One Love

“I work where you vacation…”

The day was off to a quiet start. The sky was a bit overcast with what appeared to be impending rain, but quickly cleared up as the day progressed. That’s always the conundrum isn’t it? Living on a Caribbean island, there’s always that wishful longing for a good shower of rain, or finding that defining middle ground between a sun-kissed glow, or being badly sun-burnt. You weigh the pros and cons and step out into the world and say, “Here I am! Give me what you’ve got!”

I found myself on Dickenson Bay on a blissful workday morning. I’d take the sight of crystal clear blue waters over an office any day. The beach was littered with an array of tourists as well as local folks varying from craftsmen selling handmade products, to photographers wittingly convincing tourists that they needed to permanently freeze “this moment” in time with a photograph. And why not? My love for home is like a permanent piece of artwork hanging on my wall: absolutely priceless. Is it a wonder people fall in love when they come here?

I had my new toy for about a week, a Mavic Pro, which I had been familiarizing myself with. This was my first time testing it over waters, and honestly, I was a bit nervous. I’ve heard horror stories of people “landing” theirs in a sunken watery grave. Rest in pieces, to those fallen soldiers, whether they’re sleeping with the fishes, or having high tea with the Titanic, the sea is pretty much the land of no return.

Doom and gloom aside, I made some new friends and came across some pretty interesting people that day: like a lovely gentleman playing the shac-shac and singing, “One Love” by Bob Marley and Denroy, a photographer, reminded me of those gentlemen in black and white movies who sang in the rain. I heard his voice before I saw him actually, singing a tune I  can only assume was one of his own, as it wasn’t exactly familiar. My “good morning” was greeted with a rendition of “good morning the remix”. The guy talked in song!

I decided to walk along the beach from Ana’s, my friend Mel would be joining me soon. I found a rustic looking little shack on the beach, with a bit of shade and decided to set up there. Denroy came out from around the back with his camera.

The sun was pretty high in the sky by now, and I was really feeling the heat. The last time I went out on a day like this, I got sunburnt, and I made sure to double up on the sunscreen to avoid that happening again. Mel had joined us by now, and I did a test run with the drone. The water was incredible and inviting.

Just then, a lady by the name of Cicely, walked up with what looked like miniature trunk filled with handcrafted beaded jewellery and leather works, I couldn’t resist taking a few photos of her works, I’d include her photo, but she adamantly refused to take a photo as she was a bit camera-shy. I opted to include her hands however, for they truly tell the story of an artist at work.

Just then, childhood memories of days at Halcyon Cove came flooding back, as I saw a familiar face from my childhood. My grandmother used to be a hotel vendor when I was young, and on school vacations, she’d take me with her. She’d pack a bag with snacks and food for the day, and a bathing suit, in case I wanted to go into the water. “Stay on the shore!” she’d say before we ran off to play in the sand and the crashing waves. I always wanted to go further out, the water always called to me, but I obeyed, after all, disobedience was not an option!

Back to the present… the familiar face was someone who worked closely with my grandmother, she was very excited to see me, “you get so big! Happy to see you!” She saw my camera and asked me if I was taking photos, and was readily excited for me to snap a few shots of her. She had an array of merchandise, from canvas totes to sundresses, which definitely transformed the little rustic shack to a rustic shop!

It was a good morning, filming was a little testy, as the birds didn’t take too well to a foreign object reining in on their territory. It was pretty funny though, watching them interact with the drone. I got a beautiful shot of the beach and its tranquil blues… I had great conversations with old and new friends, and I made some new feathery friends as well!

One take away: those T-shirts that they used to sell back in the day, the ones where one cuts the bottom, into strips and beads them, should definitely make a comeback! Who knows? Maybe this will be the thing that resurfaces the trend!