Photographed by IPS Co
About a month ago I decided to vacation on a sparsely populated Bahamian Cay. It was impossible to go outside because of the buzzing mosquitoes at most hours of the day. The reason for the mosquitoes is that the environmental officer went on vacation and was not there to spray the Cay. The vacation property where we stayed had no modern day communication system (telephone, cable, internet). I did not mind because I had planed to maroon myself on the island with books and spend my free time with visits to the untouched waters (beaches). However after about a day there I was curious to know what was going on in the world; so at six o’clock in the afternoon everyday I would religiously perch myself at the dining table listening to my AM/FM radio with short wave frequency. This was reminiscent of the days when I use to watch my grandparents listening to news via radio. My friend Stephanie at this point would say ‘poor soul!’ because it was rare for me to listen to national news. On the Cay I could only pick up one English speaking channel and that was ZNS 1540 Bahamas. My ‘smatterings’ of comprehension of the Spanish language did not permit to me to engage the several Spanish language radio stations that were available. In spite of being hemmed in by the mosquitoes, and the use of the endless supply of OFF (insect repellent) there was an amazing quiet peace. One author once said “the peace that comes from being out of the confusion of getting ahead isn’t a dead peace but very alive” When I first read this quote I saw the beauty of being at peace but this week challenged that thought.
In the Bahamas headline news this week it was highlighted that copper was stolen from a transmitter site and as a result ZNS 1540 is down and may take about a month to be back on the air. Well, at this point I know that you are gasping. My heart is with the residents of that Cay. I can just imagine the residents visiting the few homes that have satellite services just to ‘keep up.’
In life we are blessed with so much and take for granted the simple things. Today I hope you can take time out and be happy for what you have and be thankful for what you about to receive.
- Image taken from Corbis
This week many children will return to the classroom after a lengthy summer break. Most schools in The Commonwealth of The Bahamas opened last week. In Montserrat we would say ‘their free paper burn,” which means their leisure time was now limited to the rigor of school. In Montserrat as it with most of the Eastern Caribbean school starts today the 6th of September. When I was younger and a child was slow in learning (slow) we would say they went to August school. So, needless to say we did not want to go back to school in August.
Recently, after much debate and an apprehension to enroll my daughter in a certain school, I conceded and registered her at the school. At this point Uncle Gerald would have had a good laugh as he ragged me before now that my daughter would not go to school because I would have to go with her and that was not possible. Monday morning all the children were well clad, every pleat in line, everything was new; uniforms, ,bags, lunch boxes, shoes. The returning students seemed to beam with joy. I must admit I had a different level of respect for the school just walking through. Parents of first time attendees showed up with a joyful expectancy. Of course for the younger ones (pre-school age) there were in tears they wanted to go back home – they wanted their mothers.
As I entered my child’s class room the teacher was enthusiastic and had a certain degree of dignity in her attitude and by the way she carried herself. Later in the evening my three year old daughter came home with a schedule of subjects for each day, something I did not see until I was in High School. Also there were two letters one from her class teacher and the other from her assistant introducing themselves. As I said before I was not sure I would let my daughter attend so I did not attend Parents teacher’s conferences held in June. To my surprise, I learned that her teacher, whose deportment was that of a first time teacher keen to exercise the knowledge she had garnered, was a seasoned teacher of sixteen years. I was taken aback, I breathed a sigh of relief and was reassured then that my child was in capable hands because she took pride in her appearance and strove to develop her field. So far my daughter likes it and now I see why this school has one of the best reputations on the island.
As our children, grandchildren, friend’s children, niece’s, nephew’s, sisters, brothers, cousins God children return to the classrooms let us support the teachers whom we have entrusted with our children. They too have taken the time to be experts in their fields so that they can groom our children when they are away from us. Let us encourage and support them by putting in those additional hours outside school so that their loads may be a little lighter.
Photographed by Yee Ting Kuit
My paternal grandmother always reminded me that I was a special child which means highly favored. The word special has varied meaning to me over the years; in the Bahamas when certain friends and family call me special it means silly. No I am not eccentric.
During Easter I stayed in a certain couple’s home, there was serenity in the atmosphere of their home. Shortly afterward I felt compelled to contact the couple, I spoke to them on several occasions thereafter but never physically met them. Sadly the husband passed away and the funeral service was held on my birthday, a few days ago. Yes, on my birthday. My friends and family members were very vocal on whether or not I should attend a funeral on my birthday given their view that he was not family.
