Weaving workshop for Ie Toga...

This weekend was quite a busy one for me with an amazing weaving workshop where I learned to start an Ie Toga (fine mat) that is revered in Samoa.

It also reminded me of the stories that my mother told me of the weaving that my namesake, Eleni, my paternal great grandmother would demonstrate for my mother and how she learned to weave from her grandmother.

It was such a privilege to feel that now that that knowledge has now been passed on and I'm looking forward to learning more.

I first started to learn weaving, in my adult years, through learning by watching Maori teachers demonstrate and teach by using harakeke or native NZ flax fronds that are easily found around local parks, schools and planted on some family properties.

It's a real blessing with so much more to still learn. We also learned new vocabulary and about the origin story of how Samoa's important fine mat came from Tonga and has now become a very important part of Samoan custom and still retains the name "Ie Toga".

It's also seen as being the very first measina or the most important measina of all the treasures of Samoa due to it's important use in many faaSamoa rituals. From weddings and birthdays to funerals and blessing ceremonies.

It's also important in the ceremony of the 'ifoga' whereby one or a family is able to use the Ie Toga to ask for forgiveness for transgressions if the offended party accepts it. So that the Ie Toga can preserve life too. Something that I've since learned from my studies with more to learn as well...

 

Happy National Poetry day today!...

Happy National Poetry Day! This day usually falls on the last Friday of the month of August and it's a day that I've been celebrating in various ways for a number of years as a creative writer / poet.

This year, I'm going to be sharing a poem that I wrote a number of years ago from my second poetry and short stories collection called "Frangipani whispers" that I self-published in May of 2018.

I've working on another poetry and short stories collection which is a community anthology that was funded by our local board last year but thought to launch in this year once the COVID numbers had decreased which it seems to be happening now.

The title of the poem is called "Birth of a Poem".

Placing pen on paper

an attempt to express

the sudden urge to write

Lost in thought

of myriad sensations

an idea

explodes in the mind

An apprehensive feeling

what happens now?

will it work?

The world rushes around

as words take on shape

choosing their own form

then...

birth pains

Life breathes on the page

read - inhale

Measina workshop - Tala o le vavau (ancient Samoan stories)...

Last weekend, I had the honour and the privilege of offering a Measina workshop with the topic of "Tala o le vavau" or ancient Samoan stories.

It was an opportunity for me to share some of the knowledge and resources that I have been blessed with and able to learn and create resources along the way to share with local families and teachers in our Samoan bilingual Early childhood education centre.

It started at 10am with a few families who had attended an earlier Ministry of Education initiative of a 3 day (Saturdays) workshops in learning how to share in reading of parents with their youngsters.

Our centre decided to kickstart our Measina workshops off the momentum of those programmes and after a weeks break we began. We started with a prayer blessing for the workshop and then we started with short introduction about the topic.

I was able to share about my background and particularly my father being a foundation of the Samoan EKLS (church membership) and of my grandmother not being particularly interested in the topic as with our Christian upbringing but still supported me in finding the right people to help me in my endeavours.

I was also able to talk about my Korean "professor" who encouraged me to consider studying a topic that was from my own cultural understandings as in being one of the first Samoan post-graduate students in the Geography faculty at Auckland University at that time.

I was able to talk about the matai (chief) of that time, the late A'eau Taulupoo Lafaiali'i who shared with me the many stories but cautioned that there were a lot of different understandings or perspectives of the stories and to be aware of this in not sharing.

However, in turning a half century, I thought it was time to write them for next generations in case I passed away with stories that brought me to the resources in that there were five tables in which families were encouraged to gather around and to read the one Tala o le vavau storybook either in English or Samoan that had been placed on the table before them.

Each group started the read their story with the theme to consider what important things they learned in reading each story. As each group was encouraged beforehand to have a speaker to share back with the bigger group on their findings.

The group sharing was phenomenal and I was so encouraged it what I heard. It's confirmed the reasons for why I share these stories in giving diaspora Samoans confirmation of the knowledge culture that was there way before colonization began for Samoa.

It also confirms that there are important stories for Samoa that explain the origins of place names, terms used in speeches, important names or titles that have been passed down from generations. These were just some of the feedback comments that encouraged me for another workshop which won't be until next year, Lord willing, as there are other workshops to be share yet.

Suffice to say that I was again very privileged to be able to share this gift of our ancient stories, a measina a Samoa or cultural treasure that was passed down to me and that I am now able to share with many others. A tribute to 'A'eau Taulupoo Lafaialii, who first made it possible for me. Lest I forget...