THE CENTER STRAND

Brittney Nia Hamilton

My hips sway, rolling waves down the grass I braided to make my skirt. If I dance well, eyes closed, the sound of my skirt mimics the sound of the lagoon: waves arriving one after another on the sandy beaches of my home island, Saipan. We dance to the rhythm of coconut shells tapping together, like oars against the sides of a Micronesian outrigger canoe. These are the sounds of prosperity, harvesting wealth from island and reef.

The movements of this dance aren’t meant to be sensational, they are meant to be meaningful. My grandmother, my Nang, taught me the history of my people as she taught me the movements of the dances. My arms reach up to the sun, which makes our skin bronze and our crops green. My legs plant purposefully into the ground, soil which roots my people in our place. Every movement has a meaning, passed down for thousands of years to me.

When I was a little girl, my Nang taught me how to harvest the ti-leaf of the coconut tree (the young branch that shoots into the sky). I strip the ti-leaf to make strands, tie them together with the green chords of the stem, and I place three strips together tied by my string—then I weave. Similar to the movements of my dance, each strand of the braid has meaning. My Nang taught me that the first strand represents her and my other ancestors: the previous generations of Chamorros. The center strand represents me and my generation, tied close to my ancestors. The third strand represents our future generations, my children. By weaving these flimsy leaves together, our family becomes strong, flexible, and beautiful. Sitting on mats, woven from pandanus leaves like sails on our flying proa, my grandma explains the metaphor of the ti-leaf braids. Once, and often, my grandma reminds me that, by making my skirt we are braiding our family together, and also binding ourselves together. We are making more than just a skirt, we are making a people and preserving a history.

My grandmother taught me to plant taro, lemmai, and sugar cane, because these were the skills that kept her family alive. These are also distinctly female tasks in the Chamorro culture. The men harvest fish, fanihi (fruit bats), ayuyu (large coconut crabs), and turtles (the only red meat in our ancient diet), but the women are meant to plant the crops. My Nang wants me to be a traditional Chamorro woman, but I am destined to disappoint. Traditionally, in my culture, the woman is less than and behind the man. We are taught to be quiet, unobtrusive, unopinionated, and uneducated. When a woman seeks to elevate her station, or if she challenges the male hierarchy, she is insulted in the most severe fashion, she is labeled “tai respetu.” This means one who has forgotten her place, one who shows no respect.

When I leave for college I will certainly be accused of shirking my duties to my family. I will be called tai respetu and I will be discouraged from thinking my own thoughts, speaking my own opinions. But I will go anyway. The world is a different place now, my people cannot exist in ignorance; we cannot compete in this world without education. That I am tied to my ancestors is true, I will not forget. But I am also braided to our future generations and they are tied to me. I must grow in understanding and I must be strong in education. My children will find strength in me as I find strength in my Nang.

My name is Nia and I am the center strand of the braid. My mind is as sharp as my pencils, and soon I will attend college in the mainland. I will defy the expectations of my culture in order to better protect it. My dance is languid, my hips seductive, but when you see me in my braided ti-leaf skirt, look at my face. This dance, stories of waves and harvests, is my defiance. I dance to preserve what is under attack. I read, study, and write, for the same reasons. I exist to preserve a valuable history, to protect a threatened island people, and to ensure a future for my children on these shores.

About Brittney
Brittney Nia Hamilton is a senior at Kagman High School. She is a member of the Million Dollar Scholars Club, which supports scholars as they graduate high school and go to college. Brittney has been accepted to several universities and she is weighing her scholarship offers before deciding where to study. To learn more about Brittney and the Million Dollar Scholars, and to support our scholars, please visit www.gofundme.com.