DEO on STX #4

DEO+ on STX
15 April 2009

Today is Wednesday in Easter Week (or IRS TAX Day!)
Napoleon’s Sister, reportedly said on her death bed: “Nothing is as certain as death, except taxes!” We mailed in our contribution to “Uncle Sam” on April Fool’s Day! During the last two weeks, talk around the pool here at The Reef, by “Snowbirds,” soon returning to the mainland, has been about taxes and calls to their accountants. I am glad our life and personal finances are rather simple and uncomplicated.

Reflections on Holy Week & EASTER SUNDAY
It took me two full days regain strength and rest after Easter! I forgot what it’s like to be a full time Rector. At St. Peter’s we had a full traditional Holy Week schedule. St. Peter’s has an affective and knowledgeable Deacon; she is recently ordained. I offer her guidance and direction/supervision. Deacon Delores Gumbs came out of St. Peter’s, so she knows many of the folks well. She has visited most of our shut-ins and is familiar with the community neighborhood, historic estate-plantations, and back roads of this quarter of the Island. Our attendance at worship at St. Peter’s increased about 20% during Holy week. I compared the Church records; the worship attendance numbers are higher than last four years. A good friend said, “Don’t count the people, teach and feed them.” We did a lot of church during Holy Week, and folks were faithful. The Day of the Resurrection was exciting. People really got dressed in lovely colors; lots of white; women wore hats of various designs and styles. It was fun. Our men, amny on coats and ties, some suits! The early morning is cooler at 8:30am. We finish by 10:15am; the music is the uncontrollable factor as we sing all the verses of the hymns. Our acolytes are well disciplined; the teens playing the steel pans were well rehearsed and finely tuned. “He is Risen!” never sounded any better!

Monday after Easter: Island Food @ St. Peter’s
This annual food and games for neighbors and friends supports local scholarships. Great local food is sold. Families bring their best “island” food; youth play games; older men play dominoes under the shad trees. Babs dove right in and worked 2 hour shift on the food serving line. We enjoyed two new foods specialties: “kallaloo” (a mixture of spinach, pork, chicken, goat, & fish; a stew/soup with lots of spices! It’s Delicious! The other new taste, a drink, “Marby,” made from the bark of a local tree, with loads of spices. It tastes like strong Root Beer. The more ice the better. A very dark brown tea from the swamp & woods; it tasted stronger than sassafras. I recall my first sip of Scotch whisky, both drinks, take time to appreciate and obtain an acquired taste! If one allows “Marby” to ferment, the power is there and one forgets the taste but remembers not except for the head ache!

Arid and rural
We live on the East end of St. Croix where grow cactus on tall hills. Cattle, sheep and goats are raised. Trees are low. Around every corner one can see the sea from sweeping vistas. It’s very arid and dry. Outside the two towns, Fredicksted and Christiansted, are rural farms. There is a residue of wild “old cotton” reminder of former days when “king cotton” was planted, harvested, and gathered by slave labor. Ruins of stone chimneys where sugar cane was cooked dot the landscape. At night animals sometimes get out of the fences and one need be aware of cows, goats, or sheep on the roads, especially late on dark nights. More cows than steers, goats have tails up, sheep stand or walk with tail down. Does it matter what kind of live stock? Just get out of the way!

This is “the big Island” in the US Virgin Islands.
St. Croix is 43 miles long and two to four miles wide. There is less development and tourism on St. Croix, than St. Thomas, or St. John. Only one cruise ship arrives every week. St. Thomas is half the size and welcomes three or four ships per day! Traffic here is less congested and not as over developed on hill sides with retirement and second homes.

Cool Breezes and constant winds
We leave our windows open all day and night! As long as there are ocean breezes and gentle winds we don’t feel the heat. We pray for rain daily.
We open our windows, close the screens at night. On the North East end we get winds from South and East. We are up on a hill so the air circulation is constant.
The Church is open air; large door open on each side for great cross breeze.
It’s usually very HOT mid-day; a siesta helps us survive the bright glare from NOON to 2:30pm; then we hit the Condo pool or ocean from 3pm to 4pm. Our favorite quiet time is just as the sun sets; the breezes cool down as the shade creeps up and the surroundings cool down. Church meetings begin usually at 6pm, just after folks get off work; I normally home for a late meal near 7:30pm.

