As Anguillians brace for Anguilla Day celebrations, we jump into action in an attempt to put a new sheen on an old face. While preparations are underway to celebrate our 47th year as a new nation, one is struck by the effort of make believe that all is well. That only works if we suspend disbelief. As I write this piece, crews and volunteers are bearing the summer heat around the island in an attempt to clean up our tiny paradise so that it is presentable for our special day. While I applaud the efforts of those involved, one is compelled to ask the question, why does it take a special occasion to get us to clean up the place? One does not just brush his or her teeth when he or she has a face-to-face with someone. It is part of a healthy lifestyle, therefore cleaning our country – the place where we were born and currently reside, the place where others pay good money to come to visit – shouldn’t be done as an after thought. Shouldn’t cleanliness be part of our everyday regimen? The Bible says that cleanliness is next to Godliness and, given that we’re a God fearing people, one would think that cleanliness would be first and foremost on our list. Once upon a time, we took pride in where we lived – where we came from. Villages competed against each other for the title of most beautiful and well kept. Why is that no longer the case? Why do we have to look at so many properties that resemble the junkman TV show Sanford and Son? Have we lost our pride? It is sad to see that only when we want to impress for a special occasion that we bring out the brooms and the trash bags. Shouldn’t this be the norm?
Because we depend solely on tourism as our way of life, it is incumbent upon us to treat the goose that lays the golden eggs with the utmost of care and respect. We simply can’t take things for granted and, as anyone will tell you, that which is worth having is worth fighting for. So when I read in the papers about the way in which our visitors are being treated by our police force, over something as trivial as an expired sticker on a rental vehicle, it is ridiculous. Memo to the public safety folks: it is not the job of the renter to know whether or not the tags are current. Your argument is with the owners of the rental vehicle. Why are you harassing our visitors? Somewhere, along the way, a sense of fairness and common sense has to kick in. Come on guys; let’s treat our visitors with the respect that you would want from someone if you were in his or her country.
I recently had a long conversation with a local businessman, a good friend of mine, and he lamented on what he saw trending. Longtime visitors are staying away in droves simply because of the way things are being done. One of the biggest and most constant complaint is the way the island looks – first and foremost like a dump. Now I took exception to that because I don’t like to hear the place where I was born and grew up being called a dump. He told me don’t kill the messenger – that’s what they told me. The visitors are not coming back here because of the way things are being done. Our first responders are ill-equipped to deal with the public and, in most cases, they are downright rude. I suppose the old adage of the apple not falling far from the tree might be applicable here, for when we see our leaders behaving in the manner that they do, what are we to expect from their employees? The change then has to happen at the top and, may be, then may be, subordinates will behave in a manner that’s conducive to proper behavior to those tourists who have left and have vowed never to return. Do we not get it that our visitors are the ones who put money in our pockets, who maintain our lifestyle such as it is? We have to have an epiphany, one that will take us in a different direction. Instead of being confrontational with our visitors, offer a helping hand. Be nice for a change. Welcome them and offer to be of any assistance. Have in-house staff development if we must. Let’s do whatever it takes to improve our standing with our visitors. Whatever happened to Anguilla 44? Folks, I say again, we just can’t sit back and wait for them to come. If we build it they will come, but only after we let them know we’re here. Remember, without them we have nothing, and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that if they don’t come, we cease to exist as a tourist destination. So to those overzealous policemen, cool your jets. These are the folks who pay your salary.
When we celebrate our 47th anniversary, let us turn over a new leaf and realize and recognize those to whom we owe so much, and let’s not cheapen their contribution by bastardizing their legacies by naming a street after someone who did absolutely nothing for the country – with the only qualification being that of political expediency. Tell me, what does that say to those people who really sacrificed for us? Wallace Rey, Jeremiah Gumbs, John Webster, Peter Adams, Atlin Harrigan, Collins Hodge, Bob Rogers and, of course, my father Walter Hodge? As a people, we tend to go for instant gratification. We can’t see the forest for the trees. Several years ago, to be more specific, at the start of the current administration, a memorial lecture series that honored my father, Walter Hodge, was unceremoniously dumped without any reasons being given. The lecture series, so named after my father, celebrated the writings of such luminaries as the late Dame Bernice Lake, retired appeals court justice Don Mitchell, Colville Petty OBE, Dr. Aidan Harrigan, Mr. Marcel Fahie, Dr. Lincoln V. Lewis, Professor Emeritus U.V.A. and a host of others, all of whom presented a snapshot of Anguilla’s progress or lack thereof at a given time. I always thought that the series, in light of our somewhat sparse civics curriculum, provided an insight as to where we’ve been and in what direction we’re heading. Maybe some other organization will realize the benefits of the series and take the baton and run with it.
Our 47th year should be one of reflection, one in which we look back to see where we’ve been and to chart a new course for going forward. It is our noble obligation, for those of us who can, to uplift each other on this special day: a day when those on whose shoulders we now stand should be remembered for service above and beyond. But while we’re at it, let us not forget those unsung heroes: the young men who risked their lives on foreign soil, the pilots not remembered, and the musicians who gave up their Sunday evenings to raise money to help out. Let’s not forget the unsung heroes who are yet to be recognized. And, while we’re at it, let us seriously look at the way in which we go about recognizing the deserving candidates. Let us not get out there and name a street, or what have you, after someone who has really done nothing to warrant such recognition. It cheapens the award. This is enough to make the dearly departed want to return theirs. We see things being done time after time and we lack the moral convictions to ask why. Why is it that we name things after people who did nothing for the cause? Why do we name a stretch of land next to the airport Freedom Park? Are we all asleep? May be we need to stand up to those who would name these ersatz memorials as a way of cheapening those that really mean something. Can anyone give a straight answer to why all of this is happening? By what criteria do we make these decisions?
Let us remember those who served gladly, and with little regard for personal safety. Let us be fair in the process and be a bit more open. Let us think about how far we’ve come, and how far we need to go. As nations go, we are nothing more than a mere babe in the woods, still a part of the vineyard that is the West Indies. We have to have faith in our fellowman, if we’re to survive. We have to speak with our actions, rather than our words. Talk is cheap, but our actions speak louder than our words. In James 2: 18-22, he says: “Show me your faith without deeds and I will show you my faith by what I do. You foolish man, you want evidence that faith with deeds is useless? Was not your ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.”
So let’s take heed of James’ advice in his letter to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations, and look out for our own. Let us not neglect that which is most valuable and precious to us, our homeland, its environment and the imminent changes, both globally and regionally, for we do so at our own peril. So during this week, in which both Memorial Day and Anguilla Day are celebrated, let us all join hands and pray that the next 47 years will bring us prosperity and maturity as a nation beyond our wildest imaginations. Though we are still a young nation, by anyone’s standards, we are still trying to find our way. Hopefully, with the right captain at the helm, and favorable winds, we can tack and come about with just the right momentum to carry us to our desired destination. Until then, may God bless and keep us all and may God bless Anguilla – our “Tranquility Wrapped in Blue.”
