For the week, I was one more daughter in Pee's parents' household -- usually a large family of 15 , but expanded to about 30 or 40 (or more?) during the course of the week. The doors were wide open, ensuring new faces and new friends to be made each day.
The week kicked off ceremoniously with a family group ceremony to usher in good and rid the bad spirits on the day Pee and I arrived. The next day was the cow slaughter that was very much an all-day family affair. The two eldest sons bought the cow (about $175) for the family as an offering for the mother's health (she had had surgery earlier in the year) and for the health and safety of several traveling family members from the U.S.
Cow and Family
I'm not from a large family, so the idea of activity and noise all the time and no privacy at any time was new to me. But everyone was so welcoming, social, and talkative. Maybe that's part of the territory of a large family. Even though we couldn't speak the same linguistic language, some forms of communication are universal -- like laughter and babies.
Family Life
A Few Hmong New Year Traditions
The Kilometer 52 Hmong New Year festival host rotates each year to one of the nearby villages. This year, the hosting village was right across the street, so it was a short walk from the house, ensuring about 2-3 visits to the fair every day!
The kids of course were interested in rides and games, but the most important tradition, followed by both young and old, is the pov pob, the courtship game played between men and women, boys and girls, by throwing a ball to one another while singing love songs.
Traditional Hmong Dress and Pov Pob at the Festival
(I got to wear three different costumes!)
The young folks don't really sing songs these days, but there were some fine specimens among the older folks. The language used is poetic and figurative, so even the young Hmong can't understand the songs. But from what I could tell, when a man and woman were interested in one another, the songs were woven into a kind of discourse to learn about each others' families and backgrounds.
Pov Pob Song (with me playing wingman!)
Bull fighting is another popular event during Hmong New Year, mostly with the men. I can see the thrill of it...kind of like a potential running of the bulls in a dried out rice paddy.
Some Running with the Bulls
(Don't worry, I was safely on a hill behind a barbed wire fence!)
A Bit of Bull Fighting
I spent a lot of time with the kids of the family, and I took a particular liking to Ten (age 10) and Yer (age 12). Ten and I got good at the bumper cars together (the funnest dollar I've ever spent), and I helped Yer take care of the guppies every day.
This morning when Pee and I were packing to head back to Vientiane, he reminded me to not leave anything behind. And he said,
Pee: Don't forget your hat.Me: That's not my hat (pointing to one near my bag).Pee: Don't forget your HAT.Me: (Confused)Pee: Don't forget your HAT (with his hand on his chest).Me: Oh, my HEART!
When I was picking up the last of my things, I understood what he meant. I had printed out photos off my camera for the family using a photo printer the American uncle had brought. I gave the one of of me and the boys at the festival to Ten, and he had already put it up on the cabinet next to the photo of their sister.
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