COUNTRY: Borneo
PROGRAM: UniBreak
PROJECT: Teaching & Environmental Conservation
WRITTEN BY: Richie Allchurch
Week 2 in Long Sait - Teaching
Over the following week, I focussed more on sport after the whole-school class doing gymnastics with Sumi and the kids on the grass such as headstands, handstands and cartwheels and participating in games like wheel barrow and piggy back races. We received assistance from Zadi and Steve, an English couple who had come to Borneo for 3 months looking to help out in the school, with the tree planting project and to trek with us. In the whole-school classes we persisted with music, arts and crafts and dancing, trying to get the kids to learn some moves such as Gangnam style, tap some beats and sing songs like ‘In the jungle the mighty jungle’ with varying success. But the main thing was we had fun as did the children, with lots of laughter and giggling. One day we had a paper plane competition that Gus organised, teaching the children how to make a generic plane out of paper to see which could fly the furthest. This was great and quite successful with the furthest 3 planes flying a long way – not bad for an inaugural competition.
One afternoon we came back from teaching in the hall to find sketched masterpieces of ourselves drawn by Grace and Linda. Gus and Sumi were on the same page; Gus pumping some weights but also thinking deeply with his colloquial sayings such as ‘Hey hey’ and Sumi on the pole with a bit of gastro. I looked like a mad scientist, taking photos but also completely unaware of the time perhaps because my thong had broken which earned me the name dark horse/stallion always creeping up from behind, later than expected, dealing with the jungle nymph. Caitlin was the top gun air force pilot. Catherine had a pineapple phobia. And Kaitlyn was the gecko, leaping up to catch the frisbee with her fingers widely stretched apart.
We kept up our regular nightly gatherings at the house of truth and dare where some interesting honesties were told and some wacko dares played out. We also talked more about ourselves and our own lives like I recall Hollie telling us that she was on Shipwrecked which she later regretted and also getting serious about what we could actually do to help the jungle and its inhabitants in Borneo. To start, we can look at phasing out our use of cosmetics that have Palm Oil in. Reducing demand is perhaps one of the most effective ways to stop the supply of something that is damaging the environment; shrinking the market that will not be supplied to if it is not there. This is only really scratching the surface though. It will take a huge concerted effort, more constructive labelling of products and an awareness campaign to shift habits away from palm oil consumption.
On our second last night in Long Sait, there was a special celebration held for us in the village hall where most of the inhabitants came down to watch or participate. It was a cultural show where many of the young and old in the village walked into the centre of the room and danced and sang for us, in traditional attire to the same tape recording of Penan music. Each dance told a story; there was one danced by a lady in a black and gold embroidered dress and headband that portrayed rice harvesting and there was another of an old elder out hunting in the jungle with his Parang, surprising us at times with sudden hunting cries. Then it was our turn to get up and show off our impersonations of the dances wearing the headband (for girls) and the feather headdress (for guys).
All the takes were very funny for the locals with a few of the girls and Hollie depicting bathing in the river, harvesting or taking items off shelves while Gus chose to go surfing which was hilarious. My mixture of Penan and contemporary dance such as Gangnam style got a few laughs also. It was an entertaining night and a way for the Penan to express their gratitude to us for visiting their village.
The following day was our last in Long Sait, presenting an opportunity to celebrate our time there. So we chose to have an Australian day theme to introduce them to aspects of our culture. In the morning we gave out kangaroo-shaped stickers to the children to colour in and stick on their shirts to get a photo of. In the afternoon we gave out Australian stickers, more sports equipment and had heaps of fun giving the kids Australian tattoos which they thought were pretty ace and colouring them up with green and gold zinc, getting into the true style of Australia Day. We said our final goodbyes to the kids and thanked them which makes me sad looking back, remembering how delightful and cute they were but we had a fantastic time with them. We had one final, long bathe in the Long Sait river, in our special spot slightly upstream and then I chilled out on a rock for a while reflecting on the amazing time I had had out in the village.
That night, Gus and I along with Grace, Caitlin and Hollie went next door to Norrin’s house to teach English one final time. I taught a couple of sweet Penan teenage girls, who both read and wrote reasonable English but they needed to practise their conversations so they could talk to other people effectively in English which will improve their prospects of working and living in the English speaking world. They both said that English was their favourite subject and were both sitting exams to get into the higher levels of secondary school. I sincerely hope they get in and can further their English skills as they had a huge desire and passion for learning the language. The girls, the Penan youngsters and the older teenage boys/young men who walk around during the day doing very little, deserve a decent education so that they can become who they want to be and fulfil their purpose in life which I know they can achieve because of the great enjoyment they get out of learning.
Goodbye Long Sait, back to Long Kerong - Recuperation
The following day it was actually Australia Day but it was a sad morning for us as we had to say goodbye to Long Sait. We thanked our host family very much – I attempted to in Penan, bought some more wrist and calf bangles and they gave us some colourful Christian themed beaded necklaces as gifts which was very nice. We said goodbye to the villages and were off, some of us a bit teary, but we had to go. Going over the swing bridge, I looked back at the lovely village of Long Sait, the river and the people that I had developed fond impressions of one last time and then we were away.
The trek back to Long Kerong was a quiet, sombre affair with most of us a bit down at leaving Long Sait but it was also nice to have some peace and contemplate what had happened there. No one floated down the river with their pack on this time (Grace) as we were much more used to trekking by this stage. We stopped midway to eat a nice tasting red fruit from the side of the path; it was awesome how beautiful food was literally provided fresh at our fingertips. We made it to Long Kerong and spent the afternoon relaxing, bathing in the river and washing our clothes.
Before we headed off to Long Sepigen, Gus and I visited church, the first time we had done so. It was interesting to begin with, noticing how it was similar to a Western church service, which they would have been taught, with a band, a sermon, some bible readings and a prayer but was slightly different in that the men and women were separated on either sides, like in Islam, and that the bulk of the village went to church; it was a real community affair unlike most suburbs in Sydney where only a minority go to church.
The Penan wanted to be there but I felt as though there was something lacking in the service, the normal sort of positive energy and meaningful vibe out of the preaching in an inspirational church service wasn’t there. It was as though the Penan were obliged to go but weren’t getting a whole lot out of this. The Penan are a very modest and humble race of people so perhaps they are always like that in church. That being said, I couldn’t help think that keeping some of their former Animist beliefs or traditions and integrating them with Christianity could make for a more lively and passionate affair, respecting their past and also embracing their new beliefs.
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