NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

  Every week I get sometimes a few, sometimes quite a few requests for information, for interviews, for assistance. I am not a very well-organized person and so sometimes these requests fall through the cracks, and I miss them. But for the most part I try to accommodate as many people as I can. I recall that if I can help someone in their research, finish a paper, gain some perspective for their thesis or even provide a key quote or insight for their article, it could help put Guam or Chamoru issues in a more critical light, and it may push someone, tied to the island, to be more engaged about things important to me (and hopefully to them).  It is always nice to look back and see if I did have an impact, albeit even a small one on someone's perspective or even the course of their intellectual journey. A few months ago, I was a guest speaker for a college course focusing on cultural diversity in psychology. I talked about my experiences growing up Chamoru, but also not very stereoty

I have not written one of these posts in a while, although the collecting of Chamorro sayings continues. Fina'kuentos Chamorro is where I post different Chamorro sayings or phrases, they are important in providing us a sense of the Chamorro worldview, both in history and in a contemporary context, and give us a sense of the Chamorro particular flavor to life. Sometimes this flavor can be very familiar to other cultures, sometimes it can be very Catholic, sometimes is can appear to be very tied to the land and people here themselves. This saying "Si Yu'os, Yu'os. I taotao, taotao ha'" can be both very simple, yet also encompass very deep thoughts. It translates simply to "God is God, man is man." On the surface it is simply that men should not worry about things that are beyond their control, as those things lie in God's hands and he will determine what happens. It is a simplified serenity prayer. But it can also extend further into helpin

It has been two weeks of non-stop Chamorro Christmas songs in my classes, all in preparation for tonight's Puengen Minagof Nochebuena at UOG. One of the toughest songs we've been tackling is "Annai i Niño" also known as "Kantåyi gui'." In honor of December being the season not just for Christmas but also Star Wars, I always tease my students using the equivalent of dumb Chamorro Star Wars dad jokes. After struggling through the difficult tune for the verses, whenever the students come in strong for the chorus and sing loudly "Kantåyi gui'!" I respond, "Maolek! The Kantåyi is strong with this one." As a back up, in case they aren't cringing to death already, I might throw in "ti este na Kantåyi ta espipiha" or "This is not the kantåyi we are looking for." ****************** Annai i Ni ñ o minida as Maria ( When Mary clothed the infant ) Ya nina’ åsson gi hilo’ ngåsan ( and made Him

Estaba guaha tres na manga ni' hu gof tataitai yan hu tattitiyi kada simana pat kada mes. I fine'nina "Naruto." I mina'dos "Gantz." Yan i uttimo "Berserk." Gi entre este na tres i fine'nina ma tutuhun "Berserk." I yiyinga' tumutuhun ayu gi 1990. Para Naruto matutuhun gi 1999 yan 2000 para Gantz. Lao pa'go Naruto yan Gantz esta munhayan. Makpo' Naruto gi issuen 700 (lao ma fa'tinas ensigidas un nuebu na series) yan makpo' Gantz gi issuen 383 (taya' nuebu na series para este, lao olaha mohon na guaha). Achokka' "Berserk" i mas amko', guiya i mas nateng lokkue'. Gi 25 na sakkan, matto gui' gi issuen 342 ha'. Ya guaha na biahi i yiyingga' ha fa'tinas unu na pat dos na issues gi unu na sakkan. Lao magof yu', sa' gi Fanuchan'an, put fin, ma na'huhuyong regulamente "Berserk" ta'lo. Hu diseseha na sina ma konsigi mo'na taiguini, sa' sen y

Taya' fino'-hu put este na asunto'. Ti hongge'on i bidada-na este na palao'an Si Kim Davis.  Atan ha' este na articles siha ginen Si Allen Clifton, mas gaitiningo' gui' kinu Guahu pa'go. Atan lokkue' i memes siha put Si Kim Davis. Ai adai, sen dinanche, sen na'chalek. Mabuena. *************** A Message to Kentucky County Clerk Kim Davis: You’re a Disgrace and a Hypocrite By Allen Clifton 9/2/15 Forward Progressives One of the most dominant stories of the last few days has been the continued refusal by Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, in defiance of the Supreme Court’s ruling that bans on gay marriage were unconstitutional. Wait, a slight correction – she’s actually not issuing any marriage licenses, not even to straight couples. In other words, she’s not doing her job. If you ask me, I get the feeling this is just all one big scam. Normally this isn’t a story that

