZONE AND DAY DIFFERENCE

When it is 3 PM on Monday afternoon in Kwajalein, it is11 pm on Sunday evening in New York, 8 pm on Sunday night in California, and 5 pm on Sunday in Lagos or London. I’ll try to remember to include a little chart at the end of a sampling of times. If the office is open, there is a secretary who can take a message if I am away; if the office is closed there is a voice mail option. At home I do have an answering machine and I don’t always turn it on.

(If you received the last missive from Micronesia - which was also the first missive from Micronesia - you can skip ahead to the second set of stars. The section in the stars is going to be a catching up section and will all be stuff you’ve already read.)

* * * * * * * * * * *

In case there is anyone who missed the transition, I left Nigeria in July of 04. I had been there for almost twelve years, and for almost all of that I had been in the office of the Regional Superior. The Region is moving towards becoming a Province and there is a real need to develop some young men to take over positions in administration. No one becomes a priest in order to be an administrator - a Treasurer or an archivist or a development director or assistant to the Regional Superior. These are all jobs I have done - and a couple of others along the way. There was a new Regional Superior coming in and a new assistant, and it seemed it might be the right time to make the move into something new.

The New York Provincial said that I should take a sabbatical. That means a year off. Usually guys spend that kind of time taking courses, to refresh themselves and expand their horizons within their field of work. I was leaving that field of work, and I wasn’t sure what that might mean. My first response was that I didn’t think I’d know what to do with a whole year, that six months would probably suffice, time I would spend catching up with friends and relaxing and doing some serious vacation (golf and hunting and deep sea fishing and horseback riding) and get back into something remotely resembling some shape other than an egg. The summer before I went to theology I had toured Micronesia, and I remembered that the chaplaincy at Kwajalein seemed a fun and relaxing spot. I offered to substitute for the man who was there for his vacation time. I thought it might be a good way to begin my re-introduction to the U.S. My image was that it would be a sort of halfway house - not quite the U.S. but with a lot of those elements.

I started to sketch out a plan of travel from then, and was in the process of contacting friends and trying to get invited to stay places. And then I got an email from the Provincial. The man on Kwajalein was not going to be returning after his vacation. He had developed a medical problem, and was going to have to stay in New York and go through some serious medical testing. He asked if I would be willing to stay on Kwajalein until Thanksgiving, to give him time to try and find a replacement. He also mentioned that if I were interested in taking that assignment, he would be most open to it. (That’s a polite way of saying since we have no idea what we’re going to do with you, this could be a possibility.) I thought about it for a day or two, and replied that it would make more sense for me to stay through Christmas. It’s awkward for a parish to have priests dropping in and out, and after Christmas is a more logical time for a man to leave some place and start at a new one. I also said that I didn’t think I would be interested in this as a permanent assignment. My sense was that Kwajalein was a nice job for a (much) older man, sort of a semi-retirement posting, light work. No thank you.

If you did NOT receive the first letter from Micronesia for some reason, including the reviews from my farewell concert in Lagos, let me know and I will send it to you. No point in cluttering this up any more than necessary.)

In the proverbial nutshell, I got to Kwajalein on August 12th, and almost immediately people here began campaigning for my staying. After two months of living on the island and some serious prayer and reflection, I asked the Provincial - assuming he did not have any particular assignment in mind for me or greater need - that I be assigned here as a regular assignment.

* * * * * * * * * * *
I’m writing this on Thanksgiving weekend. Had a Mass at 10 this morning, and the usual turkey and what-not. Made some phone calls - now THERE is a strange feeling, being able to make a phone call - and I am watching the Macy’s Parade on television. I hear myself sometimes sounding like a crochety old man, but by God, I remember a day when you turned on the tv and watched the parade. NOW - you watch promo short bits for Broadway shows, interviews with actors I have never heard of from series I have never heard of - the parade has been on for 55 minutes as I pen these immortal words, and I don’t think we have had five minutes of actual parade. (It is also pouring rain out, which adds a nice intimacy to the afternoon - I have just brewed a fresh pot of coffee, so the smell of Colombian ground coffee is in the air, and there is a piece of mince pie in the oven - and the Rockettes are doing a dance routine to music from a newly-released movie. Sigh.) I may break one of my own house rules and both smoke a cigar inside the house and have a drink by myself.

