Cover Feature///Essence of Guam
up or stay back to help clean,” Kitanna Pocaigue, 18, of Mangilao, says. It reaches across all cultures. Rick Pocaigue, 27, of Agat tells R&R Pacific Magazine, “It’s when you give a gift. In the Japanese culture it’s called omiyage. It doesn’t have to be money, it could be food or it could be anything, for different reasons. Like birthdays, funerals and for burial, or when there’s a new baby, you would give baby stuff. Even Valentine’s Day is a kind of chenchule because we give gifts to our loved ones. In different cultures it means something different.” “In English terms, we’ve grown up with the word in regards to reciprocity, meaning one good turn deserves another. It’s
not simply money. Traditionally it is the act of helping, knowing the person who has helped will need help in the future. It’s not necessarily money because we were a barter type of society. It’s more like a recycling. Money goes around, but at the right time,” Peter Constantino, 50, of Agat, says. The term also brings to mind other traditions associated with the family, says Constantio, such as poksai, which is a term that describes the duty of the whole family to participate in child-rearing.
“IT REALLY SHOWS HOW TOGETHER OUR CULTURE IS HOW WE HELP EACH OTHER OUT...I GREW UP LEARNING THAT YOU NEVER GO TO A PARTY EMPTY HANDED ” ~ esther manglona
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