When one thinks of heritage words that come to mind are: inheritance, birthright, custom or tradition. Today our national holiday is a day that we Montserratians cannot help but think of our Irish heritage which dates back to 1630; when the Irish Catholics came from nearby St. Kitts to colonize Montserrat. Other Irish settlers came directly from Ireland and Virgina, USA.
In terms of our heritage we have struggled. In 1768 the slaves tried to free themselves and met with tremendous adversity. The slaves’ efforts to gain freedom will not be forgotten and the spirit of our ancestors still prevails in all Montserratians and as such is the essence and the foundation of our celebration. The parallel is that we the people of Montserrat have today come to terms with the past; as we now struggle with a virulent volcano.
Traditions of our Irish past were preserved in many ways, for example:
Places/villages – such as St. Patrick’s, Rileys Corkhill, Kinsale, Farrells, Banks, Sweeney’s, Estates; Gages Estate, Farrell’s
Estates – Galways, Blakes.
Names of mountains – Reids Hill, Hodges Hill
Shorelines – Carrs Bay, Bransby Point, Trant’s Bay
In our social graces; for example we still never pass someone on the street without speaking to them.
Today we will make a special effort to literally connect the past to the present by serving Irish dishes: stew yard fowl, duckna, salt fish and johnny bakes, mackerel, goat water, pig feet souse, cassava, stewed pigeon peas and dumplings. We will be visiting homes, writing poetry, reconstructing slave huts as we dance with “an infectious syncopating rhythm.” We will be drinking bush tea, wearing our National Dress, exhibiting local arts and crafts, engaging in folk rituals and singing with a spirit of self-determination and celebrating our freedoms. St. Patrick’s Day would not be completed without the ritual dances of the Masquarades. “The Masquarades are the richest expression of African folk art.” Today we honor the past in a new idea is being considered, to dedicate this time of year to heroes and Montserratians who have done great and useful service to the country.
We can still abandon us in our hearts yet we choose to live with Montserrat in our natures. We are living, eating and drinking history every day.
It is the week when Irish descendants everywhere “switch gears” to celebrate the tenth St. Patrick’s Day of the twenty first century. My island of Montserrat with its strong Irish tradition and history and has expanded the commemoration of March 17, 1978 to a week long celebration. Today begins a week long celebration as we observe the efforts of our Irish ancestor’s attempts to gain freedom; that led to the 1768 uprising. Three hundred years on and the spirit of the ancestor’s still lives on and this is echoed throughout the celebration of St. Patrick’s week. “As the wooden shamrock adorns the gable at the Government house many are busy in preparation for the week.” Custom officers are busy stamping the shamrock in many passports. Slave huts are being erected. The national dish goat water is being prepared. Both residents and visitors move to the beats of the bodhran, babla (drums.) The masquerades crack their whips. The mood is cheerful and contagious and we remember our heritage in varied and imaginative ways. Enjoy the video and view the list events scheduled for the week of celebrations.
The layout of the room lends to the natural environment. The lofty mountains seemed to pervade the house on the eastern side; taming the northern volcanic rocky western coast. She was tempted to take it all in; the orange sunset the drumming of the wind and symphony of the waves. She wore a batik smock dress with glowing shamrocks, showing her Irish linage. The unstructured shape of the dress gave a confident elegance. Her beaded earrings seemed to be tarnished and had an iron oxide look. She wore an organic long necklace made of dyed red sisal to complement the look.
A friendly young man interrupted her thoughts as he gave her what seemed to be a menu on a grain gray mottled paper parched. It contained a program of the literary festival she dreamed of attending (www.litfest.ms). Just then the authors assembled (www.litfest.ms/Halo/AUTHORS.html). At that moment a sound like a burglar alarm went off ; she jumped to her feet awakened by the sound of the alarm clock; it was the morning of the opening of the Alliouagana Festival of The Word.
When one thinks of heritage they think of inheritance, birthright, custom or tradition. Today I cannot help but think of our Irish heritage which dates back to 1630 when the Irish Catholics came from nearby St. Kitts to colonize Montserrat.
The island heritage is highlighted on St Patricks Day an Irish holiday, commemorating the patron Saint of Ireland, St. Patrick, who converted the Irish to Christianity. Montserrat is the only country outside Ireland that keeps St. Patrick’s Day as a national holiday. It does not have to be St. Patrick’s Day to think about our heritage. Traditions of our Irish past where preserved in the names of places/villages (Corkhill, Kinsale, Carrs Bay), surnames (Daly, Galaway,Sweeny, Harris, OBrien, Allen etc.), food (our national dish; goat water), folk songs, a distinctive passport stamp the shamrock, social graces (never pass someone on the street without speaking to them) and so on. In time we realize that we are living, eating and drinking history every day.
I worked for RBS (The Royal Bank of Scotland) while I was in England and was struck by the similarities of the names of villages in Ireland and Montserrat (Kinsale, Cork, Galway etc.) simply coming across these places makes history dance off the pages. I would occasionally visit these Towns and Villages via the World Wide Web. As I become older my curiosity deepens about our ancestors and my quest to make a special effort to literally connect the past to the present expands.
A pressing question remains (as many have asked) where did the first settlers first settle? Presuming it was Carrs Bay; where it was considered a good harbour on the Leeward side of the island and a stones throw away from St. Kitts. Have we come full circle in relocating to the North, especially after the other speculative sites such as Sugar Bay Kinsale are now totally buried and Brisket Bay (Old Road Bay) remains uninhabitable?
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