A Year in the Clouds (司馬庫斯)

I had a dream where I heard a voice.

It said that if the spirits of God were to act...

they would bless Smangus.

The voice said our tribe would be very prosperous...

as prosperous as the Baling tribe.

So many people would come to Smangus that the ground would shake.

Then I remembered what our ancestors had told us.

They talked of a red river with towering giant trees nearby.

Thanks to Jesus Christ.

We are very glad to accept the wonderful jobs you give us.

Let us render all things we have to God.

Please give us your blessing. May the Holy Spirit guide us.

Let our work go smoothly.

I am the chief of Smangus.

Protecting our tribe has always been my mission.

There are 28 families living on this land.

The population of 178 share this land with each other.

I'm already 8 months pregnant.

So, I'm due next month.

It makes no difference, I'll keep working...

do whatever they do right up until the day I give birth.

I'll continue to work as usual.

I won't let myself rest.

I have an antenatal examination today.

It's probably the last time...

so I'm a bit nervous.

This one...I was on time for the birth...

but I don't really want to see it.

He said that it was heartbreaking.

After she was born, I held her for the whole night.

From nine or ten o'clock until dawn the next day.

I didn't close my eyes for a second. I kept my eyes on her.

I've seen Wild Boar giving birth...

Flying Squirrels as well.

The only one I haven't seen is the Formosan Black Bear.

The umbilical cord blood is normal.

This is her head.

This is the diameter.

Keep to a normal healthy diet.

Don't eat too much rice. no more than a bowl a day.

Eat more protein, like meat.

Normally, the fourth child will deliver faster.

You live far away on the mountain and exercise a lot.

So come to the hospital as soon as you feel any pain.

I often cook in the restaurant at noon...

then in the afternoon I clean the guesthouse.

The next day maybe I'll be working on the farm.

The life is simple and we have little need to spend any money.

When I just got married...

I had to adapt myself to this new place.

Was anything here appealing to me? No nothing!

I had never touched the soil before...

or done any kind of heavy domestic labor.

Daddy will serve you later.

Look at the rice falling on the ground.

Is that any way to eat?

Don't move around.

Behave or I'll beat you with a bamboo stick.

Where's my bamboo stick?

Watch out, the bamboo stick is coming.

Hurry up! Eat your meal!

Merciful Buddha!

Sit properly Amin!

I'm preparing to hand out the wages.

For the villagers who work here...

women earn about US$ 470 per month...

as they tend to work much harder.

The men earn about US$ 370 per month.

No one has retired yet.

Good examples are our Chief and Aunty Upax...

she's in her 70's.

If people like them don't get to work...

they feel uncomfortable.

They still teach us many things and help us in our work.

With the help of God...

hopefully this year or next I will get married.

The Cooperative Management Association sponsors young people like me.

They provide US$ 6,700 per person for anyone who wishes to marry.

That's probably why the young want to get married so early.

It's often a financial issue.

Pinas, come and get your wages.

Here is yours including Tgbil's, please count it.

Aunt.

What?

I'm here to give out the wages.

I'm in here, you've come to pay the wages!

How are you? Where have you been working?

Have you come to pay the wages? - Yes.

You're so hardworking.

This is yours and this is Asan's.

Asan gets paid too? But he's already passed away.

Please count it.

As for the wages of Yuraw and the others, I'll pay them another time.

Where do I sign for it?

Here it is, US$ 450.

Please sign here.

Do I have to sign for him too?

It would be great if you could.

Aunt, this way of teaching is great...

we can pass down our way of millet sowing to the kids...

so they won't forget in the future.

This is the knowledge of millet.

This is Tosa.

This is Nqara'.

This is N'maray.

Please look at them carefully. There are three species.

How can you tell them apart?

I'll be asking questions later, look closely.

These two are different, don't assume they're the same.

The fuzzy one is N'maray, the other is Tosa.

You took this one before?

This is N'maray. Show it to them.

Look at it and then pass it on.

I'll be asking you questions later.

After you peel the shells off...

the grains inside are red. It's Nqara'.

Is this N'maray?

This is N'maray,

the other one is Nqara'.

Do you see its split end? It's Nqara'.

The grain inside is white. That one is red.

It will taste better with a bit of salt.

1, 2, 3, thank you Grandma Upax!

Put your notebooks on the ground. Have a break and go to the toilet.

I'm going to shoot little birds.

No, you're not allowed to shoot birds.

Why do I need to teach the children this traditional knowledge?

It's because nowadays the tribes are not passing down the millet culture.

We aim to pass down the traditional culture to the younger generation.

Hopefully they will remember it and help to pass on our ancestors'culture.

When this one was taken, there was no road to the village.

There was no road then.

The houses were built closely together. We didn't use tin roofs.

Which tribe is this?

What is our tribe called?

Smangus!

Who's the one with the big belly?

Who is he? Who is this?

That's uncle Lahuy!

Look! This is your father, Yanay Ikwang.

Who is he?

Grandpa!

They could recognize it.

Hit here first.

A little harder.

Much harder

We've been trying hard for years to set up a school.

A school of our own, here in the village.

We asked the government for help to build it.

But they wanted us to sign over...

some of the land to them.

So we decided to rely on ourselves, to build this tribal classroom.

This plank has begun splitting...

so we're securing it with nails.

This will prevent it splitting further when it slides down.

Making the most of any rotten or dead wood is very important to us.

This is a concept our ancestors left us.

We found a beautiful grain on this wood.

So we've decided to use it to make a teacher's desk.

Many of the younger ones don't want to come back to the mountains.

When they left the village for the city they were well.

But they were in bad shape when they came back. Nobody guided them.

I work with the elders and I learn a lot from them.

It's much more useful and practical than studying from books.

This week something happened in the village, didn't it? - Yes.

The chief is not well, right? - Right.

Please pray for him everyday

Let's pray for his recovery and that he comes back soon, ok? -Ok.

Good, let us do some exercise.

Exercise your hands.

1.2.3.4.5.6...

Have a seat.

In a moment we'll pray and sing a hymn.

Thank you very much for visiting our Chief Icyeh.

We all miss him very much.

Last week in Nantou, the chief felt a pain in his chest.

After his medical checkup, we knew he was sick.

Please lead the tribe well.

If I don't get well soon.

If it is possible...

Where's my notebook?

If I can't attend the tribal review tomorrow.

I have not completely written down these three things.

I have been sick, I'm coughing a lot these days.

Please take care of these things.

How about the Cypress? - It's more difficult to apply for it.

Did you get the Maple tree seedlings? - We got 2,000 seedlings.

How about the Cherry trees? - We also have 2,000 seedlings for planting.

You can plant them on that vacant land.

Though he is lying in bed.

His main concern is still about the tribe.

I'm deeply moved...

this is my source of strength.

Brothers and sisters, may you have peace!

Let's thank God for giving us this fine weather.

Today's work should go very smoothly.

If it rains, the weather will hamper our work.

Tomorrow we're expecting more than one hundred tourists.

First, let's pray together, pray for today's work.

Pray for the tribesmen hospitalized and wish them a speedy recovery.