To me this was my family as he represented so many things. Father Thaddeus Pratt dedicated his life to the honor and glory of God and has been a loving father and husband. He was married for fifty one years which is a glorious example of love and devotion. I am sure that is something we wish to emulate; Mrs Florence Pratt and I are in the same sister-hood. It was a sensible thing to do as it was a celebration of an extraordinary person’s life and co-incidentally mine.
There was a certain joy at his home going celebration. It reminded me of a feel for luxury; in terms of life’s accomplishments, achievements. It was a time to reflect, it gave me a challenge to carry on, it was a wake up call to do better and it reminded me to live life to the fullest and make the most of opportunities and time. I am no stranger to funerals after all, as my great grandfather died the day I was born, hence the reason why my grandmother calls me special.
This week marked another year of celebration. Are you taking note of the various accomplishments of your life? Are you truly grateful for even the minor endeavors of others?
Image Taken from MACO Caribbean Living
Feather touch eyes pare
A preserving indulgence
The searing ache
Methylated Spirits
An iridescent stillness
Wildly beautiful
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Poem by Brenda L. McCartney
Photographed by Brenda L. McCartney
I remember watching my then two year old serenade her grandfather, as he taught her to curtsy. She would read and sing to him as if she was beyond her years. He would talk to her as if he was speaking to an older child. They had a connection and her behavior around him was somewhat surreal. There are times she would cry, “I want to be with grandpa,” A few weeks after he passed away unexpectedly. At the repast she sat in the yard, where she spent so many times with him, with her hands under her chin. While sitting she shook her head and made an open hand gesture and said “Grandpa is gone.” This father’s day would be my husband’s first father’s day without his father but we know that he is with us in spirit. To paraphrase the poet, David Harkins ‘we can smile because he lives.’ We are full of the love he shared, we will cherish his memory and let him live on and we will open our eyes smile, love and go on. For those who facing this sweet sadness of a deceased father or grandfather cherish their memories because indeed they are living in our memory.
A Father’s issues tangle with life
Patchwork of sweet sadness
Weighted memories – fragile
Eclipse a strong sense of you
Connect with essence
Steadfast replay of moments
Reserve – vacant space
The familiar territory
An ideal crafted, enchants
Pure spirited
Infinitely charming
Rich and self contained
Things noticed in the dialogue of life
Engaging open and compressed
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Poem Written By Brenda L. McCartney
To all fathers Happy Father’s Day! Enrique my love, friend, husband and father of our beautiful daughter, Happy Father’s Day.
Photographed by Simon Jarratt
Fathers do take paternity leave to help his wife with a new born. Some employers do not understand the need for such request but a father’s presence is just as important for the baby as it is for the mom. Fathers do need to bond with their babies especially in those important first couple of weeks. In the United States of America unpaid maternity is mandated by federal law via the Family Medical leave Act (FMLA) for a mother if their company employs more than fifty workers. Ebony magazine (June 2010) explains that at least two states offer paid paternity leave.”According to Adrienne Samuels Gibbs in the Ebony article “Canada gives their dads up to fifty five percent of their salary or a maximum of four hundred and thirteen dollars a week.” Recently in the United Kingdom fathers will be given three months paid paternity leave effective April 2011. The father’s role as provider is secondary to the role as a nurturer, as a child will often take for granted basic needs that parents are obligated to provide (food, water and shelter). Yet they will notice if their daddy is not there and did not spend quality time with them. They will notice if their father is not concerned with what they are doing. Let’s all hope that fathers everywhere will continue to be supported and to give support where it is necessary as well.
Sometimes you have to grow up
To understand a dad’s love
The beautiful sweeping connections
The familiar story telling
Inextricable linked
His ways come to teach
An acquired taste
A standpoint roots, develop, mature
As your spirit lifts
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Poem Written by Brenda L. McCartney
Photographed by Helen Sweeting
Every week for an hour I sit in an area of where a thin, almost like a dead stick looking tree grows. Occasionally I take a glance at a tall woody tree in the same area. I am told that there is a beautiful flower that only blooms at night on the tree. The name is night-blooming cereus, Queen of the night or Reina de la noche. They bloom just one or two nights a year. The photo provides such beautiful view of this flower that seeing it is a literal high that delights.
