Sunday Ashore
Beez Neez now Chy Whella
Big Bear and Pepe Millard
Sun 20 Oct 2013 22:57
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Our Sunday on
Palmerston
 Bill and Nagariki came to pick us up
at eight thirty. On the way to the house Bill showed us the
island cannon, Bear’s trigger finger was at it before I could say pose.
Bill told us that the parson was sick, sadly, no church service.
 
Caroline
in her Sunday best. I found Bill alarming in his pinny.
Nurse-like with his belt on, oh how Bear
clashes. Sunday here on the island is strictly
observed as a day of Mass, feasting and rest, no music, no television. Mum led a
house service as there was no church, then there was lunch.
  Once again Juliana worked her young magic. Rose
settled Sarah (Arthur’s mum) in her best Sunday hat, who sat next to
Mum (Inano). Arthur was next to me. Many pots were
brought to the table, Grace was said. I have to say it was the first time in my
life I have ever sat down to Sunday dinner at half past ten in the
morning.
 
 An enormous pile of lamb chops and coleslaw, Bear of course
dug in and filled his plate.
 Metz served
fish.
 Pudding at eleven
o’clock was a bit hard to get down with the smell of fish.
 Bear
smiled as usual throughout. Metz was most insistent that we go to the
guest room to sleep for the afternoon. We wanted everyone to do as they normally
do and Arthur and the two mums settled to chat with us. A great afternoon of
genealogy ensued. Arthur had cousins in New Zealand and Australia who had done a
lot of research and produced hand drawn family trees. So interesting to find out
that on Arthur’s male line there were distant relatives from both England and
Scotland.
  Nagariki
was first to go to sleep.
  Exhausted, Juliana was next.
  Metz
settled in the yacht club.
 Bill slept
for a while, then read in his hammock.
 Late afternoon and everyone was ready
for a cup of tea. Arthur gave me a lecture on
coconuts. He had been very diplomatic when I said I preferred Bounty Bar
coconuts to the ones with lots of water and not much flesh. All these years I
thought there were two different kinds.
 He said from now on an “old coconut
would forever be called a Pepe coconut.” Now I know a
young one has skinny meat and lots of water, an old one has lots of meat and
contains milk and as it grows a root the shell fills with a pulpy baby that will
feed the new plant as it takes root. It should be one root to one nut but there
are always exceptions.
  Nagariki poses a
double for me.
 A special mention to Arthur’s flip flops, that he declares have another five
thousand miles tread left...........Time for Bill to take us home.
 No sooner than we saw Bill and Metz
get back ashore than the wind went nuts.
 Within seconds the rain came so hard
the island all but disappeared. Nothing for it but to
hunker down and have a game or three.
ALL IN ALL AN INTERESTING
DAY
PRIVILEGED TO BE PART OF THEIR DAY OF
REST |