I was born in the cool rural area of Jamaica named St. Thomas, and there I stayed for the first six years of my life. I don’t recall much of my experiences in rural Jamaica but I can recall some staples of the culture that existed at the time. I remember red polished floors, all areas of the houses had this red polish plastered all over it and one walk through would leave your feet with the same color. I remember women would use the thick outer cover from the coconut to polish the floors to perfection. Another staple at the time was the one place we all went to get water, “the stan pipe” where people came together at times for one purpose, gathering water for their households. This was one area I saw men and young boys take the lead, the culture was and is predominantly matriarchal.
In addition to those aspects of the Jamaican culture at the time, I recall a true “one love” harmonious existence. I recall a culture of superior generosity and care for others. Strangers were treated as brothers and sisters. It was a culture that deemed your child as not just your own but the community’s to scold, to feed, to care for and the burden of the less fortunate was the burden for all who lived among them. A culture that held respect as an expectation, with all ‘elders’, as all adults were labeled, would be greeted at every meeting up with a child. Doors were left opened way past dark because essentially we were all family.
To be continued!