It's been 6 months since Courtney and I moved to Pukak. Where does half a year go??? I thought it would be fun to finally introduce the kids that Court and I have been spending so much time with.
Junily (7 years old) is the youngest sister of Beatrice and Alphonsus. She reminds me of an awkward but still graceful baby deer. She has the most beautiful almond shaped yellow tinted brown eyes. She always sat next to me at church when we were doing the Rosary in May. She was so standoffish and serious at first, but now she's just silly and when she starts laughing she can't stop.
Beatrice (10) is also very beautiful! Long eyelashes. She has a very soft baby girl voice but can run around with the boys. She can suck her nostrils closed. She and I like to make no-upper-lip faces at each other.
Alphonsus (11) is Mr. Cool Guy. He makes me laugh a lot. He is going to be one of the popular kids in high school, I'm sure. He likes to walk around like he's part of the mafia and says hello by tilting his head back, peering at you through lazy eyes, and giving you the slightest nod of his chin. Sometimes he's wearing a pirate eye patch while doing this. When Court and I freed a baby owl he had captured (or maybe Alphonsus would claim he rescued it), Alphonsus for days afterwards would greet me with, “Where's my wol?”
Rozienny (9) is called Nini and is as cute as her nickname. She is always one of the last to finish eating at mealtimes because she really savors her food. I will never forget watching her eat a fried egg on one of my first days here. She's very affectionate and is always chucking me under the chin. So cute. When she recently lost one of her front teeth, I helped her clean it and gave her an envelope to keep it in. That night at dinner, she kept pushing her chewed rice through the gap.
Arena (9) was my first friend from the hostel. She was the first kid I met on our first day. She's a skinny little thing. She was a flower girl at a wedding I went to and she was so cute! She's a great dancer in the traditional dance called Sumazou.
Jeyceycka (11) is Arena's older sister. Her name is pronounced Jessica, if you didn't catch that. According to our director, she has a very typical Dusun face. And I think her face is beautiful!! She has a really cute kind of lopsided smile. She stands and walks with a little bit of a hunch. In English class, she sometimes like to copy her friends work but I'll give her credit for being resourceful. She's best friends with Roneca.
Roneca (11) is the only daughter of 4 kids. I love when she wears her glasses because she looks like a little mom. She's very sweet. She can also be very shy, especially in English class when she doesn't want me to look at her work. But she was very good at helping me pick out my white hairs, of which I no longer have any thanks to her. She takes good care of her younger brothers.
Rommy (12) is Roneca's older brother. He is very nakal, or naughty. Courtney and I are happy when he attends Court's English class, even though he is supposed to be in mine, because at least he is participating in something! It's not uncommon for him to run into my classroom, wreak a little havoc, and then run out. He's also Mr. Cool Guy with a nice little strut and a cheeky smile. He'll get some nice attention later for his dimples.
Ronald (7) is the younger brother of Rommy and Roneca. He is definitely one of Court's faves, though we know we're not supposed to choose favorites. He is so cute and skinny. He is a great singer. He also has a very expressive face – whether he's singing or eating or playing, he always has an awesome expression that makes him seem like he's fully invested in whatever he's doing at that moment.
Ellieca (9) is a little lady. Whenever she's walking, she has a kind of dignified air about her. And she looks deceptively quiet and serious. But then next thing you know, she's in your face with her eyes really wide open and her ponytail everywhere. She is hilarious. I loved watched her jump rope one time because her arms were flailing everywhere like her life depended on it.
Calvonny (8) is a character to study. He also seemed very standoffish to me at first and almost sullen, but now I just see him as this wacky unique kid. Whenever he eats he gets rice all over his face, almost as if he particularly places each one, which I actually wouldn't put past him. One time I watched him continuously talk to himself under his breath while bouncing up and down in his seat and periodically getting up, leaving, and sitting down again. He makes me laugh. And he likes to read!
Joell (8) is one of those kids that I think will look exactly the same when he's an old man. Not that he looks old now, but I feel I can see his future self in him now. He hasn't really grown into his long legs yet and walks a bit like a duck. He also has a little bit of a hunch. Every Wednesday when I'm cooking lunch, he comes into the kitchen, points at the fish I am frying and says, “This is for me.” He has beautiful wide set eyes.
