I was raised on the mainland of United States enjoying the freedoms and rights afforded by the constitution. It states that we Americans are all created equal. I never fully appreciated my rights as an American until I married and followed my husband to his island kingdom of Tonga.
Tonga has a Constitutional hereditary monarchy, which means that it is ruled by a king with authority being passed down through The Royal Family. So, there are the royals and the commoners, with a distinct difference between the two.
In 1989, my husband was called to preside over the LDS Mission in Tonga, which included all of the islands. The kingdom has 171 islands, with only 48 of them being inhabited.
Taufa’ahau Tupou IV was the reigning king in 1989. He was a Christian as were all of his royal ancestors back to King Siaosi Taufa’ahau I. As part of our mission, we were to meet with the king and his family once a month. I was very excited, but also quite intimidated by this assignment. We contacted the spokesperson for the King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV, and arranged for an audience with His Majesty for us and a few of our full-time missionaries.
The date was set, and our meeting would occur at the Royal Summer Cottage. We were informed by the spokesperson that in order for us to gain the approval of His Majesty, we were to prepare food for him and his family. Because I was from America, he suggested that we bake ham, turkey, potato salad and trifle (an English dessert).
On the assigned day, we gathered to prepare ourselves by dressing in the appropriate attire, and we did our best to make the food attractive and tasty fit for The King. We had planned a program that included singing hymns, reading scriptures and saying prayers.
Twenty of our missionaries joined with us as we traveled to the lovely Royal Cottage in Fua’amotu. My husband had informed me that I was expected to crawl up to the King on my hands and knees and kiss his hand. At first I let out a guffaw, and said “yeah, right”! So much for being created equal – then I remembered I was not in America anymore! This was going to be an interesting (and humbling) experience for sure!
As we crossed the threshold to the inner sanctum, I observed the enormous throne on which His Majesty sat, flanked by two spokesmen. Trying hard to be a good little wife, I obeyed my husband’s commands. Wearing a long dress and nylon stockings, I clumsily crawled across a large woven floor mat. I somehow managed to make it all the way across the floor to find myself at the King’s feet. Being well over 300 pounds, the impressively massive King extended his hand towards me. His finger was adorned with a large shiny ring.
Shaking, I kissed the back of His hand, after which he lifted me up and peered into my face. I was informed that it was taboo for me to look directly into his eyes, so I lowered my gaze. In his deep raspy voice, The King asked me a question. He wanted to know if the gentleman following me was my husband. I replied that he was. He then invited me to sit on the floor beside him whilst he greeted my husband (who just so happens to be his not-too-distant cousin).
I observed as each person in our group showed their respect while being greeted by the King of Tonga. No one stood or attempted to talk unless they were on the program. When walking out, it is forbidden to show your backside to the King, so we all backed out of the room.
Our program went quite well, and it was an exciting and fascinating time that I will never forget. I realize what a rare opportunity it was for me. We made many similar visits to the King and his family, some in the Royal Palace in Nuku’alofa.
Tonga is a very culturally rich and traditional country. Only lately has a pro-democracy movement been active. I felt as though I had traveled in a time machine to another era.
Bio
Ruth Elayne Kongaika was raised in the mainland, USA, but has been traveling in the South Pacific for the past forty years. She tries to capture the beauty of the islands through her photography, painting and writing. She has a blog which shares some of her art and favorite subjects at:
email: kongaikr@byuh.edu
