Emily’s Musings

Some ladies from my church came over to visit me the other day to welcome me into the ward (in the Mormon world, a “ward” is another word for “congregation”). They asked me where I moved from and they were all surprised to hear I moved from paradise. As I tried to describe Saba to them, I found myself at a loss for words, which rarely happens to me.

How do you describe such a beautiful place without pictures? It was like describing the colors of the rainbow to a blind person. As I talked about Saba, I realized how much I really loved that little island. I miss the beauty of it, and I think I could handle all its little quirks (like grocery shopping only on Wednesday, boats that don’t come in, mail that takes over a month, $12 a gallon for milk, $5 a gallon for gas, and other annoying things) just to see it again. David and I really loved every minute we were there, and only on a few days (when I was longing for real shopping, family, and fast food) did I complain about being “stranded” on a deserted island in the middle of the ocean.

I did attempt to explain this beautiful island, but I’m not sure how successful I was without pictures.

How do you describe the view from our patio? The runway, rainbows, and ocean?

Or this view of the ocean and the islands of Statia and St. Kitts?

Or the view of St. Barths from our porch?

How about this sunrise?

Or the sunrise we woke up to on Christmas morning last year?

Or this sunrise?

Or this one?

Or how about this beautiful sunset on the other side of the island?

I tried to explain that all the homes were cookie cutter houses, that were white, red roofed, and had green shutters. I think this picture displays it much better than I could explain it.

I tried to explain how the whole island was a big hill and everyone walked up hill, both ways, EVERYWHERE.

Some of the hikes had beautiful views like this one.

This cruise ship would come by our house every Friday, January through April. It was something I looked forward to every Friday afternoon. It was so nice to have such an amazing view from my patio.

Everyone seems to have a “scary runway story.” Well, this RUNWAY TRUMPS ALL THOSE STORIES because this is the WORLD’S SHORTEST COMMERCIAL RUNWAY. At 440 meters long, you have ocean surrounding you on three sides. Even though I flew in and out of this island 30 times, (YEAH, THAT WOULD MEAN ON AND OFF THIS VERY RUNWAY) I still prayed and held my breath that I would survive.

This is a view of the runway from Upper Hells Gate.

I tried to explain that iguanas hung out on my walkway and in the garden . . .

And that Hannah wasn’t afraid of them. They were afraid of her!

Wild goats ran up and down my driveway and all over the island. I kind of miss the pesky things.

I explained how the roads were REALLY, REALLY, NARROW. Nothing like a photo for proof.

It’s not always perfect weather in the Caribbean, and sometimes it rains. A LOT. We were always grateful for the rain because every household was responsible for collecting their own water. On the day this photo was taken, 17 inches of rain fell in 12 hours. Everyone’s cistern was overflowing, and THE ENTIRE ISLAND WAS SO HAPPY. Notice how hard it is raining . . . the water is white capping down the road.

And lastly, I tried to explain how small our church group was. It consisted of medical students, so the membership fluctuated every semester. Church was held in our house, and I never thought I would say this, but I miss meeting together as a small group. And hey, you couldn’t beat the billion dollar view during church from our house.

David and I really miss the simple life that Saba offered. We are anxious to return one day with Hannah and this new little guy because he and Hannah are our Caribbean “souvenirs.”