Célestine Hitiura Vaite

Keeping a wedding a secret is like keeping any kind of secret. It’s not complicated. Basically, when you bump into a relative, you bite your tongue for a few seconds and hurry to make small conversation. So far, in the space of half a day, Materena has bumped into six relatives and told them nothing of her secret plan. When they asked her, ‘So, what’s the news?’ She replied – with her normal voice – ‘There’s no news Cousin. It’s still the same, and how’s everything with you?’

Now, however, with her mother visiting, Materena is very tempted to exclaim, ‘Eh Mamie! You’re never going to guess! Pito asked for my hand!’ But Materena bites her tongue instead.

Materena likes movie about love.

When there’s a love movie on the television, Materena sits on the sofa, her hands crossed, and her eyes focused on the TV screen. She doesn’t broom or cut her toenails, she doesn’t iron, or fold clothes. She doesn’t do anything except concentrate on the movie.

Movies about love move Materena and sometimes it happens that she imagines she’s the heroine.

The love movie tonight is about a woman who loves a man with a passion but, unfortunately, she has to marry another man – it’s the plan of her parents. Her future husband is not bad looking or mean. It’s just that she feels nothing for that man. When she looks at him, it’s like she’s looking at tree – whereas when she looks at the man she loves, her heart goes boom, boom, she wants to kiss him, and she wants to hold him tight.

The woman in the movie meets the man she loves one last time – it is a day before her grandiose wedding, and he’s leaving for a far awy country, never to return, because it’s too much for him to bear to stay in the neighbourhood. It’s easier for him to just disappear.

The lovers meet behind a thick hedge. They kiss, they embrace, then he falls to his knees, and declares: “I will love you till I die, till I die I swear to God, you are the centre of my universe, my guiding light, the only one.”

The heroine hides her face in her gloved hands and bursts into tears. There’s violin music, and a tear escapes from the corner of Materena’s eye. She’s sad for the woman. She can feel the pain.

“Poor her,” Materena sight.

“Zero movie! What a load of crap!” This is Pito’s comment.

In his opinion, there is too much crying in that movie, too much carrying on, no action. And the man, what a bébé la la – wake up to yourself.

“Well go read your Akim comic in the kitchen.” Materena wipes her eyes with her pareu.

But Pito is too comfortable on the sofa, and he wants to watch the end of that silly movie. Materena wishes she could transport Pito somewhere else. He’s been annoying her ever since the movie started with his comments and sighs.

Pito doesn’t like movie about love. He prefers cowboy movies, movies with action and as little talking as possible.

The movie is near the end and Materena hopes Pito is not going to spoil it with a stupid remark. Materena needs complete silence. The end of a love movie is very crucial. There’s a lot of tension. In Materena’s mind, the heroine will be reunited with the man she loves but love movies don’t always end the way Materena would like them to end.

Quand Materena a eu son boulot à la radio, Pito a eu peur qu’elle se mette à parler high class, qu’elle devienne une «Madame-Moi-Je», mais elle est restée la Materena avec qui Pito vit depuis presque un quart de siècle. Elle court tout partout dans la maison avec son balai, peut-être pas tout à fait autant qu’autrefois — au moins, le balai peut se reposer de temps en temps. Elle prête des œufs aux cousines qui n’ont pas eu le temps d’aller chez le Chinois avant qu’il ferme. Elle fait la cuisine, elle rit, elle raâe, elle ratisse les feuilles et elle angoisse quand son gâteau- banane sort du four avec un air bizarre. Elle va à la messe, elle discute avec les taties, elle va tirer l’herbe sur les tombes de ses ancêtres, elle rend visite à sa mère régulièrement... C’est une vahine tahiti assez typique.

Et elle n’est pas à la maison ce soir. Alors, en sifflotant parce que personne ne lui demande où il va, Pito sort de la maison pour se rendre au rendez-vous nocturne extrêmement important qu’il a avec ses collègues, autour d’une caisse de Hinano.

Loana loved many times, and two of her lovers gave her children. One was a French militaire who went back to his country and the other a Tahitian who went back to his wife.

Loana says she’s through with men now and content with her life. She goes wherever she wants to, no need for authorization, a leave pass, nobody pestering her, asking where are you going, how long are you going to be, who are you going with, patati patata…

Not that she goes anywhere. She likes to stay home.

But when she feels like sleeping on the mat in the living room, well, she sleeps on the mat in the living room and when she wants to stay awake, well, she watches the TV or she listens to the music on the radio.

She’s alone but free.

Aue, life it’s simple.

But there are days when she thinks it would be nice to have somebody.

Materena est en train d'épingler une chemise sur le fil et glousse : "Pour la messe ? Ah bon ? Tu vas à la messe ce dimanche ?"

Ca fait des mois que Leilani ne va plus à la messe.

"Peut-être" murmure Leilani avec un sourire charmant. "Alors ? Je peux aller à la boum ? J'ai presque seize ans."

"Leilani, ton anniversaire, c'est dans neuf mois."

"Mais oui, je sais. Seulement j'ai déjà seize ans dans ma tête."

Les films d'amour chavirent le coeur de Materena et il lui arrive même d'imaginer qu'elle est l'héroïne.