dearest Nevis,

this month feels like it has taken forever to come to a close.

and yet, wasn’t it only yesterday that i was tearfully saying good-bye to Jonathan at the airport and accepting comforting words from the oversized Nevisian cleaning ladies?

after a bit of a shaky start to the new year, i think i’m finally hitting my stride with shoelaces tied tight and eyes on the horizon.

but, i miss my family. i miss my good friends. i miss coffee shops and sidewalks and wide-aisles in grocery stores. it deeply sucks that i am missing out on the doggy surprise birthday party and don’t get to be the Significant Other at the work function and am no longer in a time zone where we can actually talk on the phone every day. some of the things i miss are small. but they add up. and sometimes it’s hard to believe i’m only 1/4 of the way through this island journey.

am i happy? overall, yes. but not every minute of every day.

but that’s life, right?

on another note, dearest island, i’m afraid your Nevis Nice* reputation may be in danger. January was a challenging month as i gained personal and direct experience with some of your more disturbing “societal norms”, like dog poisoning. a number of students are also grouping together to complain about repeated home break-ins, personal threats, and an overall sense of unease with their landlords, neighbours, or people downtown.

thankfully, i haven’t experienced any threat to my personal safety first-hand. my impression of this island is one of close-knit comfort because everyone knows (or is related to) just about everyone else. i was surprised to hear so many stories of student unease (and downright violation) in such a short time, but i’m glad people are speaking up and not assuming it’s just a “norm” they have to take with the island.

speaking of “norms”, as much as i like to make fun of doggy clothes and puppy boutiques back home, i am sad that pets are not viewed as family members here. i attended the Nevis Humane Society meeting early in the month and was shocked to hear that at least 300 dogs were poisoned on the island in the last year. i can’t imagine another 300 dogs (and their litters!) running around this tiny island, but even population control should be much more preventative and humane.

through the humane society and a primary school mentoring program, i am immersing myself in your communities more this month. i am inside my little school-bicycle-home bubble a lot of the time and can easily forget there are people living in third-world conditions right next door to the Four Seasons resort. it is important to contribute to your own backyard. wherever that backyard may be.

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*motto printed on most vehicle license plates.

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