God’s blessing, good care key to Emilyn Rose’s long life

Emilyn Rose, of Forrest district in St Ann, is from a family of golden agers. Her mother died at age 101, her great-grandfather at 104, and her grandmother at 100. Currently, she has four living siblings, the youngest being 83.

On April 19, Rose marked her 100th birthday, celebrating the wonderful occasion the following Sunday with family members, including children, grand, great-grand, and great-great-grandchildren, friends, and police personnel from the Bamboo Police Station.

"I'm thankful; all through the problems and struggling of life, the God of Heaven has carried me through 'til I reach 100," Rose told THE WEEKEND STAR.

Asked what has helped to preserve her, she replied: "Good care; they take good care of me. I get good treatment, if I didn't get good treatment I wouldn't be here right now."

"And if God don't bless you, you can't live long. It's the blessing that's keeping you. Yes man, God haffi bless you, keep and guide and protect you. Whichever path you trod, He's there with you, protecting you from harm and danger," she added.

Rose is from Ebenezer district but moved to Forrest with her husband, Ivan Rose, after they got married. Their courtship was the typical 'old-time romance' where the man had to approach the parent or parents and ask for the daughter's hand in marriage.

"So, when him tell me him love me, I tell him to go to my mother and tell her. So when he went to talk to my mother, I had to keep away. I couldn't listen to what she was telling him," she said.

Later, her husband-to-be told her what her mother had said.

"If you know you're not going take care of her, or you're going to disadvantage her, then don't take her out here," she said was her mother's advice.

"My husband had to ask for me. Him couldn't take me on the road and talk to me," she reiterated.

Ivan passed some years ago.

Rose said that when she was growing up, she obeyed her parents and grew to live the life that they taught her.

"So, I'm asking the young people them to just listen to their parents on how to live their lives, that they may live a few more days. How I see it now, you can hardly talk to them and tell them anything. But we had to hear what our parents said. We couldn't say go without they say go," she said.

Rose was also thankful that she is still strong and able to help herself.

"Mi give God thanks for mi not in bed, mi can move around in the house, mi can go to the bathroom, me alone and if mi nurse not at home, mi can help mi self and sometimes I take the walker and just walk. I can't walk too far but mi tek di walker and do little walking sometimes outside," she said.

She also expressed joy that three members of the police team came to share in the celebration.

"Them did come and check me one of the times and from that, them come around and visit me. Them come and look for me when them have the time," she said.

Woman Sergeant Ingrid Blythe of the Bamboo Police Station led the team to visit the centenarian. She said the team had initially met her when they went to the area to settle a dispute and has kept in touch whenever they are in the area. She said Rose invited them, but there was a caveat. Constable Charlton Bailey must be there.

"She just took on to him," Blythe explained. "'Mek sure unnu tell him' she told us. ... So we decided that, alright we're going to attend. So, we made up a gift package for her and we had Constable Bailey presenting it because she really took on to him."