The sea and the baby

Anton and Aimee kindly took me along on 2 hour the trip in the glass bottomed boat this morning. It was strange to see a sea bed so devoid of colour and plant life - mainly big volcanic rocks and a few wrecked ships. We did, however, have a big manta ray swim right up to the boat.
Hannah and Danny were supposed to come home this evening, but Hannah has developed jaundice, and has been placed under lights in an incubator. The hospital is very relaxed, and because there is no other mother in the maternity ward, Arthur is allowed to spend the night with them.
I have just done the first load of baby clothes washing....

Anton and Aimee van Rensburg

Friends from when we lived in a little town called Kokstad (more than 20 years ago) arrived on the RMS on 10th Dec, and will be visiting us for 2 weeks. When Graeme and I were waiting to meet them at the wharf, we were wondering whether they had changed much physically over the years, and whether we would still recognise them. To our delight, they looked much the same as before, and we recognised them instantly.

While waiting for them to disembark, we watched how cargo is unloaded from the RMS to reach the island. Little boats ferry backwards and forwards between the crane on the wharf and the RMS.

It has been great having friends to chat and reminisce and laugh and sight see with. Aimee and I have similar interests, and Anton and Graeme do as well. Their presence will be missed when they return to SA on the 23rd

Apology

My dear friends that usually follow my blog - many apologies for the long silence. Blogging has become on chore lately - especially if I try and attach a photo or 2. It takes me about 1 to 2 hours to post a blog that takes about 10 to 15 minutes to create. There is most probably some simple reason why my computer is not doing what I tell it to, but I don't know what it is, and computer technicians that can actually solve your computer problems are almost non existant here. Also, our internet service provider and connection is often so slow that it can cause saintly people to use colourful language.

I will do my best to improve.

Hannah Rose Beckett

There were 2 Becketts on St Helena on Christmas 2009, 3 on Christmas 2010, and now there will be 5 on Christmas 2011:

Hannah Rose Beckett said "hullo" to the world on Sunday 18th Dec 2011 at 11.44pm.

She did not appear too impressed with what she saw...



Danny was taken to the hospital at about 4.00am in the first mild stages of labour. Arthur and I were with her througout her labour - sometimes Arthur was more supportive than others...

Danny did very well during a difficult labour, delivering an 8lb 2oz baby naturally. Here she is with Hannah seconds after delivering her.

An excellent midwife, Erica Benjamin, assisted her, making sure that there was no tearing.

Dr Deon was also there making sure that all went well.




Arthur was given the baby to hold while Dr Deon and Erica gave Danny the attention she needed after the birth. They bonded so well that Arthur was fussy when I tried to hold his "little precious".
Hannah has a mop of lovely black hair; a button nose; chubby cheeks; a dimple in her chin; and l-o-n-g fingers and toes.

Literally, within hours of her being born, congratulations were being announced on the radio, and all sorts of people (some whom I did not even know) greeted me on my way to work, congratulating us, and wishing us well. Such a lovely community spirit

Policeman Arthur

Arthur joined the St Helena police force on Monday 12 Dec, as a prison guard. It is an answer to prayer. Strangley enough, his great grandpa, after whom he was named, was also a policeman. So far, he is very happy there and says that his fellow officers are thoughtful and good people to work with.

The Wedding went ahead

Friday evening I tried to let everyone know that the wedding was going ahead, but our internet service was down. Still down on Saturday morning. gggrrrhhh!

Anyway, the wedding happened. Hallelujah! I am rather tired after running around like a headless chicken for 3 days, so I will just post a few photos for now, and post a more detailed blog about all the "goings ons" that happened, later in the week.

Internet is playing up again....Photos are in random order. Will try and fix later. I have been trying to get this small entry onto the blog for over one hour now....

WHAT A DAY!!!

Yesterday afternoon I arrived home to find Danny and her mom trying to sort through all the baby clothes that have been given to her. Quite a task. An hour or so later I dropped Arthur and Danny off at the hospital for their last anti-natal class, while I went off to the Deadwood Bible study. I arrived back home at about 10.00pm to Arthur shivering and all huddled up in the lounge, and in a lot of pain. He had a bad night, and was still in a lot of pain in the morning, so I took him to the hospital. He was admitted for observation. One doctor thought that he was passing gall stones, and the other thought that he had apendicitus. Tests were run during the course of the day, but nothing was conclusive, and he has been kept overnight in the hopes that a clearer diagnosis can be reached in the morning. And all of this while his wedding is on Saturday!!

