Me inna mi ackee

THE EDITOR, Madam:

Picking ackee off the tree is a very rewarding activity. Especially when this task is done early morning, one by one the ackees appear to just open up for picking. Like they are really happy to see you. No wonder this lovely fruit is a national dish. You usually have to use a stick with a prong and pull the open ones carefully.

The late Professor Aggrey Brown spoke in class about this power technology, the stick, used to solve a problem. Claiming some ackee. If the reverse happens and when the song is “Carry mi ackee go ah Linstead market not a quatti worth sell... everybody come feel up feel up... oh lawd,... not a mite,,, what a night ..not a bite...” The story and song become a pearl. The tables are overturned on disappointment. All de pickney dem a linga, linga...? Just write about that interaction.

Professor Brown asked questions like “Have you ever seen yourself?” and thus, to ‘stick a pin’, you realise you have, but only in a mirror. This thought-provoking interrogation was the foundation laid for many studying journalism under his tutelage. He made us realise that in everyday life there was space for reflection, this he experienced in his hobby, sailing. You learnt that when the marbles of life got scrambled, a new list of priorities would now be in place. The state of anomie (in Jamaican, ‘ah no mi’) is that place where you do not know yourself, nor can feel reality. Disaster has struck; unexpected, unbelievable shock. Thus, the old concepts have been shattered and a new paradigm shift is activated. He underscored the importance of breakfast and meeting deadlines. Directions regarding appropriate decorum at all types of functions, from Christmas parties to parliament reporting, were provided from the lecture podium,

So it is in life, building new pyramids. Unfortunately, death takes away loved ones, including our greatest teachers. However, because they sowed so many good seeds into our lives, we grow tall like the ackee tree to open up our best to share the fruits of life with others. The great Professor Emeritus Edward Baugh, another intellectual giant, has left many of his former students thinking about his many English literature classes. He was always ready to make a meaningful comment about new, original poems.

Teachers are there to inspire, jog the memory, and release dynamic energy. All of us can teach. All of us can learn. The new year and new transitions in life prepare us for how to face myriad challenges successfully. We have learnt how to fish, pick ackees and make a wonderful meal. Bammy on the border of St Elizabeth and Westmoreland will go very well with today’s ackee brunch.

Happy times ahead Jamaica.

HELEN-ANN ELIZABETH