It has been over a year and, one day, I might write about the time spent away, but for now I am happy to share the beginnings of a new project being undertaken by an inspirational friend of mine. The space in which this story starts has held many stories before this one,
but before very long, here, as you step through the door, your senses will be greeted by the familiar, intoxicating (and yet, surprisingly, still little known) world of all that is cocoa and chocolate.
It seems fitting that these walls will hold history, process and the magic of artisans learned over centuries, whilst providing a special space for everyone to relax learn, unwind, share and enjoy.
I have been very fortunate to be present at the beginning of several of my friend's projects and so look forward to seeing where this one will transport us all.
The cherry tree today was host to one of my all time favourite birds.
This little beauty is only found here in Grenada. and in
St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
You can find out more here
Today, the last day of naphopomo, began with a smile
whilst meeting up with a best friend and reading the
names of the boats at the fish market.
'Doggy Style' caught my eye!
'T', having finished selling in town when we caught up with him,
was selling for other people and behind him, through the wire
fencing, I saw
another time, lives lived before on Melville Street.
It has been enjoyable, this daily posting of 'something'.
I have not always risen to the ocassion, but the naphopomo
challenge was interesting.
Our 'day to day' (isolated within a frame) spoke of inner
things that we were unaware of, attuned to a moment
that otherwise may have passed by, unnoticed. Thanks
again to Karen aka Chookooloonks who brought us all here , to this wonderful space where many lives,
lived in numerous places,that have been shared through a lens,
with lessons loved and learned, united creative souls
of many persuasions.
It takes a special kind of person to do this, a person
who can see beyond her own boundaries to embrace,
inspire and include one and all.
Much love Karen and thank you xxx
Deep in the forest something stirred , broadcasting far and wide
a song for all who chose to hear. The call to return tugged hard
at a skirt hem, speaking of rewards for the soul.
Got batteries today, which are
the same useless ones that
only last a couple of days and to be honest, having got
over the initial,"Oh no,how am I going to continue with
#naphopomo?" without them, I have really enjoyed what
the webcam took, although it felt a little like cheating.
No doubt the webcam pics will return before the month
is done.
However, this particular image I wanted in full focus,
well, at least for the first glass. It is my monthly ritual,
once bills are paid and debts settled and I can go......
'mmmmm'.
Time for some music me thinks. :) cheers E and Zozo
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
love you.x
Today did not go as planned. Being a wash day I was glad for
any diversion and found myself glued to the live feed from Nautilus in between rinses. Dr. Robert Ballard and his Corps
of Explorers aboard E/V Nautilus are studying Kick 'Em Jenny,
an active underwater volcano just north and off the coast of
Grenada. This is the best thing since the moon walk! Plus you
can ask questions which are answered in real time by the
knowledgeable people in the control room.Using remotely
operated vehicles, Hercules and Argus, today we saw,
champagne bubbles from vents inside the volcano crater with
temperatures as high as 256'F inside the vents, where there
were shrimp living in little hollows, albeit a little on the pink
side, and then up on the rim, a shark! Darwin would have had
a field day. What has this to do with the above image?
Not a lot, except to say that the camera batteries were
exhausted so it was necessary to adapt and resort to the
webcam.
.
With #naphopomo being all about photography month, I thought
I would 'try a thing' and experiment a little, while T transferred
some basil in the beds above the river.
Ever since Dad gave me a Brownie 127 when I was about 5,
I have always enjoyed taking photographs but I am not a
photographer. I like to play with composition, record people,
places and things that interest me and on occasion manage to
capture a special moment in time. With almost everyone having
a camera phone nowadays, it is even more fascinating to
observe what professional photographers achieve through their
lens. The magic worked in a dark room beneath a red light, the
alchemy between eye, camera, creativity and knowledge is
nowhere better seen than in the work of Lee Miller and then,
the contemporary work and delightful voice of Joann Verburg
cannot fail to inspire.
Last but not least and from the heart, thank you Chookooloonks .
I am truly enjoying this voyage of discovery which I would not
have embarked upon were it not for you.
With gratitude to the very wonderful Karen Walrond aka Chookooloonks
I am delighted to be participating in #NaPhoPoMo . Why not join in too?