While Arthur was in hospital, we received a call at the manse asking us to come and collect the marriage license, and check that we understood all that needed to be done. I went along, and found that the lady was talking as if Graeme was officiating at the wedding. When I informed her that this was not so, she informed me that it definitely WAS so, as they were getting married in a Baptist chapel, and only a Baptist minister can officiate in that location....

It turned out that Arthur had interpreted things said to him by the licensing official in the light of SA law, and had gotten his wires badly crossed. According to UK (and St Helena) law, the location of the wedding is very important, and determines who performs the ceremony. In SA, it is the person officiating that has to be licensed to perform weddings, and the location does not matter at all. We had to rush home and inform Graeme that his first wedding would be that of his younger son's in 2 day's time.

THEN we checked the unsigned wedding license, and found that Danny's middle name had been spelt incorrectly - "Rosanne" instead of "Roseanne". Back to the licensing office we went, only to be shown the births register where her name was written very clearly in block capitals in her father's handwriting as "Rosanne". Saints use their full names a lot of the time, and Danny was rather taken aback to know that throughout her life, her name had been spelt incorrectly - even on her baby vaccination card.

Last, but definitely not the least - while all these carry-on's were happening with the Becketts, the new governor made an announcement that the contract to build the airport had been signed, and that work would start before the end of the year. Thus ends many years of waiting and negotiating between St Helena and the UK government. The airport will change many things about the island - some for the better, and some for the worse.

Tomorrow will tell whether the wedding can go ahead on Saturday, or whether Arthur will be too incapacitated (perhaps recovering from surgery) and will have to postpone his big day.

I now have to go and press Arthur's suit and Danny's wedding dress that were made by a local seamstress, in case the wedding does happen the day after tomorrow.

16 days to go

16 days to go before there is a 2nd Mrs Beckett on the island. The "Notice of Marriage" is up on the Post Office notice board, and Arthur is counting the days.

The baby is GROWING. Here is Danny in a cheeky pose in her swimming attire.

Last week Arthur and Danny assembled the cot and changing station that they bought online, and rearranged the spare room to accommodate Danny and the baby. I will post a pic of the new room once we have the new linen and curtains that will make it a "girls' room". Arthur will keep his present room with its manly appearance, as a study.


A few days ago I got stung by one of the bees that are hanging around the flowering basil plants. The Saint bees are bigger and darker than the ones in SA, and I am sure that their sting is nastier. I managed to get a photo of one drinking the nectar out of a little weed flower.
The Sunday school children are now making cross stitch articles as Christmas gifts. Thanks to the ladies from other countires that have send us craft items over the past 2 years. Danny is cross stitching a border strip to decorate the anglaise cot duvet cover that we will make. (She was given a beautiful duck down duvet for the cot)


The Baptist ladies plan to hold a "cake and cookie" sale on Fri 28th at the Market in Main Street. There are new health and hygiene regulations on the island now. Everyone that sells food (even a packet of crisps) has to have a license and medical clearance. I found out today that they will give us Baptists a special "stall license" because it will be a once off thing. BUT I have to make sure that none of ladies bake their wares earlier than the night before the sale, and I have to accept responsibility if anyone gets sick from any of the food that will be sold..... The days have gone when a child could set up a "lemonade stand" outside his front gate, or sell fudge at school to get pocket money.


The island does not have any flower shops or gardens, and one struggles to get flowers for a special occassion. There were times when I felt "flower starved". So I started looking out for flowers anywhere, and taking photos as reminders that, although they are few and far between, they are around. Here is a photo of the flowers that were put in the Head O'Wain chapel on Sunday, and a nastersium growing on our rubbish heap.

Catch up on Sept News

Apologies for the long silence. I often feel like I am on a round about, and cannot get off. Besides working at The Consulate, there are Bible studies to lead 3 nights a week; ironing and cleaning the kitchen floor on Thurs evening; household chores and Bible study prep on Saturdays; Sunday School, Sunday lunch and evening service on Sundays. Some weeks are ok, but others find me tired, and struggling with bad health. That is my sad news. Now for the happier stuff.