The flower can be comparable to the monotony of working hard or possibly the pursuit of academia there is so much going on before the final bloom of a job well done or a graduation day. When we see the results of a long process it gives such a high and provides sustenance. The bloom of our lives may perhaps be a relationship with our family and friends especially when they are no longer with us – we realize the beauty that they created.
High Bloom
On single stem
Such tricky balance
An opening point
The pulse of the night
Blend of the shift
Bursting onto the world
Reserved like Jane Austen’s Bright Star
The bloom mutes
Graced by the truer romantic
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Poem Written by Brenda L. McCartney
Photographed by Orlando Barria
It is the official start of the hurricane season and the Caribbean ramps up efforts to be prepared. Tropical storm Agatha pre-empted the start of the season and ravaged Guatemala (Central America on May 29, 2010) and killed more than one hundred people. Dozens more are still missing after landslides destroyed communities. El Salvador and Honduras also suffered death and destruction. As our thoughts and prayers flit around the Caribbean we look back on the chronology of hurricane disasters in the region. Let us remember the displaced especially the many Haitians who are in camps due to the earthquake disaster earlier this year. Also pray for those Islands that are at sea level or are barely above sea level namely the islands of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas.
Lord in your mercy hear our prayers.
Ever since I can remember I have always loved books. I remember going to the library at school and I also remember waiting for the yellow mobile library to show up in the field above my primary school once a month on Thursdays. Both then and now, books have given me insights into other worlds.
In my home, my living room is set up as a library with works from my favorite authors whom tell my story and reflect my interests. I have always made it a practice not to give away or sell books even my text books from college and university. I am obsessive about this point. I loaned a psychology book to a friend in college and it has almost been twenty years but every time I see her I asked her for my book. No I am not a mean spirited. Let me explain the way I see it. As we know text books are revised all the time and that particular edition is special to me as I am familiar with it and can find exactly what I am looking for in it. I know my college textbooks very well. In college I never skipped a page as I read my books from cover to cover for fear of something that I might miss. As I get older I feel uncomfortable in loaning out my books any more because I have a phobia of my books not been returned.
There is a television commercial for the 2011 Kia Sorento. I always get excited when I see it as on the commercial books are everywhere even around a tree. To me it seems like paradise. The writer and essayist Jorge Luis Borges agrees with me, as he says “I had always imagined paradise as a kind of library.” I also always recall Carl Gustav Jung acknowledging in his book Memories, Dreams and Reflections that when he was growing up he had always like the idea of books but he did not read much. I guess most of us are like that to a certain degree. But as one notable person once said it is not how many books we have that is important but it is how many books we read. To me there are so many more books to read. Let us make a resolve to read at least one book a week or no less than a chapter a night.
Image taken from Blog Skins
There are certain terms, inflections, idioms, colloquialism, slang, buzz words, expressions specific to islands or countries. At this moment I am thinking about the colloquial words that abound in our native island’s speech. Sometimes it maybe difficult to decode and these expressions are literally and hardly ever found in the dictionary. Yet we know our own particular slang patterns very well.
I remember one Christmas Enrique and I went to Montserrat and he ran to me and said that the girl sitting on the stools at the bar is from The Bahamas. I told him no way, I asked why did he think so. He said her accent, what she said. He also noticed the distinct design of her jewelry, which looked to him to be Bahamian bought, particularly the design of her wedding band. At that very minute my brother who came in on a flight with her told Enrique that the girl at the bar was a Bahamian. Yes, Enrique gave me the look; how dare I do not believe that he did not know his own people.
Okay, so I called my Aunt late one night hoping she would be up, she said she just finished washing her dishes and “lock off de light” and why am I calling her this ‘odd hour of night’ I recalled for years I could not stop using the term when I was going to turn off the light.
The other day, my friend was saying to me she will never forget when she visited Cat Island and she asked a lady how may children she had. She said “I been behind that door five times” which means she had five children. I have heard the term “coat suit” which is a sometime used Bahamian expression for a “three piece suit” several times and each time it brings the same chuckle as it did the first time. Often it is used as an outright joke when someone is dressed up as in “Why you so dress up in your coat suit?”
I hope that you can share a light moment with your friends or co-workers the slang terms, colloquialisms even idioms that you may find of interest. Enjoy your day or what is left of it my friends!
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