ETA Caroline Kim’s community extended an invitation for her to attend Eid al-Adha, or “Festival of Sacrifice.” In reverence of the story of the prophet Ibrahim’s act of supreme faith, the men roped the ankles of the first of five cows, hummed prayers over her big belly, and brandished a blade to her throat. As the cow bled to death, Caroline was overwhelmed by the import of taking life. That sense of profundity heightened with each sacrificial offering.

Following the sacrifices, the community sprang into action. The children skipped through the mosque, while the men hacked at the tender meat from the cows’ bones. The women then sliced the meat into cubes before weighing and packing them into bags. Per tradition, the sacrificed animals were divided into thirds: a portion of the meat would go to the impoverished and needy, another to relatives and friends, and the remaining would be kept by the family.

Caroline rolled up her sleeves and joined in outfitting cubes of meat onto sticks, as the smell of barbequed satay wafted through the schoolyard.

Caroline Kim is currently teaching at MAN 1 Model Manado, North Sulawesi

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