BOY, I gine tell you something. Every week as I sit down tuh write this column, even before I sit down, all kinds o’ things does be bombarding my mind, and if it aint one thing, it is the next.
I aint gine tell you nuh lie, most o’ the things does be negative and if ya doan mind ya self, you would just get caught up and find ya self writing bout all the lot o’ wrongs and ills and woes and all the other million and one negative things, not only here in Barbados ya know, but all ovah the world.
I does have tuh shut down, close my eyes and just allow myself tuh relax and try tuh let my mind sift through all the lot o’ mess dat keep coming at you left, right and centre all the time. I gine tell you, it doan be easy, ’cause most o’ the time it does appear dat everything is crumbling all around ya and nuh body aint doing nothing ’bout it nor cahn do nothing ’bout it fuh dat matter.
Evahbody blaming evahbody ’cause nuhbody aint got the answers. So instead o’ turning tuh the only body who made this whole wide world and all hands o’ we, we does turn pon one another like the animals. Then when we go and do foolishness and then cahn get it undo, the damage done a’ready, we does start tuh blame this body and the next body; the parents, the schools, the children, the church and evahbody else except weselves.
We have a thing about looking back at days gone by and comparing dem tuh now. Some people even wish fuh dem days or so duh say. You does hear dem talking bout “oh fuh the good old days”. Good old days my foot, doan mind dem. Dem only talking foolishness because the good old days aint gine evah happen again.
Ya see, some people like tuh fool demselves, some people like tuh hear demselves and some people like tuh think dat dem could impress people by talking foolishness. Look, ya see some o’ these people who does playing dem talking ’bout good old days, dem is people who want tuh have duh cake and eat it too. Dem is people who would want tuh live in a progressive modern time such as now, wid evah kinda push button device, a nice big ride, a big sprawling lot o’ house at duh finger tips and working in a big up job and still have things remain the way it was, like the good old days; doan mind dem, hear, dem is bare jokers.
Now take fuh example, Independence, some people like duh doan even check fuh dat too much now. Nuhbody doan make nuh big song and dance over it now. One time all o’ the Government buildings used tuh have on the lot o’ bunting draped all over and around dem from the time November step in. Not so nowadays, bunting like it scarce or like evahthing else, it get too expensive fuh just tuh be there stick ’pon a building only tuh let the elements mash it up. If you doubt me, while you walking or driving around the place, just check out the Government buildings. Duh hardly got anything so this year.
One time ya coulda drive all the way up the highway and admire the roundabouts. Some o’ dem used tuh be exceptional, really creative but duh aint saying one pang. It looks like the businesses dat used tuh sponsor dem only interested in using it as advertising fuh the company. The other thing is, it looks tuh me like evahbody holding on tuh wha’evah
lil bit duh got and decide dat dem aint putting it in the pockets o’ the people at the electric company. Well I aint got tuh tell ya ’bout Bridgetown at all. Only a few places got up a few frighten lights. Boy, times are have changed.
Wha’ look at Christmas, what I used tuh look forward tuh Christmas for was the family and friends; the lot o’ sweet food; the special kinda ham dat used tuh be hanging up in the ceiling, smelling up the whole place fuh weeks.
•Mavis Beckles was born and raised in The Orleans. She has an opinion on everything.
