Blessing the Property
You must bless the property before you start to build. Then this is what we will do.
The property for our Jamaican resort has been cleared and the land is ready to build on. Before we start building the boutique resort we must get the fence built to identify the property. Before we start the fence we must perform a blessing ritual. What the heck is a blessing ritual?
A blessing ritual is performed to keep negative energy out, while allowing for positive energy to enter. The blessing ritual can be performed on new homes or new property. Some traditions use holy water or smoke from incense but we kept it simple. Our ritual blessing involved a ram goat & overproof Rum. I am pretty sure that all celebrations in Jamaica involve a Ram goat and Rum! But, this is how we did it.
Ralston found us a ram goat. Sheba tried to attack and eat the ram goat. The ram goat was butchered and we ate it. End of story. Not really – just playing with you. Rally brought that goat into the yard and Sheba, our neighbour’s dog, and now our full-time guard dog, did not like the idea of that goat being in ‘her’ yard. In fact, Sheba was annoyed by anything coming into the yard, which made her a great guard dog. She did try to make a run for the goat but Papa Poo held her back and kept an eye on her so she wouldn’t attack it while it was tied up under a tree.
That morning, Roxy & Tony butchered the goat on the property. Ralston collected the blood. Ralston, Papa Poo and I went to all four corners of the property and Ralston poured a little blood and a little rum into each corner consecrating the property. At each corner we also took a shot straight from the bottle of overproof rum. I am sure we drank the rum to invite the good spirits in. The remainder of the bottle of rum was shared by everyone in attendance.
The entire meal was cooked outside over the open fire. Everything from the goat is used for the meal. First, they burn the head and feet of the goat over the open fire. Then the head and feet were scraped and used in the mannish water soup. Even the entrails were used in the soup. One of the boys cleaned them in the salty water on the shoreline. The meat was cut up and cooked in a curry sauce. Rice was cooked with pumpkin. It amazes me how they manage to cook rice perfectly over an open flame – how do they do it?! We bought fish from the local fishermen, they were cleaned and seasoned and then fried over the open fire. It was a team effort to butcher, clean, prepare, cook and serve the meal. Everything was prepared to perfection – and amazingly all over the open fire.
When it came time to eat, the ladies presented everything to perfection. We felt a little out of place, eating off real plates, when everyone else had a cup of soup and paper plates for their meals.
We also bought fish for many of the working men and ladies who are Rastafarian and do not eat meat, but some will eat fish if it is fresh. We always provide fish to make sure everyone has something to eat. This is where I first discovered how much I like pumpkin rice and those pan fried fish – sometimes referred to as Escovitch fish.
Of course, everyone who had worked for us up to this point was invited to the blessing ritual and meal. I honestly cannot tell you how many people we fed. But the ladies, who are now our chefs and kitchen staff, did an excellent job of sharing so that everyone had a cup of soup and a plate of food. It was a fun day getting to know everyone and meeting new people. As we sat there eating and talking, Papa Poo decided that when we are operating as Villa Jewel Resort, he wants an outdoor kitchen, a Rasta Kitchen. He wants our guests to know how the Jamaicans cooked their meals and still cook their meals to this day – over the open fire – and how well they do it. Something, authentically Jamaican, something you won’t see in those large cookie cutter resorts.
‘The sharing of food is the basis of social life.’ – Laurie Colwin
Talk soon
Baba