I was flipping through the channels last weekend and happened to land on either channel 23 or 25 and saw a portion of a replay of the Airai women’s conference. I am not sure of the channel because I was almost half asleep and it was very late. Yet, the portions of the program I do remember have lingered to this day. I must say that I was quite impressed and perplexed at the same time with the intensity of the women and the logic of the issues they raised – particularly about the Palauan culture. But I was awakened when a noticeable participant of the conference suggested that the Palauan culture be taught in the schools – and I have been in deep thought since then.
The Palauan culture is a personal “living thing.” It is alive because you and I breathe it. It cannot be taught but it must be learned in order that it remains living. I believe that I am Palauan because I chose to learn from my family and from significant and relevant people whom I have met and lived with. I did not learn to be a Palauan from Emmaus Gospel Kindergarten, Maris Stella School, or any other school that I have attended – for that matter, I learned about principles that are similar to those valued by Palauan people. Most of my Palauaness – if I may be so inclined – is a result experiences I have had with people who, by definition of culture, were cooperative, sensitive, and moved in the same orientation. Many of them are still living and continue to do what they do that define who they are – and I am certain that the Japanese schools worked very hard to strip them of their culture. I wonder how the schools failed?It is just plain nuts to think that Palauan culture can simply be taught in schools – such a western concept and a fallacy. The current school system is one of the greatest contributing factors to the loss of practice of the Palauan culture; and the practice of the Palauan culture can only learned from those you hold dear in you heart and they are certainly within the school system.You and I need to seriously look at our current system of education and how much it has taken away from our culture. Our children do not have the time to learn our ways – they spend too much time in school. Our Head Start Program picks them up when they are 3 years of age; and years later Palau Community College delivers them when they turn 21. In between the years of schooling, our children google the world and learn of other things because you and have to work to ensure that they remain in school and our weekends are often filled with cultural obligations that we feel our children must not taste – including the delicacies served.Culture really is a state of mind that transforms to attitude, which in turn dictates behavior. I think Palauan!
