Food and Guests

Since the last two entries have featured stuff that happened on Friday, I figured I might as well tell you about the rest of the day at school on Friday.
Other than spending a couple of hours teaching Years 7 & 8, I spent my day in the office, typing and copying. I watched the eye exams and was served food and drink.
There are only two reasons that I’m served food in the classroom or office. It happens if a parent brings food for the teachers. That only happens about once a month. Frequently, it’s koko Samoa. Nothing like a hot mug of cocoa on a steaming day. Really, I’m not being sarcastic. You get the sugar/caffeine jolt, plus the hot liquid makes you sweat even more, so the breeze feels delightfully cool. Unless there’s no breeze, which means you’re just a sweaty, caffeinated mess on a sugar high.
The other reason that we are served food is that there are “guests” in the building. I love when that happens. It is fa’a Samoa that when someone visits you, whether at home or office, you serve them refreshments. My mother had the same view, although her idea was of a slightly lighter/smaller view of snacks than the Samoan norm.
When I was in the training village, if another trainee stopped by for a couple of minutes, usually to whine about tense markers or other aspects of Samoan language, my host sister came up with snacks. It didn’t matter if there was not a lick of food in the house. She would sneak out to the neighbors or the closest faleoloa and bring something back for us. Even when I begged her not to.
It’s the same at school. The teachers are responsible for buying/preparing food for visitors. Out of their own pockets. Fascinating to watch how it happens and how the money is tracked and collected. I tried to chip in, but that didn’t pan out. They know I’m a volunteer, so they don’t want to take my money. To make up for it, I bring a huge amount of food for their morning tea a couple of times a month.
On Friday, we had the nurses here for the eye exams. That involved cracker and butter sandwiches and the Samoan version of instant coffee. For the nurses it also meant ramen, which is the “go to” meal of choice in Samoa.
At interval, I didn’t join the other teachers as usual, because I was busy typing the Year 7 exam and copying/collating 110 copies of the 10 page Year 8 exam. I had to make enough copies for the whole district.
Interval is when we normally have “tea”. The other teachers usually have ramen (called seimini here) while I try to bring something a bit healthier. I admit, I’m not as good about that as I should be. Friday, though, I was prepared. I had an egg sandwich and a small knock-off version of Pringles in my lunch bag. Yeah, not significantly healthier than ramen, but at least a change of pace.
Because I’d had the cracker and butter sandwiches and tea earlier, I didn’t plan to eat during interval. I kept working and wasn’t paying much attention to what was going on outside, although on one trip to the door to get some air and a view of the ocean I noticed a group of men talking downstairs. Ah, the school committee.
Shortly after interval started, the School Committee came into the office, along with our Pule/Principal. It’s not a large room and since the copies had to be finished, I couldn’t excuse myself to another space. No problem, they just ignored me and sat at the table at the other end of the room for their meeting.
A few minutes after they arrived, in came some of the girls, carrying food. Two groups of visitors in one morning means two “snacks”. It’s a sign of how busy the teachers are that this impromptu snack was really just that – some cookies and soda from my family’s faleoloa.
Each teacher and guest was given a plate of about 10 cookies, along with a can of soda. I thanked the Year 6 girl who tried to deliver my snack but turned it down. She wasn’t sure what to do. Who turns down free soda and cookies?
I don’t have a classroom of my own, so move from room to room. When I’m not teaching, I’m in the office. I change rooms about 5 times a day, hauling my junk with me. It took me awhile to realize that the kid assigned to deliver food to me sometimes has to wander the school looking for me, carrying whatever food has been made for the special occasion.
When visitors are scheduled, meals are planned and shopped for in advance. The amount and quality of food seems to vary depending on the status of the guests and the duration of the stay. The food is prepared in the Year 2 classroom. If it’s a big deal, the children from Year 2 are sent to spend the day with Year 3. Older girls are used to help prepare/serve the food and do the dishes. Boys are used to take money to the store next door to fetch necessary items.
The most elaborate meal I’ve seen prepared was for the group here to teach soccer. I’m not sure who sponsors it, but assume its FIFA. They are well-organized and seem to have a ton of money. Their own vehicles, staff, matching uniforms and lots of equipment. Impressive.
The training for the teachers who’d be leading the soccer in their schools was held in my school, for two days. Meals our teachers prepared involved rice, tinned fish, ramen noodles and canned corn beef (pisupo). I made 3 trips to my house to bring my hotplate and various pans.
Like the rest of the teachers, I love a free cup of koko Samoa. It’s an unexpected treat. I’m glad, though, that we don’t have visitors and snacks often. Bad for my diet and a major disruption. Teaching stops to accommodate the guests.
One more word about food at school. Traditionally teachers were served full meals every day during interval. I experienced that in Safata during our teaching practicum during training. Parents take turns cooking and delivering meals for all the teachers. Some schools, like ours, stopped it. I’ve heard that it was stopped because it put too much pressure on the families of the children. It can become a kind of competition among the parents over who can provide the biggest and best meal.
I know that during practicum we had a good meal every day. Some days, though, it was fresh fruit, taro and fish. One day, it was that plus lobster, palusami and more. Not all the families have the resources, both human and monetary, to provide that kind of largesse.
One of the teachers at my school was doing a lesson on meals. He laughed and said that Americans eat so much – “They eat three meals a day. Samoans only eat two meals a day. Lunch and dinner.”
After the lesson we were chatting and I pointed out that Samoans eat before school, at interval, lunch after school and dinner. His response? The “snacks” before and during school do not count. They are not meals served in the home.
Tell that to my waistline.