Fiji Blog 7 - Iveta

Early in the morning, when the sun was just starting to peak over the mountains, we awoke to the sound of our families busily preparing for the day. Unlike our typical schedule, which involves a combination of service, classwork, and visiting the boarding school, today was centered around an important event that was happening in the village – the soli. A whole day event, the soli is designed to help fundraise for a community project, in this case a new kitchen for the community center. To prepare for the event, we spent the morning helping our nenes cook dishes for the potluck, the crisp smells of baking bread and cooking fires filling the air as we laughed and bonded with our families. In such a short amount of time, these people have become our second family, making us feel at home while we’re constantly exposed to new and unfamiliar things. What could have easily been a scary and intimidating experience has become one defined by warm smiles, everlasting patience while we ask millions of questions, and so many invitations to have tea and play cards that we’ve long forgotten why we traveled across the village in the first place. I know I speak for all of us when I say that we will never be able to repay the kindness, love, and care that this community has shown us every single day.

Contrary to a garage sale or fundraiser back home, where only locals from the immediate area participate, people from all over the country came together for the soli, with some coming from as far as other districts or neighboring islands. Even with such a large amount of distance separating these families, they are still an incredibly welcoming, close-knit community that supports one another, both in their familial and communal endeavors. As I carried spare cords and ingredients from houses up to the tents, I was able to witness first-hand how bonds were reignited and new ones were forged with just a simple conversation or wave across the road.

Due to the nature of the soli, the day had a lot more freedom and less concrete structure, with most of it being centered around eating, dancing, and sharing handmade crafts. Just thinking about the various foods like deep fried tuna, char siu, and lovo – chicken cooked in foil over hot coals -- lined up on the table makes our mouths water in anticipation. Songs were another key part of the event, with our day being frequently punctuated by spontaneous dancing and singing along to one of the many songs playing from the speakers simultaneously. As my classmates and I were finishing our dance to a song we’d rehearsed for a while now, my nene came up to each one of us and rubbed baby powder onto our cheeks, covering our giggling faces in snowy beards. With the encouragement of our families, we rode on our chaotic energy and formed a conga line that traveled from tent to tent, leaving behind wide grins and sounds of amused laughter. Once we came back to the tents, our focus shifted to the various handcrafts on display, particularly on small hand-crafted purses woven by one of my nene’s friends in the island group. Each stitch and weave were placed with such care and attention to detail that is then reflected in the daily interactions within our community. Just like it takes time to create beautiful works of art such as these bags, it takes time and effort to build strong, lasting relationships – a lesson which we all hope to carry with us through the rest of our time in Fiji and beyond.