I can't even begin to express how grateful and humbled this trip has been. Another major reason for my return was to see mon Grandpere (Grandpa). Its quite funny since we would call my Grandma Meme but never called him Pepe.
To this day, the most memorable family vacations have been in Raiatea. Not on our trip to Disneyland, nor our long drive across the states. Just playing in the mud, or going to the motu with my cousins, and building huts, because, lets face it , we were entrepreneurs. Haha. One incident that I remember very clearly: was using my Grandpere's cane knife to collect wood for our hut (lol) and for some reasons being on trees arching over the river. You can guess that the knife was dropped. We were mortified thinking of how we would tell him. But we were even more scared of the GINORMOUS eels (remember, when you're little, everything looks big) lurking in the water. So to this day, it had been our secret!
Oh how time flies. My cousins (all boys) are or have returned from their mission, and are all so much taller than I :) I was the oldest, so I had the duty of being the boss. Haha.
It would have taken me forever to post all of the images so here's a little video. I am indeed so grateful for the hardwork and labor of love that this great man has done. You see, he has been a farmer all his life. Never really gone to school. He would plant taro, tapioca, copra and vanilla on acres of land. I have always loved listening to stories my Mom would relate about her childhood in the faapu's (patches) or her ruse to get out of it along with her punishment. Boy, she was quite a rascal.
He hasn't been able/allowed to go for awhile now. He is after all, over 80yrs old. Besides, the land is up in the mountains. In fact, I was embarrassed at how tired I was in comparison to him when we made our way there. But I really wanted to see the little shack that had been used over weekends, since it took so much work to get there in the first place, where the breeze and rows of Tahitian vanilla thrived. It is amazing that after so many years and a recent hurricane, it is still standing.
A few of my favorite highlights from the video:
A picture of him and Meme that my cousing has recently found.
A picture of my grandparents and my mom in front of the NZ temple, where they were sealed for time and all eternity.
The old/original house.
His bike- he never stops surprising everyone by riding it to town (~45min), early in the morning so no one can stop him.
His chair, next to Meme's grave, where he is sometimes found talking to her. He misses her so much. It also breaks my hear every time my Mom says how much she misses her. Over the years, the resemblance between Meme and Mom has become more and more evident.
His cut-out boots.
His favorite drink- Coke, in bottles of all sorts of shape and color :) Its cute that if he is seen going to the store with a pandanus (aka opaque) basket, he is most likely buying coke.
Fire- When I got there, he had three going on at the same time. You see, its the most common way to get rid of green waste. Obviously, it is not illegal yet.
Taro- Heart-shaped leaf. Even if he can't go up the mountain, he has a huge taro patch behind his house.
I hope you enjoy this.
He was amazing to see where the hardworking habit, the stubbornness, the fiery independence and genuine love that were passed on to my own Mother had originated. He is known to pray for every single one of his grandkids. How amazing is that? Considering that he had ten children already, so you can do the math. Lots of ppl to bless.
Here are key words that he said we should always remember. What a wise man he is right?
Just like he said:
School
Mission
Marriage
Church
