Fun and frolic in the Negro River

My frown could have been noticed from a mile as I travelled to Hagley Gap in St Thomas, via Mavis Bank, last Friday. The winding, pothole-filled roadways that serve the communities at the foot of the Blue Mountain are not for the faint-hearted.

So bad were the roads that my stomach was unsettled and my head pounded throughout the journey. The signs were clear in my mind - this was not going to be a fun assignment. Well, so I thought. That was until I came across the breathtaking Negro River, which flows out of the mountains and eventually connects to the Yallahs River.

My curiosity was piqued when I noticed that two teenage boys were washing a motorcycle at a ford in this inviting body of water. Laughter could be heard a short distance away, and from the sound you could tell that schools were on summer holiday.

One of the youngsters watching the motorcycle, DJ, must have noticed the spark in my eyes, quickly pointing me to the 'pool' where about a dozen kids were playing Sharke.

I slipped out of my slippers, rolled up my pants and stepped into the cool, blue water. It was heavenly.

"We come here every day as we get a chance, and we catch fish and janga, and we run boat a day time. Summer school nuh start yet, so we deh here a cool down," one of the boys said.

He then explained exactly what the 'Sharkie' was about.

"It play the same way yuh woulda play 'stuckie' but a in the water it play, and because a water, we call it Sharkie. So we swim and dive and chase dem in the water and the person who get lick or tag, a dem a it. Mi bad inna it so dem never can catch mi," he said.

The sole female of the group, Judine, watched on the riverbanks. She stated that while she enjoys watching the game being played, she never participates as it was too rough. She would later dive in, making a huge splash, before lying still beneath the surface of the water for a few seconds.

"Mine yuh belly buss, and be careful a di rock dem," a little boy cautioned. "A just di odda day me pap mi toe on one a dem, so mi nah run nuh joke," he added.

SKILLED SWIMMERS

As the youngsters enjoyed themselves in the river, DJ, who appeared to be the oldest of the bunch, stood on a rock overseeing the activities. He told the news team that all of the boys were great swimmers, but he was always on the lookout for any unexpected turn of events.

As I sat on a rock watching the children frolicked in the water, I couldn't help but admired how they were having undiluted fun without the use of profanity, lewd music, smoking or intoxicating drink mixes.

After watching with delight for about an hour later, I said my goodbyes to the well-mannered group of youngsters, whose company seem to have remedied my pounding headache.