Back to the narrative. After I had been here for a couple of months, I did a couple of days of prayer and reflection, and put it to the Provincial that while I remained available for anything - and certainly open for whatever he might decide - all things being equal, I thought it might be a good thing for me to be here for a couple of years. It wasn’t an easy decision, and one reason was because it seemed so good. Beautiful locale, real need, wonderful people - we are supposed to go where the need is greatest, and I had to ask seriously if this were the greatest need.

At the same time, it is the primary responsibility of the Provincial or Superior to determine that need, and I certainly didn’t have any strong options to offer. I did ask that if I were to be assigned here that the offer of a sabbatical remain for whenever I might finish THIS assignment. There were negatives. I would be going back into work without much of a break, rest or vacation. There are a lot of good friends (that would be you who are reading this) whom I have not seen in a long time. And I would be in a situation where I would be the only Jesuit. You can’t talk of being “alone” in the middle of a community of 2,300 - but alone in the sense of not being in a community of Jesuits.

The Provincial, after consulting with the Regional Superior, who had been here for a visit, said yes. Plan on staying for two years, and we’ll evaluate it then. The usual Jesuit assignment is for six years, unless you stay longer. Or less. I was in Nigeria for just under 12. So who knows.

So I am here. Let me see if I can add to a sense of life on my little island since I sent out the last missive. One of the major changes was in where I am living. I had described my trailer and the truly spectacular view I had in my front yard. Well, shortly after I sent off the last missive, I was informed that I would have to move. Nothing personal - they were going to tear down or move out all the trailers in the North end, and replace them with dome units. They gave me a list of trailers to look at, so I could decide which one I liked. I looked and wrote the powers that be that I really didn’t “like” any of them. I pointed out the needs of a chaplain for some degree of privacy, and noted that we had added a whole extra room onto the original trailer. So between the added room and the front yard, I was going to be looking at a significant reduction in space. Someone intervened, and I found myself on the list for hard housing - and I am now in a 2-bedroom, two story unit, one of 4 in a unit. Concrete block construction, three air conditioners (one in each bedroom and one for the downstairs) - nice kitchen, and a whole lot closer to the office than the other location. Now there isn’t much a view -pretty much the street and other peoples’ houses. But the inside living is better. When the dome is built will they give that site back for the Catholic chaplain? Who knows. It’s a toss - goods and bads in each choice. Moving was a pain - but setting up a whole new place has been fun. I’ve gone broke getting reading for Christmas - the former chaplain didn’t leave a single ornament. So I have been stocking up on ornaments and lights and what nots. They bring live trees in on a barge, and fresh wreaths. It’s been twelve years since I’ve had a real Christmas tree. I am looking forward to it. I’m having an open house here on the 13th. I was hoping the trees would be in, so it could be a tree-trimming party (a sneaky way to get other people to do the work for you) but the trees arrive on the 16th.

I done a couple of baptisms, prayed at the Veteran’s Day ceremonies for the Army and led a discussion on Angels and Demons. I have been the guest preacher at the Protestant Service, and one of the judges of the poster contest at the high school Turkey Bowl. We’ve had memorial services, and I sold my CD’s at the local art guild bazaar, where I also sang. I have my boat license for sailing and one more test for my power boat license, I am a member of the Yacht club and I have my locker and tag at the golf course. The pro even said I had a pretty good swing!! I’ve started a Parish Council and a Finance Committee, we have a committee working on re-designing the Catholic chapel, and another working with me to design the web site. I send out an electronic bulletin each week in addition to a printed bulletin at Mass. I’ve turned down invitations to sing with the community chorus and to do a lead role in the Christmas musical.

