In the Sea of Helplessness

Many of us endured the abject poverty forced upon the local community when the Navy moved elsewhere in 1960. The U.S. Department of the Interior came in with its own set of wages. Many lost their jobs with the Navy while those who moved into the TTG had to make do with $0.16 an hour.
Fortunately, those employed with the Naval Administration never severed their customary subsistence lifestyle. So returning to farming and fishing when the Navy terminated their employment wasn’t as bad. It was second nature working the farm fields and the lagoon. After all, they farmed and fished after work. Assistance from the feds, in any form or fashion, was nonexistent then.

The shift in lifestyle makes returning to subsistence living next to impossible today. Not after a stint in either sector where we bring home the bacon, so to speak for more than six decades. It’s a modern community that thought the good times would never slip or falter. It did and royally too! It begs the question: Did leadership ever plan for this mind-numbing and fatal economic eventuality? Or were they humming “Don’t worry, be happy…” followed by “Let it be?” Wow! Sterling leadership, huh?

I feel for family patriarchs and matriarchs who must endure a condition wrought by the bad times that include the forced loss of the first family home. This group includes more than 54 families and counting quickly. Yes, their daily meal from dawn to dusk is: Where would we go? To mom and dad or a sibling’s home? Would not such a move impose upon the other family? What’s the answer if the kids say, “Mom, let’s go home?” Isn’t it a tradition that a man must build a house before marrying his bride? But it seems the bad times, not better times now, has turned them into victims of unsolicited destitution and homelessness.

I’ve met some of these folks who are struggling for dear life in the sea of helplessness. Is there leadership on the hill, anywhere? Hello, anybody home? [I]Man-tinane’ hit ginilisunen guaguan na steak yan lobster na esta man-malefa hit ni tautau gi señgsoñg siha. Malag manu i ekspirensiau na man-ma’gas tanu? De dios na diskuidu gi asuntun linahyan! Kau linala’ miserable i premiun i tautau pagu?[/I] n n n
On this Thanksgiving Day

The holiday season begins next week on Thanksgiving Day. But the mood of governance seems pensive as they quiz: turkey or CUC? Hmmm, it’s definitely situational. But I’ve decided to stay with my brethrens by celebrating the occasion with Beach Cliff Sardines in soybean oil imported from Poland. No embarrassment there. After all, the locals have baptized sardines as the poor man’s turkey. Yes, what matters to most families are the prayers of gratitude they’d offer Him upstairs for their blessings despite the hard times.

It isn’t surprising too that given the disastrous state of the economy, many families have decided to forego lavish supper with loved ones—you know, the usual spread of turkey, ham, and all. Even a company that issues ham or turkey to its employees has forfeited such gifts this year. It’s too steep a cost at a time when the firm hardly breaks even. Most would make do with what’s available for the dinner table on Thanksgiving night.

It was in the late ’50s when Thanksgiving Day gradually became a permanent part of the local community. Perhaps we can attribute it to the CNMI being predominantly Catholic. And Thanksgiving Day begins with a prayer of gratitude. It’s a natural event that took its permanent root on the islands. It brings the flock’s focus right back to Him. Yes, it’s vital that we build and strengthen our spiritual anchor with complete surrender to Him. It provides for lighter loads on our shoulders as we struggle each day to earn an honest living.

With or without turkey and Christmas lights, make it a point to celebrate this day of Thanksgiving with loved ones. [I]Taya mas ke bendision i Saina gi maseha hafa na okasion entalo’ tasin minagof yan chinatsaga. Gaige fitme gi ha’anita na ha pupulan hit[/I]. Happy Thanksgiving para todus!

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Buddy Magoo is all smiles this morning. That strange grin on his face is a tale that he’s found some heavy queries to slam against my face. Sure enough, he asked: “Iku, if this government is broke why is the hiring freeze easily ignored to hire more people?” I wasn’t sure how to answer him but he followed it up with another query, “If this government can’t pay its obligation to the Retirement Fund, why is the board so dismissive by not demanding payment from the administration?”

I explained (and have no business doing so) that attrition (as jobs are vacated) positions are closed, shut and bolted. This ensures cuts in spending. But then, since when did politicians exercise accountability, what with their insatiable desire to spend and shop until the local treasury drops off Debt Cliff? The imperiled Fund is woefully shaky at the base. Would the board demand payment when they must genuflect meekly to the boss who gave them their jobs?

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A faithful multi-millionaire gave generously to his church. His only wish is to win the highest power lotto. It never came until one day he was fuming for His failure to grant him his one last wish. Came an angel from above and asked him if he’s bought tickets for the power lotto. He said he hasn’t done so. Said the angel, “Then how do you expect to win if you haven’t taken the initiative to buy tickets?” A` Saina!
[I] DelRosario is a regular contributor to the Saipan Tribune’s Opinion Section.[/I]