As today is All Souls we remember all mothers who have passed, most
especially Betty and Ivy. xxx
There is a place you can go after visiting someone in the hospital. It helps to sit there, just below the fort, and watch and not think too much before returning home to daily chores and tasks and the strange feeling you get when your life is temporarily on hold, someone else's lies in the balance and yet the world continues on all around you.
When a loved one passes you can help the family by staying home and making bakes with the youngest grandchild.
Once the family get together and decide on a funeral director, personal preferences, finances etc., the spot for the tomb chosen and approved, building materials found, borrowed or bought, you will then need to provide a lot of food and drinks (for all the people who come to help clear the bush and build the tomb), specifically Clarke's Court Rum and Oil Down.
You will need, firewood, plenty breadfruit, callaloo, fig, pumpkin, coconut, spices and be prepared to do a lot of peeling and grating.
Everyone will help in one way or another, be it the loan of a large pot, the donation of ingredients, the kneading of dumplings or the shouting of advice/instructions. You will need to do this on a regular basis until the tomb is completed.
In the meantime, over the course of the next few days, someone will donate cases of beer, someone will donate rum, someone will give the family a pig.
You will need to clean in and around the house.
A day or so after the death comes 'The Praise'. From about 8 p.m. until midnight, people come and sing religious songs and say prayers in the house of the deceased. You will need extra chairs. You may be asked to provide a Bible, a candle and a vase of flowers. It is customary to repay this kindness by providing bakes, fishcake, saltfish, cakes, Vita Malt, coffee and/or cocoa tea. Someone may kindly send sandwiches, juice and cake. The people who are leading the praise will let you know when they are ready to eat and drink. This will require a lot of people helping out in the kitchen who will also need feeding etc. Also, the people who cleared the land and are preparing the tomb will be outside offering their support and, as well as food, will be in need of a fully loaded ice cold bar and a tarpaulin rigged against the elements.
Between the time of death up to the funeral there will be a lot of family meetings.
You will all have to wait for family to come from away.
Wash, repair, iron your funeral clothes well in advance of the funeral.
The day before the funeral it helps if everyone gets together to prepare the food in advance for the next day. Various people will make plans to cook various dishes in various locations with their teams of people. Get up very early on the morning of the funeral and start to grate the coconut. Someone will come and help you. You may feel overwhelmed but everyone else will know what needs to be done. Someone will make the fireside, someone will bring wood, someone will bring a next pot, someone will call and say come for the cake, someone will add the sugar to the juice, someone will help you peel pumpkin, someone will make dumplings, someone will cook, someone will peel the fig. Someone will tell you what to do next. Someone in the local shop will help you out with whatever you have forgotten.
Some of the ladies who made The Praise will arrive to make the wreaths. They will need chairs and tables. You will give them what flowers you have, twine, some coconut fronds and they will bring some with them. They will need juice and cake mid morning.
When your food finishes cooking someone will help remove it to a safe place. By now it will be lunchtime and you will share one pot with all who came to help.
Eat. Bathe. Dress.
Walk to the church, someone will stop and give you a ride. The coffin, which will be open, will be at the doorway to the church.
Sit.Stand. Sing. Pray. Listen.
After the service, the coffin will be placed in the funeral home's vehicle and all the mourners will walk behind it to the family land to the accompaniment of soca hymns. Sway a little, it helps.
Once the priest has blessed the tomb and the coffin is place inside and sealed, the singing will be led by the same ladies who sang The Praise, while the family are now free to mourn. When all songs have been sung everyone from near and far, (there will be a lot of people), will return to the family yard for food and drinks. Someone will help to share, someone will run the bar, your job is to make sure that all get food and drinks. It will seem like the biggest party you have ever given. Eventually everyone will go home. (you may find some cinderella slippers left on your veranda) You will have done your best and realise that there are some amazing people out there and that everyone understands and knows what you have just gone/ are going through. Thank you to every single person who. in one way or another, helped my amazing, strong, loving, kind hardworking husband and his family give their loving wife/ mother/ friend, the very best of goodbyes.
Rest in Peace my dear friend and mother in law, Miss Veronica Ivy aka ToeToe xxx