Our lounge suite is starting to get thread bare, so I ordered throws from the UK to cover them and give the lounge a face lift. I replaced the manse curtains with Arthur's old bedroom curtains, a few scatter cushions, and hey presto, a new lounge.Danny has started helping me clean a manse room or two on Tuesdays and Thursdays. (We had to get her roped in to her new role....) I truly appreciate her help. The baby is growing at a rapid rate, and all seems to be well with both Danny and the baby.

I have been trying to find a well made cupboard ever since we arrived on St Helena, and more especially since we knew that we would have an extra person living with us from next month. At last, I found the nephew of one of our church's adherents, Alan Richards. He is an excellent carpenter, and had an 'almost finished' cupboard in the style (and price) that I was looking for. The finished cupboard will hopefully be delivered to the manse next Saturday.

Arthur's garden has been growing well. We had a few servings of lovely peas before worms got into them. They have also been feeding heavily on the tomato plants. We are learning to cope with the hassles and problems of gardening as we go. In spite of the worms, we have also had 2 very nice pickings of spinach, 3 lettuces and a constant supply of fresh herbs.

Last Sunday, the Sunday school children came over to the manse, as usual. They wandered into the kitchen and wanted to know what I was cooking for lunch, because all they could see was 'a bunch of green stuff'. (Saint children eat very little vegetables)

5 weeks to go before Danny and Arthur are married. It is going to be a VERY simple affair, but will also mean that life at the manse will change as first one, then another life swells our numbers.

Vincent and Vilma March left for a 3 month visit with their 2 sons on the Falklands, and Steve and Maureen Terry returned from their 3 month visit with their family and friends in the UK.

'O' Levels

Who would have thought that our dyslexic son would start getting 'O' levels while on St Helena? Well, he got a 'C' for Religious Studies (studied on his own without any tutorage or guidance) and a 'B+' for Higher Project (a sort of English/History paper). He writes English in November.

Community Care Centre

Every 4th Sunday of the month, the Baptists get a turn to hold a short service at the CCC. (St Helena's old age home) Here is Graeme playing his trumpet before delivering the message

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Danny has agreed to marry Arthur on 5th November in a simple ceremony before the justice of the peace. They will delay the celebratory church service until June next year, when Danny will be trim and slim. Their baby is due on Christmas day, and the doctor is 90% sure that it is a girl. I am starting to get excited about having a new little person to love - but not as excited as Arthur is.

Gospel Sing

We held a "Gospel Sing" at the Prince Andrew High School this evening. 5 ladies squashed into the church's little car (including Danny's mom) and Graeme went on his bike. People from a number of church groups participated - including the members of the 3 different Baptist chapels. One of the items was Graeme and Tom who played three trumpet pieces accompanied by a trombone player and Gay Marr on the electric piano. There was a good spirit amongst the people. The retiring offering brought in 280 pounds towards the restoration fund.

Work started on the roof of the chapel a few weeks ago. First of all, the back wall had to be repaired and built up, but now thay have started on the actual roof. There is still a lot of other repairs that need to be done - the interior of the church, electric connections for the lights, carpet, the window frames are rotting and need replacing, etc. But we know that the same God who moved people to give enough to repair the roof, will continue doing so until all the repairs have been completed.

Only on St Helena

Most places are organised into have street names and house numbers - making it easier to find homes etc. St Helena has a few street names, but as everyone knows where everyone else lives, there are no adresses as such. This was brought home to me very forcefully this evening. There was an official letter from the education department (with government stamp on it) and the address on the envelope simply read, Danielle Stevens, Jamestown. What amazed me even more, was that the letter was not delivered to her home, but to the manse.....

Early morning at The Consulate

A few scenes first thing in the morning at The Consulate

Zara (who serves in the snack bar with Arthur) putting out a tray of cup cakes for sale.

Arthur pausing during his sweeping exercise.

The cats waiting outside the kitchen door for their breakfast.

The Garden is growing

Arthur's gardening is already paying off. We had our first salad straight out of the garden tonight. A type of lettuce chopped up with fresh basil leaves and apple (store bought). We sprinkled a little Greek salad dressing over it, and our taste buds were very happy.
After work at the Consulate, Arthur rushes home to tend his garden for about an hour each evening, before settling down to his studies.
Who would have guessed that Arthur would have taken to gardening, and I would become the loving owner of cats? Perhaps it is the air on St Helena.

