THE TIDY TAOTAOMO'NA

 

Siempre hao nina'manman yanggen un li'e' este na lugåt annai guaha siha åcho' latte.

(You will certainly be amazed if you see this place where there are latte stones.)

Man gaige siha gi apattao na lugåt, tåya' guma', tåya' chålan. Mappot ma hanaogue este na lugåt.

(They are in an isolated place, no homes, no streets. It's a difficult place to get to.)

Puro ha' nette, chå'guan yan trongko siha gi uriya.

(It's all swordgrass, grass and trees in the surrounding area.)

Lao ti un fañodda' chå'guan annai man gaige i acho' latte. Man måtai ha' i cha'guan annai man gaige i acho' latte.

(But you won't find grass where the latte stones are. The grass is simply dead where the latte stones are.)

Ya ti siña un ålok na sa' pot guaha taotao man måtto ya man ma gatcha' i cha'guan na man måtai, sa' håssan taotao guihe na lugåt.

(And you can't say that it's because people go there and step on the grass that it's dead, because few people go to that place.)

I taotaomo'na ha' muna' taiguennao.

(It's the taotaomo'na who make it that way.)

So it was said to me by an old-timer about a certain location which I won't disclose, so that the latte stones there may be preserved in its current state.

The traditional Chamorro belief is to avoid latte sites anyway.

The taotaomo'na live around latte stones, and it's best not to irritate the taotaomo'na by bad behavior, and only God knows what a certain taotaomo'na might consider bad behavior, so better to avoid the place completely. An upset taotaomo'na will make you sick or at least bruise you. Yelling, urinating and physically disturbing the place are all obviously bad behavior, but some have been punished by taotaomo'na for less than these, and some people claim they were extremely careful and yet were still punished.

Some people may look at the place and come up with a natural explanation for the dry and lifeless ground immediately surrounding the latte stones. Perhaps the tree cover blocks out the sun.

But, upon seeing the place, I must say enough sun and rain water could make the ground more grassy and green.

But you will never convince the old-timer I talked to that it's anything other than the taotaomo'na who keep the area immediately around "their" latte stones clear of tall grass. The taotaomo'na here like to be tidy.

Perhaps the taotaomo'na want a big enough clear space so they can meet and even have their dances, as has been claimed by some people long ago.