Alexandersmap

    Tag: Bermuda

    • Following the Rhode Island to Bermuda Thread

      We stayed on St. David’s Island this week while we were in Bermuda. It wasn’t a conscious choice to stay there, but I’m pleased we did, for otherwise I don’t believe we would have gotten there on this particular trip. When I speak of conscious choices, I want to acknowledge that unconsciously I knew the connection between New England and Bermuda. In particular, between Rhode Island and St. David’s Island. Not simply the famous sailing race, but the historic slave trade. Bermuda was the destination for many of those “problematic” Native Americans who were being crowded out by waves of settlers changing the landscape of North America.

      One generation after the Pilgrims were saved in their first brutal winter in Plymouth, their saviors’ offspring were fighting for survival in what became known as King Philip’s War (1675-1676). King Philip was the English name for Metacomet, Chief of the Pokanoket, who’s seat was in Mount Hope, Rhode Island. The direct descendants of the Pokanoket are the Pocasset Wampanoag Tribe. When Metacomet was eventually tracked down and killed, ending the war, his wife Wootonekanuske and their son were sold into slavery in Bermuda, meeting the fate of many other Native Americans. Mother and son were separated on the island and lived out their lives as slaves. The son was said to have been on St. David’s Island.

      What seems completely separate is often connected in ways we don’t always understand. Our histories all blend together at some point, sometimes generations later. The story of humanity is tumultuous, tragic and beautiful all intertwined as a tapestry. One thread leads to the next, and we are one. We are forever learning, forgetting and relearning those connections. In a place called St. David’s Island, or in Bristol, Rhode Island, we find those threads and are reminded that our stories will forever be one and the same, even as our outcomes diverge.

      Smith Island, as seen from St. David’s Island, looks a lot like Bermuda in its earliest days might have looked. An active archeological dig is uncovering English settlement in this part of the island.
      The rugged point of St. David’s Island near Fort Hill Bay, with Nonsuch Island seen to the left

    • Quo Fata Ferunt: How Fate Created Bermuda

      The normal way to cross the Atlantic east to west is to go south to the Canary Islands and catch the trade winds over to the Caribbean. But what should one do when the two end points are controlled by hostile forces? The answer for the British in 1609 was to sail the route north of the accepted route to avoid the Spanish altogether. And this led them to fate.

      The Sea Venture was the lead ship in a small flotilla resupplying Jamestown, Virginia. They ran into a major storm and the ships got separated. One ship sank with all souls lost, and the Sea Venture was foundering, taking on dangerous levels of seawater after the chalking between the ship’s timbers failed. And then by some miracle (that northern route), they spotted land. Admiral Sir George Saunders attempted to navigate the reefs to land and the ship wedged into it, saving all hands. They landed, built two ships and continued on to Jamestown. But having discovered it, the British would soon return to found Bermuda and establish another foothold in the New World.

      Quo fata ferunt (“Whither the fates carry us”) is thus an appropriate motto for Bermuda, and maybe for the rest of us too. We cannot control where fate might bring us, but we can accept it (amor fati) and make the most of the moment. Like Bermuda, we may be adapt and become resilient to whatever circumstances arise, and sometimes even thrive for having risen to the occasion.

      Coat of Arms of Bermuda (image: wikipedia)

    • Where We Choose to Linger

      Bermuda is a great place to visit but an expensive place to live. Everyone wants a piece of paradise, and an island only has so much paradise to divide up. Still, not every place can simply be an escape for the uber rich. Who keeps things going if everyone is wealthy and secluded? Teachers and firefighters and nurses need to call the place home too, if you’re going to have anything but gated mansions anyway. Bermuda seems to have that under control, but the locals say it’s getting harder by the day. Time will tell.

      Even nomads want to root themselves in a place now and then. That place ought to be in close proximity to ample supplies of the essential things: food and water, shelter, healthcare and a community one can immerse themselves into now and then. Some might add in a few other essentials like the opportunity to make a viable income and a thriving cultural scene. Maybe throw in a decent book store with a great cafe. Simple, right?

      The thing about Bermuda that jumps out at me isn’t the history or beautiful vistas or fish sandwiches, it’s the warmth and generous spirit of the people who live there. They’re all just so friendly. Coming from a place where that isn’t always the case, it feels pretty welcoming. And who wouldn’t want to linger in a place like that?

      Fixer-upper

    • The Unfinished Church

      In St. George’s, Bermuda there is an old church that whispers of its roots. Never finished, never consecrated, it stands as a testament to what might have been. But those whispers from the past are exactly why it’s so very appealing now. We hear the whispers, visit and feel our spirits lifted. Left to the elements, its roof ripped away by a hurricane, the structure became a beautiful revelation. Never finished? This church is exactly what it was meant to be.

    • Unfinished Business

      Lately I’ve been re-building lists. Lists of unfinished business I have to get to. Things to see and do, as soon as this other business is over. You might call it a bucket list, but for me I’ll stick with unfinished business.  Take a blank map, color in where you’ve been and you quickly see that there’s so much you’ll never see.  And that’s okay, I don’t want to see everything, but I do want to see some things.  Let’s begin with these.

      The Aurora Borealis has long been on this list, dancing just out of reach with the Southern Cross on the far ends of the earth sky. I suppose I’ll get to each eventually, beginning in the north, where I sit, just out of reach, thinking about such things. I blame Crosby, Stills & Nash for sticking the Southern Cross in my head, just as I blame Local Hero for my obsession with the Northern Lights. Remove “blame”, add “credit” if you will.

      And then there’s sailing across the Atlantic Ocean (and back again on a southern route).  Long list on both sides of the pond, and of course in between.  Iceberg spotting in Newfoundland, hoisting a pint at The Brazen Head in Dublin, a fish sandwich on raisin bread at Woody’s in Bermuda, and lately, Christmas in Salzburg and Hallstatt without the throngs of tourists.  I definitely have unfinished business in Scotland, beginning with The Quiraing and the sunset at Neist Point and heading south to an immersive distillery tour in Islay. Across the channel and Normandy calls, and then a host of other Sirens scattered about Europe, taunting me; There’s no time to waste, you fool.  Don’t worry, other Sirens, I haven’t forgotten you…

      Another west coast calls me; Napa and some time with those redwoods, a drive down the Pacific Coast Highway to Monteray and Big Sur and a trip inland to Yosemite.  There’s something about west coasts that draw me, I suppose. Maybe it’s that restless northeast kid longing to get out there?  I’m a sunrise guy (greet the day!), but I do love a good sunset too.  I’ll follow the sun and see where it leads me.  Perhaps it will lead me to unfinished business in faraway places like Cocos Island and Easter Island and Iguazu Falls in Argentina and Machu Picchu in Peru.  I’ve never given you enough attention South America.  That’s an omission I hope to remedy, given the chance.

      And what of the world beyond?  So much unfinished business from Hawaii to the South Pacific to Australia to New Zealand to Asia and India and Africa all stacked up waiting their turn.  So much to do, so little time…  unfinished business all of it.  So let’s get this pandemic behind us, there’s a world to see, and precious little runway to take off.  Join me?