Linney (9) can seem very dainty to me, in the way she purses her lips sometimes. She has a babyface and I always assumed she was just super sweet. But after I learned of Dion's crush on her and after he told me that he likes her because she doesn't care what anyone thinks, I began to observe her more closely and noticed her sassy streak. She does have an expression, an arms-crossed-chin-turned-away-humph look, that totally says, “Whatever!”
Dion (11) is our fellow volunteer Bella's younger brother. I think Dion is going to be very handsome when he is older. I think he's a beautiful kid. I like speaking to him in English because he always speaks confidently while at the same time making mistakes. He's not embarrassed to try and say, “Eh! Silap!” which means “wrong”. He is always pointing at his work in English class and practically shouting things like, “This is a car! This is a howsh!” He has a goofy side which I love.
Olever (8) is the younger brother of Alleyno and Shirneyla. Olever is super cute. He is very good natured, just like his older siblings. He injured his elbow while wrestling with the other boys and it swelled up to the size of a tennis ball. It seems to have healed though he still can't straighten that arm. He's back to arm wrestling though, no problemo.
Shirneyla (10) is a sweet girl. She has a smiley face, also like her two brothers. She has a kind of raspy voice. Looking at her, I'd assume she's on the quieter side, but when she sings during prayer or reads, she does so with a loud strong voice.
Alleyno (12), pronounced Ah-leh-no, already looks a lot like his dad. There's something mature about him. His height helps. He's a really good kid and I appreciate him more and more as I get to know him more. I think he really enjoys English class and is one of the few boys who really pays attention and puts effort into his work.
Joverenternius (8), whom we call Toyo, is a little man. He's got a stocky build and walks around like a little rugby player. He's got beautiful dimples and every time I see him I can't get over how cute he is. He's one of the younger kids, but he's also one of the more well-behaved kids. I feel like everything he does, whether washing his clothes or playing football or reading a book, is done with a kind of gravity. He's also very intelligent.
Jeron (11) is also another very intelligent one. He's one of those brilliant misunderstood troubled types. He can be extremely difficult to interact with because he can be very aggressive and mean. We've all gotten used to Jeron throwing a hissy fit and yelling that he's going to kill someone, while all the kids clear out of his way. He can be unpredictable. But when he's in a good mood, though he's still not exactly the kind of kid you can cuddle with, he's very engaging and funny. He would make a great actor (or con man, depending on which path he travels). When he's not using his scary monster voice to seriously threaten others, he uses it while simultaneously laughing at himself, acknowledging that he's just being a great big diva. He really makes me laugh. He has the best English out of all the kids.
Glory (12) was new to the hostel and school this year. She started out as an outcast, someone the boys really loved to pick on. But she's come into her own. At first I would get irritated by her adolescent boy craziness (you know how girls like to nag/tease boys in order to get attention), but now I'm just really proud of her. She recently had a leading role in a skit the kids put on for the community and I was so impressed with her confident performance. She was even speaking in Dusun, which she just started to learn after coming here to Pukak! She always waits for me after English class now and helps me put the chairs up and pick up trash.
Endrayson (10) is our coworker Henritta's younger brother. He has very light brown hair. He reminds me of a cute turtle, maybe a little ninja turtle. He still has a babyface which disguises a mischievous side. One time when I visited his village and stayed at his house, he repeatedly cheated at Uno. He often likes to come up to you and tilt his head to one side and impassively stare at you. I just mimic him. He and I make funny or grotesque faces at each other while eating.
Aloysius (8) likes tofu, though really he just likes to eat. He is like a toothpick with a head, but he sure can put food away. I always crack up when I see him put his fish or watermelon in his cup, though a lot of the children do that. With his thick eyebrows, he has what I think Charlotte Bronte or Jane Austen would call a brooding countenance, but when he smiles his whole face lights up. He has the cutest dimples.
Webster (9) is another cute one. He just kills me with his smile. He has the best widest smile I know. It's like his whole being is smiling at you when he smiles. He's very playful too. And good-natured. Our director says that one time when she was making the 2-hour walk back to the kids' village, Webster patiently waited for the slow adults and even gave back massages! So cute.
