This week has been the longest break we have had since coming, and it has been amazing! We took a land tour, kayaked through mangroves, snorkeled several times, and went to the beach. Though I miss all the students, it has been nice to have a little break. I learned a lot about the stone money, I wish I could upload a picture! I will just have to stick with descriptions though.
A long long time ago, before any foreigners came to Yap, one of the Chiefs decided they needed a new form of money. They wanted something big and visible that the villages could display. They didn't have any stone big enough here to make it so they put together a group of men to go find some. These men set off in canoes into the open ocean. They sailed for several hundred miles before running in to Palau. The Palauans had never seen these people before and they figured they could mean only harm so they killed all of them. The Yapese were wondering why the men had been gone so long so they sent another group out to find them. When this new group came to Palau they made known they came in peace and the Palauans let them live. They had a lot of huge rocks on Palau so they said they could take what they wanted. The Yapese men carved out huge pieces of money with holes in the middle so they could mount them on the boat. They made the treacherous journey back to Yap, a few of the stones fell out into the ocean never to be seen again. This started a new tradition. It was very treacherous to get the stone money though, a lot of lives were lost with every journey. One year a foreigner,one of the first to come, named O'Keefe came to Yap and offered to give them a small ship in exchange for several materials he wanted. With this ship they could easily make the journey to Palau to find the stone for their money.
The stone money comes in all different sizes, from a foot tall to 7 feet tall. I assumed it was valued based on size, but it isn't. It's value is based on what it went through to get here, it's location, and the lives lost in acquiring it. It's not valued on it's size but on what it's been through. The stones acquired before O'Keefe brought the ship are the most valuable because of how hard they were to get. The one's that dropped to the bottom of the ocean are the most valuable of all. Many of the stones you see around the island are newer and came on a ship, you can tell by their perfectly carved centers. These are ranked by how many storms they went through to get here. A small one that went through two typhoons is more valuable then a huge one that had a peaceful journey here. The money is owned by different villages and chiefs. The biggest collections, or banks, are usually displayed by a men's house in the village.
I thought it was really interesting how they based the value of them. Maybe a little cliche, but I think it is a good reminder to me. I shouldn't value people based on outward appearance but on what they have been through; because that is what's really important. It's the trials in life that God uses to mold us and change us. I hope you have all enjoyed your vacation as much as we have. 2011 has been a great year and I can't wait to see what 2012 will bring. HAPPY NEW YEAR! :)
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