Who lives on the Island?

This morning I was trying to open one of the 12 coconuts I sweated so hard to carry back to our campsite. I didn’t bring anything to carry them in, so I put them in the sarong I was wearing around my waist. I must have looked pathetic carrying all of them, but I was too eager to restrain myself. I had taken a delicious swim first thing this morning. While taking a walk afterwards, I got so hot and bothered when I saw all the coconuts that had fallen under the tree that outlined the bay. The atmosphere was enchanting to me, so jungle-like and I was finally living this lifestyle I had been only dreaming about for months. I wanted to gather my own food and didn’t know coconuts are plentiful, so I grabbed everyone I saw.

I tried to hack it open with the machete and then Eddie gave it a go, when Mervin, the young local who runs the campground came to chat with us.  He had a laugh at our expense and then showed us that coconuts have an outside layer. First you need to give it a good wack to crack this outside layer, and then peal the husk off. After that you can open it by piercing one of the three eyes with a machete or knife to drink the sweet milk. The greener the coconut’s outside layer, the less sweet the milk is. The riper the coconut, the sweeter the milk. Turns out that there is an art to calculating how sweet the milk is and finding the small soft spot that you need to open to drink the nectar. 

Mervin also works for conservation and is tracking endangered leatherback turtles that birth on Tortola.  He promised to take me out on his boat with him later that day. (I really want my own boat!). Mervin is warm and generous with his knowledge and his heart. He stayed for hours and taught us many things. He gave us the 411 on everything Tortola. It was part gossipy and part educational and all fascinating.

Mervin belongs to the Rymer family that owns Brewer’s Bay and the land surrounding it.  When I say family, I mean hundreds of relatives dating all the way back to their slavery ancestors. The slaves were set free in their Emancipation proclamation of 1834 here in Tortola. The struggles and the lack of the true freedom of the blacks continued after this date and the land they were promised to receive was not immediately or in some cases, never bestowed. About 10 major families own most of the land on the island of Tortola. Apparently there are many boundary disputes as these families often grew out of joining families through marriage.  At the moment, there is a quiet, hostile revolution brewing among the younger generation.

The older generation here has enjoyed a life with all the richness as their forefathers. They lived here long before the introduction of tourism to the economy, so most of them enjoyed living off the land. They have only recently begun selling land. Their children are making decisions to hold dear to their rituals and traditions or discard them for the modern and often greedy ways.  The older generation didn’t need much interaction from the outside world and were able to suffice all their needs by their families’ deeds. They are a warm, happy, positive, peaceful people living with a close and big family structure.

I am filled with good vibes just by being in their presence. Quito Rymer performs at his bar that claims his namesake. Nicole Rymer owns a bar at the other side of Quitos on Brewer’s Bay. His happiness shines so bright, it is impossible to be sorrowful in his company. And I tried!  He runs his business very different than any bar in NYC. If money is important to him, he hides it well.  Nicole is rarely there tending his bar, though sometimes one of his many girlfriends is there helping out. Most of the time, I help myself to a drink, place the money on the top of the bar. His only concern is that we are happy. His father just came by and chatted with us. He only has a few teeth and wore a feather in his cap. He just said, “no chance” that he would ever visit NYC. Why would he?

There is a fisherman here named Ernest, though we thought his name was, “Honest”. Both are suitable names. Through marriage, he is also a Rymer. He is a carpenter and fishes daily to feed all the families in the Rymer family. His children and grandchildren come out to gather the nets, the youngest is 3 years old.

Eddie and I went out on Mervin’s boat at the end of our day and I was opened for the first time to the watery world of this island. Mervin told us about many uninhabited bays that we could live on! (I am itching to explore!) Ernest gave us some fish to cook for one dinner.  It was such a beautiful gift.  It felt like our Thanksgiving dinner as we ate our meal cooked with coconut water.  Our hearts are open and dreams have become our reality.

As much as I understand the natural growth of “progress”, many of the locals here live what I consider an enchanting life, complete with all of nature’s beauty and rich with their ancestor’s wisdom.  If I had my choice: I would to hold onto their traditions and lifestyles as I attempt to create my own, enamored and influenced by theirs.