Tonny (12) is another Mr. Cool Guy, in a suave kind of way. He's a man of few words. It might be because his voice is changing which is super cute, but I also think it's just his personality. Dora, the hostel director, says that Tonny is very mature about his emotions and even when he gets angry he doesn't lash out – he walks away and cools down. He has a sweet quiet smile. He can be a little unproductive in English class but I like him so much I let him get away with slacking off more than I should.
Deanny (7) is Tonny's younger brother and gets the prize for being the cutest cuddliest kid. He has the roundest cheeks and something in me just squeals in delight when I see him. He has a toothless smile right now which is so cute. One time he threw up after eating lunch too fast but I cleaned up his vomit cheerily because I would probably do anything for the kid. I've had a couple dreams where he's injured or almost dead and I have to save him. He's usually running around screaming with the other kids, but he also really likes to sit quietly and read. He has this serious expression that has become familiar and Court is worried about his worry lines on his forehead.
Celestinah (10) is probably the quirkiest of the girls. She has a sleek bob that I'm always really jealous of. She plays with the other kids just fine, but she also likes to play alone in her own little world. Her name is fitting for her sometimes otherworldly character. She has a distinct gait, kind of like she's plodding along, shoulders forward, flat footed, steadily, until the day she can stop. She loves gestures of affection. She, along with Junily, also always held my hand and sat with me during the weekly Rosary in May. Celestinah is also very intelligent. She can be very picky with her food.
Alex (12) is Celestinah's older brother and I think he's going to grow up to be handsome in the way that boy band members are handsome. He has that boy-next-door kind of look. He has a smiley face. He has good English. I always enjoy seeing him on early Monday mornings at the hostel – he always looks fresh and happy even though he woke up at the crack of dawn and walked an hour through the mist and jungle hills.
Vanessa (11) is our coworker Valentina's younger sister. Vanessa has skinny long legs she hasn't grown into yet. She has that beautiful awkwardness of adolescent girls. She has really good English and is very meticulous with her schoolwork. I enjoy helping her in English and in math. She speaks very precisely which is really cute. She always emphasizes the end of her sentences and lights up as if she's so proud and happy to be speaking to you, especially in English.
Andrew (11) would probably be voted class clown. He's goofy and hilarious. He has really good comedic timing. Even though he's usually speaking in Malay or Dusun, I can see that in his tone of voice and body language. The other day he left English tutoring for a second, came back to my table very calmly and quietly, and when I asked him why he left, he responded unintelligibly through a mouth thick with chocolate cookies, completely straight faced. Another time I asked him who he walked from his village with and he said, completely aloof, “Hantu kiap kiap.” Later when I asked Dora what that meant, she burst out laughing and said it's a kind of Thai ghost. He cracks me up. I know he's going to be a kid who is popular because he's funny and good-looking.
Eljoe (8) is last because if I had to choose favorites it would be him hands down. First of all, he's left handed like me. It also helps that he's taken as big a fascination with me as I have of him. He often likes to push the other kids out of the way so that he can sit right next to me. He's also very naughty and his nose is always running and his face always sweaty. He's a skinny little thing but he walks around like he's a big shot. He has a face that scrunches up, in a miniature version of his older brother Andrew's. At the beginning of the year, he didn't know the alphabet, but now with the help of Dora's careful dedication, he knows the alphabet and can read a little bit. Court and I suspect he might have a learning disability of some sort. But he's very creative and artistic and whenever I ask the kids to draw, he always draws to the sound of his own drum – many of the kids hesitate saying they're not clever enough or end up copying each other. But when Eljoe sits down with paper and markers, he's in his own world immediately and he doesn't follow anyone.
I love these kids so much. I'm very sad to be leaving them in less than a month now. They are each a masterpiece with their strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, highs and lows. I always say that I don't want them to grow up and become adults and lose their child's innocence and playfulness, but I think what I really mean is that I don't want to miss out on witnessing their growth and transformation. I'm so grateful for the time I've gotten to spend with them. To know of their beautiful existence in this world!
