The Aesthetics of Calabash

Submitted byJeeraik009 onSun, 05/27/2012 - 22:04

We are at Calabash to celebrate its return to Treasure Beach and Jamaica's 50th anniversary, themed Jubilation. For Kingstonians, making the journey beyond the highway, the rural town of Porus, and the slow descent of Spur Tree Hill, the drive is humbling. By the time we complete the long winding road down to the south coast we are like new people, gasping for sea air and better prepared to hear the message of poets and writers as they whisper against the crash of night waves and our sense of wanting. We float through the town dressed in white sheer, head wraps and neckpieces that make us look like disciples from a more beautiful planet. Three days imbibing the salty air and the words of grios such as Adiche, Patterson and Cooper is reviving.The sun, like liquid food seeps through our pores darkening our skin and sensibility, opening us up to our pain and the past. Quenched, we pack the SUVs, turn our backs to the sea, and make the long return home.