Sometimes, when life is tough, we turn to song. In my case, I have been having the hardest time balancing my speaker sample: educated men in their 20s and 30s are just impossible to come by. As I was walking home from yet another unsuccessful mission to find, trap and record such an elusive creature, Peter Seeger's song 'Where have all the flowers gone" popped up in my mind.
Where have all the young men gone?
Long time passing
Where have all the young men gone?
Long time ago
Where have all the young men gone?
They are all in uniform
When will they ever learn?
When will they ever learn?
The two verses - when rejiggled ever so slightly - very aptly fit the Marshall Islands situation: Young men are off island, either pursuing further education or in the army, or both. And so here I am, 'Searching"* for "The needle in the haystack"** since "I still haven't found what I'm looking for"*** (none of these songs contain any lyrics that can be used to describe ethnographic research).
* the Coasters
** the Velvettes
*** U2
Where have all the young men gone?
Long time passing
Where have all the young men gone?
Long time ago
Where have all the young men gone?
They are all in uniform
When will they ever learn?
When will they ever learn?
The two verses - when rejiggled ever so slightly - very aptly fit the Marshall Islands situation: Young men are off island, either pursuing further education or in the army, or both. And so here I am, 'Searching"* for "The needle in the haystack"** since "I still haven't found what I'm looking for"*** (none of these songs contain any lyrics that can be used to describe ethnographic research).
* the Coasters
** the Velvettes
*** U2