Tribewanted: Vorovoro

When I returned from Vorovoro I had a huge adjustment to make to my diet following my emotional involvement with the pigs. Despite the fact that they screamed at you 50 yards before you made it to the sty and practically climbed out of the pen to eat, there was something immediately endearing about them – no not the snotty noses or the gastrically challenged juices flowing from their mouths which would leave an indistincable residue on your clothing but just a feeling that you were responsible partly for their survival on the island. So yes as a child I grew up with a menagerie of animals and yes I have always been fond of most creatures, but there has always been something about pigs. It’s all about food really, its not that they are affectionate or remotely keen to be nice to you in any way unless you are the provider of grub but they are simple sweet creatures – come on anyone who has seen Babe will know exactly where I am coming from. So two things – first up – the 2nd Birthday plans are in full swing – I am told that 3 of the 6 pigs are going to be slaughtered for the Lovo – my immediate gutteral sense is to sneak off in the middle of the night and free them from their pen to avoid their imminent death – that’s the over dramatic bit over – so I rationalised the situation – they were a gift from Tui Mali and they are fed in order to provoide meat for exceptionally special occasions and that’s the food chain scenario. So I didn’t get up at 2.00 am to release them but refused to get up at 6.00 am when I was told they were going to be slaughtered. In fact it was delayed and when I crawled out of bed at 7.00 am to see a crowd of people gathering not to far from my bure, some taking pictures, I sleepily walked over – my immediate reaction when seeing the dead pigs being dragged by the Team was so shocking I burst into tears – the lifeless bodies, their limp little torsos, no screaming, no fighting just dead weight piggies. But the calmness and care from the team who were to place them in the ground fire was one of immediate respect. As it was such a manic day with all the celebrations taking place, I had no time to dwell on what took place and how I really felt about it. Needless to say I didn’t eat any of the pork dishes despite the fact that Va, Francis and her team created the most wonderful delights for the visitors to the island. I have also not eaten any pork of any description since my return to England. So here’s the question? Before Vorovoro I ate Bacon, Sausages and an occasional Pork Chop – now I just can’t – despite the fact that my family cook bacon to make sarnies on quite a regular basis. I completely understand that the pigs have been given to serve a purpose and that ultimately they will be killed for special occasions but that doesn’t mean to say I agree with it. To add to this I have just seen Holly’s pictures which show the slaughter of more of the pigs – so now I have no idea how many are left there – perhaps someone can tell me. So what is the conclusion of my blog – I guess that once you get to the ground level of looking after and becomming part of something, it changes your persective on life – my parting wish is that if we are to keep live animals on the island to provide for occasions or even just for survival we give them the best life possible prior to their imminent slaughter – if there are pigs left can someone please build them a decent trough to eat from and provide them with some mud of some description to roll around in – it was sometimes unbearable seeing them slip over on the wooden floor boards in the pen.

I would also like to just say thank you to Kathryn my best piggie friend and fellow pig feeder and to Abi who took over my duties when I left!

Sue