Plentiful Rains Turn The Island Green
Greetings from the island everyone. Hope all of you are doing well and enjoyed your Memorial Day weekend, never forgetting to honor those that paid the ultimate sacrifice for our great country. . a country that has always been great, and always will be.
And don’t forget that Fathers Day is but a few more days away. Whether your dad is still with you or in heaven, take the time to visit with or talk to him, letting him know just how much he means to you, and the positive differences he has brought to your life. So many times we neglect to tell special people just how wonderful they are, whether by voice or words. The written appreciative and caring word, whether by letter or card or messaging, is a powerful thing. . take advantage of it.
Ok Lord, I’m pretty sure we have had an abundance of rain now, let’s turn off the sky faucet for awhile, please. At one point last week, the island had received nearly 16” of rain in 21 days, saturating the ground and making a mess of the makeshift roads. The bay water in the lagoons and along the shoreline stayed a dark brown from all of the excess runoff. Just when it appeared that the skies were clearing for at least a few days, another large orange and red cell would pass over, dropping another several inches. And I know it’s not just been out here, but everyone has gotten an unusual amount of rain the past month. It always seems as though it’s feast or famine with our rainfall lately. But famine sounds pretty good right now, for at least a few weeks.
The deluge of rain has certainly greened up the island though, and kick-started my late planted raised bed garden areas. The tomato plants (several over 7’ tall), and watermelon and cantaloupes have shot up and out since the rains, and my recently planted peach trees are looking very good. And I don’t know about everyone else’s, but my fig trees are loaded down this year as well. I’m assuming the rains have helped them also, and I’m already eating sweet ripe figs from my oldest tree of six years. The plumeria and Esperanza are also doing great, and the two beautiful Norfolk pine trees, one of which is now exactly 19’ tall, just keep growing.
Of course with all the rain and standing water comes the dreaded devil mosquitoes. As with anywhere else, they get really bad during these times on the island, and there are no mosquito sprayer trucks to fog the area and help out. So I just soak down with the most probable cancer laced deet, and hang in there until the grounds dry up and the little demons die off.
The beach has been inundated with debris from all of the rivers flooding lately. Mostly large dead trees and limbs are scattered along the four mile stretch of beach, making weekend bonfires a common sight on the island. Over time the debris will sift into the beach sand and disappear, helping with the erosion, which is an ongoing battle on this barrier island, both on the beach and bay side. But such is life on the island, you simply accept the bad with the good.
Well that’s it from the island for now, everyone take care and hopefully enjoy some extended days of beautiful sunshine.
