Background info for “Guardians of the Latte Stones”

There is a lot that people don’t know about the Chamorro people of the Mariana Islands. Most people don’t know who they are or what they have been through. “Guardians of the Latte Stones” takes you to a time when the horrors of World War II crashed upon the beautiful shores of the Marianas bringing unimaginable pain and suffering to the Chamorro people – turning paradise… into Hell.

Spoiler alert: The rest of this post introduces you to elements that would normally have been revealed in the story. You may want to come back to this post after reading the story.

“Guardians of the Latte Stones” blends historical fact with Chamorro legends of the supernatural. If you would like to know more, and I hope you do, I have provided some excellent resources below.

Latte Stones – Dr. Lawrence Cunningham gives a great explanation of the latte structures used by the Chamorro people.
Link: Latte Structures – Guampedia

War in the Pacific – Leo Babauta sums up the horrors faced by the Chamorro people during Japanese occupation in World War II. His article is posted in Guampedia. Guampedia also happens to have an excellent collection of interviews with war survivors. You will find that some of the survivors even make reference to how the Taotaomo’na helped them.
Link: WWII: War Atrocities on Guam – Guampedia
Link: war survivor – Guampedia

Suruhanu and Suruhana – ‘Suruhanu’ is for males and ‘Suruhana’ is for females who practice traditional Chamorro healing and medicine.
Link: Suruhånu yan Amot (Healers and Medicine) – Guampedia

Taotaomo’na – Dr. Michael Lujan Bevacqua gives a thorough description of the Taotaomo’na.
Link: Taotaomo’na – Guampedia