Page 69 - Unforgettable Memories in Life_Neat

Lakeside Junior High School 67

Lani’s Life

By Fountain Tatios

My name is Lani Bokmej, I was born on February 8th, 2007 in the Marshall Islands. In

the Marshall Islands, there are coral reefs surrounding a lagoon. The water is clear with fish,

other sea animals, and people swimming with the water smooth and the sand soft. The weather is

beautiful with the sun down, the wind blowing the palm trees, and kids playing tag, cops and

robbers, volleyball, basketball, and other types of activities. Most of the Marshall Islands are true

atolls, consisting of an irregular shape. It's an oval-shaped coral reef surrounding a lagoon. The

Island and islets of the Ratak chain tend to

be more heavily wooded than the Ralik.

Ratak and Ralik mean sunrise and sunset.

Eventually, we moved to Springdale,

Arkansas. We might have moved to

Springdale, but we still keep our Marshallese traditions going.

My favorite Marshallese tradition is Christmas. My family gathers up and we have a

Christmas party. In our Marshallese Christmas tradition, we put all Christmas gifts under the

tree. There is always a person that calls out each person’s name to come get their gift, but if your

name is called out, you have to

dance in order for you to have your

gift. People play music and cook

good food. You’ll always see that

one woman who might be your aunt