Goats
Near our Condo unit, across the golf fairway, there is a hilly goat farm. We hear the new young baby goats “cry” out searching for Mama Goat. First we thought the cry came from a human baby. The goats graze most of the day; sometimes a “Billy” or “Buck” or young goat will get through, over or under the fence; at night one need be cautious driving; there may be a goat, sheep, or cow on the road just walking or crossing. Psalm 50:10, “For every beast of the forest is Mine, The cattle (& goats) on a thousand hills….”

Sailing yacht, “The ROSEWAY”
Yesterday afternoon departing the dock at 4:30pm, Babs and I took a “sunset sail” aboard the famous ROSEWAY schooner. The winds were gentle but brisk; she has two masts with over 1,000 square feet on five sails; 156 foot. ROSEWAY is on St. Croix during the fall, winter, spring; returning to Cape Cod during the summer. She is a beautiful wooden yacht built in 1925; now on the Historic Register. For more info see: www.worldoceanschool.org She led a long career, serving as a racing yacht, fishing vessel, and a pilot boat guiding Allied vessels through minefields and antisubmarine nets during World War II. In 1972, upon retirement, ROSEWAY was the last sailing pilot boat in the US. Today, owned by World Ocean School, she is a working class room setting for seventh and eighth grade public school students in St. Croix; summer youth programs for inner city youth in Boston, connecting them with local marine history, ecology, and environmental studies as well as a high school internship for the Virgin Islands. She departs on May 17th sailing 65 degrees on the compass north to Bermuda. Then, she sails on to Boston, then to Halifax, Nova Scotia. Space available for “working crew,” or just ride along. Passage partial Tax deducts. Old fashioned ocean sailing with rope, block and tackle, (no electric winches!) Hard work. Think warm to Bermuda, then cold and storms into the North East Atlantic coast. There will be a large crew up to 25 persons. Bunk in common area, no private state rooms here! Everybody pulls night watch. I am tempted!

“Boots” the feral cat
We miss our pet cat in Cumming, “Chelsea”! So when the local feral cat showed up begging for hand outs in the morning and some evenings, I caved in and started feeding him. “Boots” is a spayed male, all black with white feet and white nose; a single chip cut from his right ear identifies him as “fixed.” He makes the rounds and who knows how many neighbor Condo residents “feed” Boots, but the numbers or occupants are shrinking since loads of “snowbirds” are returning home to the mainland. St. Peter’s has a few stray cats, but unpredictable edible garbage. The Church also has a Rooster and hen that free range in the church yard and parking lot; of course it crows; how appropriate for St. Peter’s.

Steel Pan Orchestra played “He Is Risen” on Easter Sunday High Mass
The teenagers were well rehearsed and played a rousing rendition of “He Is Risen!” This Caribbean sound really makes one tap the feet; I wanted to dance in the aisle before the altar!

New Thurible for incense
Three weeks ago our “old thurible” got tangled up in bent chains and dented top.
We ordered a new thurible and incense boat; both arriving on Holy Saturday! Anybody want to give a suitable memorial?


We go “off Island” next week!
On Monday thru Friday, (April 20-24) Babs and I travel to Raleigh-Durham, NC. We will attend Province IV annual conference for Chaplains to the Retired Clergy and Spouses. Some of the Lectures and Conference will be at Duke University. Babs is not connected or partnered with me in this ministry, however, spouses of Chaplains are included as many have join ministries to retired clergy and surviving spouses. Thus couples are invited. We will be guests of the Church Pension Fund, which I represent for both Diocese of Atlanta and the Diocese of the Virgin Islands. It will good to see and renew friendships from across the South East. This will be our first “off Island” experience since I arrived in February, beginning this Interim assignment at St. Peter’s, Christiansted, St. Croix. So we fly out on Monday, April 20th and go “off Island” for a break and renewal. We return Friday, April 24th.

Come see us.
Or telephone: cell number 770-886-1408
E-mail: dwightogier@bellsouth.net
Physical address: 5130 Teague Bay, St. Croix, Christiansted, US VI 00820

See You Mon!
La Paz y Buen Camino!
DEO+