Dear Nesta,
Fightin’ de good fight? I hope so ’cause dah is all we could do dese days when all de trials an’ tribulations seem to appear outta de blue to tes’ we. In spite o’ all de “humps an’ grumps”, evuh mornin’ when I wake up an’ realize I din check out in de night, I t’ank de Almighty dat I still hey to face anethuh day – problems an’ all.
So, we girl Serena get back she crown at Wimbledon. I din lucky to see de match ’pon TV but when my frien’ phone muh wid de good news, I screech out so loud, she ax muh ef I was tryin’ to burs’ she eardrum.
I real glad, doh, when I look back an’ see how she was able to overcome all dem healf problems she had dese pas’ few years. Dah is wuh yuh got to call “grit an’ guts” – an’ Serena got bofe.
I got anethuh favourite – Barack Obama! Four years ago, all dem Soufern Rednecks an’ de Republicans had a shock when ’e was “presumptious” enuff to t’ink dat a black man could run fuh de presidency o’ Amurica – an’ actually win. Sence den, he been havin’ a constant fight. I hope ’e comin’ out in full “battle dress” in November ’cause de Republicans en hidin’ de fack dat dem inten’ to “go fuh de jugular”.
It appear Amuricans fuhget de state de country was in when George Bush lef’ de White House. He had sech X-ray eyes he could see weapons o’ mass destruction way out in Iraq when nobody else could. I always t’ought Obama was a brave man to want to try to clean up de mess Bush lef.
To me, he went in de White House at de wrong time. He shoulda lef it fuh Hillary Clinton to tek on de problems dat was den facin’ Amurica. I wonder ef Donald Trump an’ comp’ny woulda been now keepin’ summuch noise ef she was president.
Well, duh could always try an’ see ef duh could put t’ings “white” come nex’ November. One t’ing I know: regardless to wuh anybody do or say, he goin’ down in de hist’ry books as de firs’ black president o’ Amurica.
But lemmuh “tack back” home fuh a minute. Y’mean it only now hit Bajans dat de Buhbayduss National Bank belongks to de Trinis? Wuh, dat was so fuh de longes’ while – nine years, to be exack – an’ evuhbody was bankin’ dey all dat time cool as evuh. I suppose changin’ de name now to “Republic Bank” mek evuhbody realize it really an’ truly gone. An’ to t’ink we en even a Republic, neh?
I muhself din feel all dah happy when I see de new name ’pon de bank doors. But tell muh wuh I could do ’bout it? Pull out de few cents an’ put duh in anethuh non-Bajan bank?
We Bajans could as well face it. Outsiders been chippin’ ’way at dis li’l rock fuh a while. From ’way out in de eas’, down to we nighber Trinidad, it been drawin’ duh like a magnet.
I wonder wuh gine happen when dah automatic six-monf stay come into play. I en know how de Trinis get sech a foothol’ in dis islan’ but duh hey to stay. Howevuh yuh turn, yuh got to deal wid a Trini bizness, ’cause almos’ all now belongks to dem an’ we cyahn do “squat” ’bout it. We din try to “stop de rot” from de beginnin’, when we coulda do somet’ing ’bout it, so don’ grumble now.
Face it: big biznesses gone, de fambly silver gone, flyin’ fish gone, global warmin’ tekkin’ de beach – evuht’ing slippin’ from we. Even wid rose-coloured spectacles, de outlook en too purty.
Tek care o’ yuhself
Yuh frien’ Babsie