On Sunday I am saying Mass five times on four different islands, in addition to the anticipated Mass on Saturday afternoon. There is a 7:00 am and a 9:15 am here on Kwajalein, (which means I have to be in the office by 6 which means the old alarm goes off around 5) and then I get on a plane and fly about twenty-five minutes north to Roi Namur. I ride my bike (yes, I have a bike up there as well as one here) from the airport to the chapel, say Mass, and then on to the dock, where a water taxi (ie a SMALL boat) is waiting to take me on a ten-minute ride over to Ennibur (also known as Third Island, also known as Santos) where I say Mass in Marshallese. Well, I say Mass mostly in English, a little bit in Marshallese, and the community answers in Marshallese. Bit by bit I am expanding my Marshallese. Back on the boat to Roi, a bit of a layover where I have time to smoke a cigar and meditate or read - and then I fly back to Kwajalein. I ride my bike to the security dock, where another small boat awaits, a 15 minute ride over to Ebeye, and I head confessions for about a half an hour and then say Mass at 7 PM. There is an 8:30 ferry - about a 25 minute ride in the dark - so I am back on Kwaj around 9 pm. A good friend who is a fireman usually has a Sunday evening barbecue, so I stop by his place on the way home for a beer and leftovers if there are any and a cigar. He is a serious collector and afficionado and always has something new for me to try. Sunday - day of rest. Not.

One of the dimensions of being here is to be of some service to the Marshallese community, both on Kwajalein but also on Ebeye and Ennibur and other islands (one is called Goojeegoo - and one of the things about Marshallese is that since it has existed for so many years as a spoken language, there is no set spelling for words. You spell it as it sounds to you - my teacher will spell the same word two or three different way in the same lesson. One of the things about learning the language is abandoning some of your hard-learned precepts about spelling.). Most can understand some English - not all can speak it. I can say a few things - but I find it very hard to “hear” the language yet. Many of the elements and social structure are very similar to their Nigerian counterparts - some Marshallese are surprised at how quickly I have learned about their culture. Not so new.

Halloween was great fun. In addition to the on-island, they let something like 150 kids from Ebeye come over, so there were lots of customers. Most people sit outside so I joined the golf pro who lives across the street and we talked and smoked and passed out candy to the assorted munchkins. Lots of great costumes and a night harkening back to a Norman Rockwell sort of world. For those in Lagos, it’s not unlike living at Chevron, except maybe more so. And you never have to leave the compound to go outside. Mayberry lives. People don’t lock doors, everyone knows everyone, the kids at the high school consistently score significantly higher on the SAT than the national average, and we have almost all the amenities - movies several times a week at our indoor and outdoor theatres, meals available at the dining hall and a snack bar with a huge menu, a bowling alley, tennis courts, basketball, baseball, two gyms, a very well equipped exercise hall, a golf course, swimming and sailing and boating and fishing and snorkeling and kayaks and diving. There is a running club and a bike club and the yacht club and a women’s club a video rental shop and a beauty parlor, a grocery store and the equivalent of a 7-11, two retail stores, post office, a very good library, our own radio station, in addition to radio and tv being brought in from the outside. Armed Forces network gives us 8 channels for tv. And another channel with the local radar tracking, so we can keep track of weather coming in. Good hospital, full dental clinic - four doctors and two dentists live on island, and other doctors (orthodontist, optometrist, etc) come on regularly. Vet too for the animals. We even had a guy here this last week from Waterford Crystal, to do personalized engraving on any piece of crystal. Not necessarily one you bought - if you had it, he would engrave. There are several clubs - the American Legion has a bar and meeting hall, there is a snack bar and bar bar on the coast, the Yukwe Yuk Club is the most polished, and they have special events regularly, including an open mike night where anyone can get up and perform. No, I haven’t succumbed to the temptation.

We have several beaches, which are the venue of choice for farewell and anniversary parties and parties for which you don’t really have a reason. We also get bands through the Armed Forces Entertainment Services. One of the benefits is that the housing is supplied, so when there is a problem with the hot water heater or something goes wrong - I call someone to come and fix it. There is a self-help unit, which provides all sorts of stuff to maintain the place, like lawn mowers, weed whackers, garbage bags and all sorts of tools.

Now one of the things you have to deal with is shipping and getting things onto the island. If you are buying for yourself, you are at the mercy of the post office and shipping gods, and mail can be weeks or days. No way of knowing. If you are ordering officially - ie through the company - you figure a lead time of at least three months. I ordered the Easter Paschal candle in mid-November. Magazine subscriptions routinely expire before the renewal order gets processed and sent through. The received wisdom is “It’s on the next barge.” There are even t-shirts.

