Island Gospel & upgraded accommodations
5/25/03
Journal excerpt - 7PM
One of the things that I really love about the Turtle Nest Inn is how private the resort is. One really feels as if they have the entire place to themselves and at the same time there are people around. One truly has the best of both worlds. The Inn has a gorgeous view of the water, a generous beach, and one particularly nice palm tree that provides a fare amount of shade during the day. I am sitting under it at the moment, with my laptop, and some cool bottled water. It’s about 7PM right now, and I have been leisurely typing now for last hour or so.
I began the day by doing some writing this morning, while sitting out on the veranda, overlooking the sparkling sea. Even at 9AM, it is already pretty humid and hot outside, yet the cool breezes offer consistent refreshment from the heat and make it reasonable and relaxing. I wrote the following prayer during my morning meditations as I remembered my experience yesterday:
Lord, you
are the Lord of heaven and earth,
The sea and everything in it.
The shore and everything on it
The air and everything that flies about,
The planets and stars and all that exists in distant majesty
You are
the Lord of the sea, the eels and the rays,
the fish and the crabs, the reefs and the sand
All things bow to you in humble submission.
All things exist under the direction of your Spirit
Not a sparrow falls, not a wave crashes,
not a fish obtains a meal, nor a palm tree sways in the breeze
without first obtaining your approval.
You are the God of gods; the only true God.
I stop and consider the greatness of your
majesty.
It is too much for me to comprehend.
The order of the sea is too wearisome for me to ponder
Billions of fish and plants exist in regulated
harmony.
You care for and direct each one.
You will create millions of creatures that will live and die
having never been seen by human eyes.
They are unknown, but to you.
They serve your purposes alone.
Let me be
as one of these.
One who serves your purposes and exists for your pleasure.
It is Sunday morning and so I left to join with other Christians in uplifting the name of the Savior in corporate praise. David and I went to First Baptist Church of Grand Cayman, which is sure to make my dad feel good upon my return (since he is a lifelong Baptist). The preaching was decent and the worship was very nice for a Baptist church; enthusiastic and spirited. We arrived on “youth Sunday” and suffered through several choruses of various songs sung by young people who collectively should never have been given a microphone.
The minister was a decent gentleman, who claimed to have been preaching for 57 years. His title was President of the Caribbean Baptist Society or something like that, and he was a guest speaker this particular Sunday. It seems that the church has been “going through a time of transition” since their pastor left two weeks ago. Several different things I read and heard led me to believe that he may have left under less than amicable conditions, but I knew better than to inquire further.
The speaker did his best to feed the flock, but focused a little more on entertaining the sheep than on dishing out the spiritual cornbread. Still, he was true to the Gospel message and one person gave their life to Jesus Christ during the invitation at the end. It has been several years since I have been to a Baptist church and it was neat to go back to one. The music was especially fun to participate in (even though I was the sole person lifting their hands), and singing “Just as I am” at the end brought back a flood of memories.
Throughout the service, my eyes continued to be drawn to the two flags on either side of the stage. One the right was the British flag, and on the left was the “flag of the cross.” I noticed it because it was the same flag that was borne so proudly by my grandfather, always having displayed it prominently in his office or nearby to wherever he was. I’m not certain if it is solely the “Baptist” flag or one that is used by other Christian denominations as well. However, I’m guessing that it is a Baptist flag, because the only times I have seen it were at Baptist functions, events, and services.
After church I coerced David into going to Pizza Hut. Dave refused to eat pizza with me and opted for spaghetti instead (which he said tasted poor), and I had some chicken wings, which were equally unimpressive. We won’t be doing that again.
We returned to the inn and moved into our new room. We had the opportunity to upgrade for three nights to a larger room with an oceanfront view. This room is where I would have preferred to spend the entire vacation, however without David chipping in, it would have been more money than I felt comfortable spending on just me. However, with David joining me, we really needed the extra space. This room has a full kitchen, living room with a pullout sofa, separate master bedroom, and full bath. It is perfect for us.
After unpacking and getting
settled, I have spent the remainder of the day swimming in the ocean and pool,
and relaxing under my now “favorite” palm tree by the beach. It is just so nice
here . . . this is definitely “my spot.” I have spent several hours here on a
couple occasions and hope to spend much more time here in the future. This is
exactly the activity (or lack of activity) that I had in mind when planning my
trip. If I did no other thing, I wanted to find a shady palm tree on a gorgeous
beach and waste the time away reading and writing to my heart’s content;
occasionally going in for a refreshing dip, or relishing the relaxing views of
the perfect blues and turquoise greens from my beach chair. That mission has
been accomplished, and I will be “re-accomplishing” it all this week.