It is the one year anniversary of the passing of my grandmother, Elizabeth De Leon Flores Lujan. Family and friends held a gathering recently to remember her and celebrate her. As part of the gathering we sang some Christmas songs, both in English and Chamorro. It was a bit strange though because even though I spent several Christmases and in fact most Christmases in my grandparents' house in Mangilao, we never sang Christmas songs. We didn't do much decorations either. I've wondered if this is because grandma was already older and not as interested in those things, or because of her strong religious beliefs. Something that we would do for Christmas and at regular points through the year is sit around the dinner table and read bible lessons and bible verses. This is how I think grandma would probably want us to remember her and honor her, but reading the bible together. This past week I wrote about the new movie "Saving Christmas" and reflecting on the origins of

I've been reading more and more articles by atheists lately. At first I was confused as to why, because while I've been critical of religion for most of my adult life, I never wanted to seek out a new framework for housing my lack of belief. Part of what seemed to spurn me in this direction is my World History classes and to a more limited extent my Guam History classes. In my World History classes we discuss the origins of human religion and the relationships between Zoroastrianism, Islam, Christianity and even Buddhism. I have an entire lecture in which we compare the historical figure of Jesus Christ, with the religious figure of Jesus Christ. From this we often move into the Bible itself and the notion that so many people whereby they feel the Bible must be true, but haven't thought about the consequences of that belief. We compare the God in the Old Testament to the God in the New Testament. The God of Noah and Job, to the God of Isiah

It's been a while since I've taught World History I at UOG. I'm teaching it again this semester and it looks to be both frustrating and fun. World History I covers a huge amount of time, much of which rarely entices students. Students who love Gladiator or Spartacus won't necessarily love learning about Marcus Aurelius or the real servile revolts. The students who liked the third Mummy movie starring Jet Li or the movie Hero starring Jet Li, don't necessarily want to learn about the actual Qin Shi Huangdi.  As I regularly tell students, tv shows like Game of Thrones don't really interest me because history itself is just as screwed up, bloody and terrifying. Should I for some reason retreat into the realm of fantasy to imagine that the horrors of the world dance and prance about simply for the enjoyment of my gaze? Nope, what use is that? People who enjoy history in the form of tv shows like that or Netflix or History Channel documentaries want history tamed f

I feel that stupidity and selfishness are the two main things that are wrong with this world and people in this world.  Each is like a vice that can be irritating and frustrating on its own, but with their powers combined they can bring the universe to a standstill.  Even if you are the most selfish person in the world if you aren't stupid then there will eventually be a limit to how greedy you are and how destructive you are. At some point you have to realize that if you act too selfishly there will be nothing left to possess and be selfish about.  Even if you are the stupidest person in the world, if you aren't selfish then you will ultimately be harmless. You will be too stupid to actually affect anything around you in any real way. The fact that you aren't selfish means that you won't constantly seek pathetic ways of hiding your stupidity and blaming all others for your failings. The last time I met someone who combined sheer stupidity

Cloud Atlas was by far my favorite film of 2012. It was a film I only saw once, but wanted to watch again immediately after I left the theatre. Part of this is due to the fact that a group of actors play multiple roles in different historical eras. Some of them are obvious, others aren’t so clear. The film becomes a type of game trying to figure out who is who. In the credits they flash on the screen each actor and all their roles. You realize then how many you recognized and how many zipped before your vision but you didn’t recognize them. The story itself is complicated and so that might also create that desire. You want to see it again because there may be a section you didn’t quite catch or weren’t quite sure about. At certain points the jumping across times can be confusing, especially towards the beginning when you don’t quite have your bearings yet. As one of the characters in the film states, a half finished book is like an unfinished love affair. It