It’s not all beer and skittles. The reason we have the ability to leave doors unlocked and run a small community on a large scale is that we an Army base and we have rules and regulations and a fairly high degree of supervision. It’s a trade-off, and one I don’t find particularly irksome. But pretty much everything is done a la Noah’s Ark - two by two. You can’t swim alone, you can’t sail alone - pretty much everything has to be in pairs.

And there are the small town syndromes. There is a very active gossip grapevine, and a whole host of small town sensibilities and prejudices. I ran afoul of one woman who took a simple moment and blew it up, sent emails to my religious superior, to the president of the company
and to the commanding colonel. Now all sorts of people rallied to my support, and apparently she has a reputation in the community - but she is nasty and vindictive (trust me, I am being charitable) and in the past, people didn’t fight back. I did - in public - and got the full support from the company and the commanding officer and eventually from the Jesuit regional superior (who was far away and trying to figure out what was happening long distance) and I have now signed on as a regular full-time permanent employee. But there were a couple of weeks when it was a little like being a politician in the middle of an accusation of something that turns out not to be true. Hopefully it will, in the longer run, be a cause of bringing the community closer together. And realizing that we have to work together.

I get two days off a week - some of that time goes for the basics like laundry and shopping and ironing (I had forgotten how much I really HATE ironing!!!) But I also go to the gym regularly and do long bike rides, occasional golf and more regular visits to the driving range. I’ve dropped 15 pounds since coming here - more to go, more to go. I’m not eligible for a vacation until the end of 2005 - which means it will be some time in 2006 before I get a real vacation. So those of you with guest rooms don’t have to worry for a while yet about a bearded visitor. Except, perhaps, for Santa Claus, of course.

FINANCIAL PITCH

Ebeye is the adjoining island (see above) and the level of poverty is - while not as great as parts of Lagos - fairly awful. Jesuits have been there for many years, and we have built a school and a very active parish. The school is doing well - although there are more children on the streets because they are unable to get seats in schools than there are children in school. The parish is involved in many parts of life on the island, and has helped many get jobs and training and is a strong positive force in the community. The church and other buildings on the compound are badly in need of renovation - it has been many years since the original construction, and the constant ocean climate is not helpful to keeping things in the best of shape.

So - the parish is planning a major renovation. Hoping. Part of the problem is that many are living very simply and on the edge of existence - there is very little “spare” cash. They do very well in supporting the ongoing activities of the parish, but for something like a renovation, they find it very difficult. They have started taking up separate collections, and over the space of a month, they have raised approximately $1,300. Considering their circumstances that’s a tremendous symbol of community support. I don’t know exactly what the projection is - how much they hope to raise. As was the case in Nigeria, they will end up doing much of the work themselves - but they will still need the materials with which to do the work. Some renovation is for the church, but more is for the classrooms and community rooms which serve all the people.

So - anything you would care to donate to the project will be greatly appreciated. Make the check out to Blessed Sacrament Parish and send it to me directly. We have a different situation here and so we don’t need to go through the New York Province. It is still tax-deductible. Blessed Sacrament (the parish here) is a recognized parish by the US government. (I can provide the necessary tax data if needed, but usually the cancelled check to a parish is enough.) Obviously, for this tax year, you’ve got to date the check before December 31. But your gift will be welcome at any time. I’m even contributing. I have a salary!! (for the first time in 25 years!) Around half of it goes to the Jesuits of Micronesia, to support their work here. Collections at the parish here go to support the world of the local church throughout Micronesia, through the Prefect’s office (functions like a Bishop but does not have the full office). And the parish does a special series of collections during Lent specifically for the work of the Prefecture in the Outer Islands, the smallest and poorest and most distant in the chain.

See? I have managed to land in a place where there are still lots of needs. And you thought your checkbook was safe!!!

So there we are. I hope your holidays are joy-filled. It will be a busy time for me but I hope I may be able to actually talk to you by phone at some point during the season. Hug anyone who should be hugged - if I don’t know them, hug them anyway. I will see some of you when I finally do get a vacation - and if you come out here before that, well, there you will be. Thank you for your prayers, your support and your friendship over the years.