“Im eor jet rej buromoj im rej ettor im armej rej jibwe er mokta jan aer ekkake.” “And, there were some who were buromoj [afflicted by melancholia or grief], and they run, and people seize them, before they can fly away.” (266, 262) “Story about lōrro” ribwebenato Jelibor Jam, 1975. Stories from the Marshall Islands. Jack Tobin. Grounded Anchor yourself… Read More
Thoughts on climate and covid
What a weird and awful time in the world right now. When I moved back home to the Marshalls this past December, after three years of being based in Portland, Oregon, I never thought our country would suddenly be locked down, for months at a time, cut off from the rest of the world. I never thought I’d be grounded… Read More
Bulldozed Reefs and Blasted Sands: Rituals for Artificial Islands
Iakwe aolep – it’s been a while since my last blog post. Last year was hectic and instead of updating my blog alongside my social media I fell off the map after my journey to Enewetak. So to kick off this year’s blog posts I’d like to focus on coming to terms with a new piece of advice given to… Read More
On Marshallese Youth and COP21
If we, as a rimajel youth, were able to hold the world accountable, why can’t we hold our leaders in our country, our local council, our community members, even ourselves accountable as well? Why can’t we demand change, demand justice, or even just demand more – from everyone?
Why College of the Marshall Islands is divesting from fossil fuels – and why your institution should too
A few weeks ago I was called into the office of the President of the College of the Marshall Islands (CMI) Carl Hacker, to discuss his big announcement: that he would be pushing for CMI to divest from fossil fuels. All we need next is approval from the Board of Regents, which could possibly happen within a few weeks. “It… Read More
Birthing a Manuscript, Birthing for Real
This past week I took my first few tentative steps towards putting together my manuscript – a pretty big deal considering how long I’ve wanted to publish my own book of poetry. It’s taken me a while to reflect on all of this, though, because besides preparing to give birth to my first manuscript, I’m also preparing to give birth… Read More