Kiribati story - Inane Chit chat

Expatriate life in Kiribati was just amazing as the people who were there during the time I lived in Betio were all great fun and the local people were just fabulous. I cannot express how much fun we had in the years 1986-88.

One of my stories of Kiribati was concerns 'chit chat and gossip'.

At the 60th birthday of one of the expatriates on Bairiki his partner/wife wished him happy birthday and announced to all present that she was leaving with her I-Kiribati lover and departing immediately for a new life elsewhere.This became a topic of conversation for most Europeans and was a reminder of another partner who left her mate and explained that she had left because she could no longer endure the 'inane conversation of the Europeans (Imatangs - local word for 'European') in Betio.

This provided endless idle 'morning tea' chit chat for some time as the first question would be  "so what pointless topic of discussion would we like to focus on today." Suggestions for pointless and endless discussion would be topics like 'the price of fish in the  market' or 'the impossibility of growing tomatoes in the sand' or why the local pumpkin was so stringy' and etc etc.

The scope of pointless discussion (ie: discussion without any possible resolution) was endless when you live in Paradise, especially when your are the homemaker with plenty of free time and your partner is consumed with his/her work with the difficulties and hazards in remote locations. Such is life in what is a truly beautiful environment.

Motivation and Inspiration

All you need sometimes is a reminder that connecting with your own memories can be an uplifting experience. I was reminded by a single email that I needed to revisit my blog and what a lovely time I have had. The email might just be the motivator I needed.

I also read a friend's memoirs recently and thought I must do something to keep 'my memories'  in case the brain starts to forget.

I listed all the places I've lived and loved and all the schools I taught at with pictures of my favourite people and happy times together . ie Kiribati 86-88, Solomon islands 88-93, Bahrain 93-94, Samoa 94-96 and OZ most of my life Ho Ho! So to remind myself for my next few blogs I will relate my favourite stories from these places starting with Kiribati. 

 Simply if I wanted to tell all my stories about it it would be easier to recommend the book 'The Sex Lives of Cannibals' by J Maarten Troost as all his funny stories are my stories too. He has written a wonderful comical collection of his experiences over his 2 years in Kiribati and his stories are so like my experience that it was a revelation and a total joy to read.. 

 Simply the wonderful people in Kiribati and the beauty of the place are unforgettable. One story I'll relate is of my friend Taoati whose son Ben who went missing at sea for 46 days in 2004 whilst they were visiting family. When all others had given up hope of his being found she still believed he would be found. Sure enough her optimism was right and he was found just in time to save his live and the life of his cousin and uncle. A manuscript of his experience and his mother's faith was written called 'One More Tomorrow' but could not find a publisher. His story was also on '60 minutes'. This sort of optimism seemed to be inherent in the Island people we met during our 10 years in the South Pacific and proved to be a wonderful life lesson.I  am a more optimistic person for having been in such happy places with happy people.