Pedro St. James & Hell
5/26/03
Journal excerpt - 11PM
Just before nightfall last evening, David and I decided to walk down the beach and see what was east of our hotel. In what turned out to be one of the more amusing parts of our vacation, we encountered a very friendly dog, which had a rather bizarre talent: beach cleaner/mortician. In what would certainly give David Letterman’s “Stupid pet tricks” a run for its money, this dog would pick up items that it found on the beach and bury them. However, they had to be items that we would throw, which gave a wicked slant to the game of "fetch".
I learned of this dog’s
talent when I picked up a coconut during my stroll and give it a heave. The dog
ran over to it, picked it up in his mouth, ran up the beach, dropped the
coconut, dug a large hole, placed the coconut in the hole, and them pushed the
sand into the hole with its nose. I was laughing so hard. It was so cute and
weird; I didn’t know what to make of it. Regardless, David and I had a new
friend for the next half-hour or so, and almost anything that we threw him was
retrieved, and thoughtfully buried . . . it was quite a lot of fun!
Dave and I went out for sushi in the evening and had a decent meal. The sushi was expensive, as is everything else down here, but we enjoyed it. It wasn’t as enjoyable as it could have been if it were not for the rain. Around nightfall, a nasty storm was brewing off shore. It threatened for about 30 minutes or so, gathering strength and darkening the sky by greater and greater degrees. When it finally decided to come ashore, it hit with an uncanny ferocity . . . and it hasn’t stopped since. It rained all last night and all day today in varying degrees. Even now in the evening, it is extremely windy and stormy. I guess it makes sense though. It’s officially Day 6, and we have had nothing but perfect weather thus far. It’s only fair that we have a day like today.
We didn’t waste the day though, but instead used the day to do some of the touristy activities that we had planned. We hopped in the car around noon and headed of to Pedro St. James. Pedro St. James, is not Rebecca’s husband, but is the oldest building on Grand Cayman. On this rainy day, I was one of only six people there. It was built in the 1780s by the wealthy William Eden and was a showcase for his wealth, where he enjoyed the finest of what the well-to-do of the day possessed. His house was the sturdiest building on the island, and the only one built of stone. Not surprisingly, it was the only structure on the island that survived the hurricane of 1785.
Much of the history of the Cayman Islands can be traced to Pedro St. James. In 1831, democracy began at this house when the leaders of the island gathered to create the first democratic government. Four years later, a proclamation was read from the steps of the house declaring that all slaves on the island would immediately be set free. I was fortunate to stand on the same spot and pose for a picture, imagining what it would have been like to be there on that day. It was a very cathartic moment.
The house fell into
disarray for many years and was eventually bought by the government and
refurbished to its former glory. It is sometimes called the “castle” or the
“plantation,” but neither name is truly accurate. As part of the $8 admission,
we watched a movie that told the history of both the house and the island. It
probably wasn’t worth the price, but nothing is here in the Caymans. The only
thing that’s worth the price in the Caymans is the one thing that’s free,
relaxing on its countless beautiful beaches. Still, if I had I to do over, I
would have visited Pedro St. James again.
After leaving Pedro St.
James, David and I went to Hell. Hell is a tiny, kishky town in West Bay named
for its dark, spooky-looking limestone formations. It is quite popular with
tourists and is considered a must-visit for visitors of any length. . However,
another story circulates that tells of a Cayman governor who shouted a swear
word when he was hunting and missed a fowl. Either way, tourists descend upon
this little town to buy a souvenir, “send a postcard from Hell,” or just to be
able to say that they went there. We fell into the latter category.
Personally, I just wanted to visit, because over the years so many people had
told me to go there.
Before I ever got to the
island the jokes began to accumulate. My friend Kim told me to buy a small
basket and get out of my car right before I got into town, step in the basket
and then hop into town (so that I could say that I was going to hell in a
hand basket). Others had pithy suggestions as well, all of which I found
amusing. I even commented while on the home stretch that I didn’t think that we
were heading in the direction of Hell, because the road was too narrow and
crooked rather than broad and spacious. However, Hell is not a laughing matter
and is a real place that I want to be careful not to make lite of. The Bible
says that all of those who reject Jesus Christ will be subject to a place of
torture and eternal separation from His presence. None of us have to spend
eternity in the real Hell, and if you are interested in finding out how to
receive salvation from hell, click here.
I did however take a photo or two at the souvenir stand and bought a Cayman Island shirt while I was there. The polite cashier caught me a bit off guard when she told me to have a “Hell of a day.” However, by far the most amusing thing I saw on my trip was what I saw when I pulled into town. The very first thing I saw when I got to Hell was a large Catholic Church . . . kinda makes you think a little huh?
David and I were getting hungry around that time and so I suggested that we look for Hell’s kitchen. However, nothing appealed to us, so we headed back to Bodden Town and stopped off at the supermarket to pick up some stuff for a late lunch and dinner. With the weather still uncooperative, we just ate and took a lengthy nap. I have spent the last couple hours typing and reading and will probably go to bed shortly. All in all, today was an excellent day, very relaxing and carefree.
You may download my Grand Cayman 2003 screensavers at Webshots
