Left Lane Living

Growing up in St. Croix, USVI was such a unique experience, I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.  Early on I knew it was special and felt that we had the best of both worlds.  We are an American territory island in the Caribbean with a multi-cultural West Indian vibe.  It can’t get better than that!  My parents and most of friends parents came to live in the left lane searching for opportunities and providing a better future for their families.  Having neighbors who were from Trinidad, Puerto Rico St. Kitts, St. Croix and Antigua added to our St. Lucian parents made for a unique dialect!  The melting pot feel very normal.  

Our foods naturally reflected our unique culture.  Roti made by our Trinidadian neighbor was always a welcome treat.  Church potlucks were the best as it seemed like every island in the Caribbean was represented but to us it was all our own unique culture.  And who could forget the chicken leg and johnny cake eaten from a village booth during carnival season or a salt fish pate from a food truck.

We were thought to mind our manners.  Not greeting someone with “Good Mahnin”, Good Aftahnoon” or “Good Night” was grounds for serious punishment.  So early on, we were thought the importance of respecting our elders. 

Growing up in the left lane, we never felt isolated.  We were raised by the village and had a true sense of community of support.  There was no room for disappointment or failures but for celebrations of our every accomplishment.  Our teachers and leaders looked like us and I always felt that I could be anything I wanted to be.  

Life was so simple, easy and free.  Even though at times things moved in the left lane as slow as molasses we only cared about walking to the beach every Sunday,  walking to and from the bus stop every day for school or planting our own garden.  The Cruzan culture taught us that we should celebrate and appreciate the diversity of others.

The destination while living in the left lane is to a happy haven where the innate desires of the heart is content.  My hope is that we never forget life in the left lane and if I dare to say we should look to returning to the left lane where we have a greater sense of who we are and our connection with the earth.

 There is no place like home!

I Bahn Ya!

Aerial View, St. Croix