Answer to prayer

With work being scarce, Arthur offered to look after Dr du Toit's 8 year old boy who has Aspergers syndrome, (a variation of autism) during the school holidays, for a small fee. This was gladly accepted, and Dr du Toit came around to the manse to check whether Arthur would be able to look after Celliers for an extra day. Shortly after the details were agreed upon, and Arthur had returned to his studies, he received a phone call asking him whether he would like a permanent position working in the snack bar at The Consulate! A few minutes later, someone knocked at the door telling him that application forms were now available at the police station for a position as a prison warden!!! Sometimes God is extravagant is His answers to our prayers.

What to do? Arthur asked Danny whether she would be prepared to look after the little boy (Celliers) and they went up the road to visit Dr du Toit and apologise for having to "drop" him at such short notice. (The only problem with "plan B" is that Cilliers is a very strong willed child that needs firm but kind handling, and Danny is a softie).

We will have to wait and see how things progress.

Monseigneur McPartland

The Catholic bishop that serves on the Falklands is paying a visit to St Helena. He has been here a few weeks now, and Graeme has made friends with him. They have spent quite a bit of time discussing the Scripture, church history, etc. The other Friday I went with the 2 men to have a bite to eat. The waitress asked what name she should put on the invoice. Smiling kindly, he said "Monseigneur Michael McPartland." She just stood there staring at him with a panicky expression on her face. Then she asked "Can I just call you 'Mr Priest'?"

Graeme and the bishop in the manse lounge

Having a crack at gardening

After Sunday School this morning, Arthur invited the children to come over and help him create a new bed and do a bit of general tidying up. They all seemed to enjoy themselves for an hour after normal Sunday School.

Danny watched everyone get dirty while she cuddled her kitten.

Tiffany and Karla transplanting spring onions.

Josh and Vontray enjoying the hose pipe

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Arthur the gardener

Arthur has become a bit frustrated with too much time on his hands, and not enough to do - the happy result? He has taken to turning the manse's rather neglected back yard into a garden. He seems to have an affinity to this age old occupation. We now have one little bed growing peas for the pot, milk weed for warts, arum lilies for the vase, and tomatoes for the salad bowl.

In another section he has made a herb bed with spring onions, parsley, mint and sweet basil. Then there are seedling trays with lavender, jasmine, strawberries, cacti, lettuce. There is also a small rubble heap in one section - a left over from the rock fall 3 years ago. He has "dressed" it by digging out the biggest pieces of junk, and then planting ground cover and nasturtiums on the dump.

I am very happy with his efforts, and find myself wandering outside to dig out a weed or two in the evenings.

Christmas in July

We were invited to the enthronement of the new Anglican bishop this afternoon. Graeme accepted the invitation, but I chose to give the asthma inducing incense a miss, and went with a few of our BWA ladies to hand out the "love gifts" to the folk at the CCC.

Over the past few months we managed to make 27 pairs of bedsocks, which we combined with a small box of fruit juice, a small chocolate and little talcum powder or tissues or hankie, to make up a parcel. We also had 14 extra gift parcels without bedsocks.

The old people seemed to appreciate the gifts, and we certainly enjoyed giving them.

Crazy Tuesday

Tuesdays are my crazy days - rushing from one commitment to another. The day starts at about 6.00am - rise and shine and prayer time. A bit of house work (I did ironing today) until 8.00am. Wash, have breakfast and collect my things to go to Sandy Bay BWA. Today we finally made up our "Love Gifts" to take to the CCC on Sunday. 27 parcels in all, consisting of a pair of bed socks, a small fruit juice, a small talcum powder, some tissues or a hanky, and a sweet. Hopefully, we will be able to bring some Christmas cheer in the middle of the year to these old folks.
I arrived back home just after 12.00pm, dropped off the car keys, and did my version of a trot down the road to work.
4.00pm rushed back home to pick up the car and go to the Cape Villa Bible study. We started a series on the life of David.
6.00pm drove back home to get things ready for the Jamestown Bible study at 7.30pm. We are going through the gospel of John (my favourite gospel). This evening we were blessed by a visit from a couple from George, South Africa. They are members of the C.E.S.A. church there, and were due to go back on the RMS on Thursday morning.
The day ended with a read in bed, with my cat curled up and purring at my feet.

Baby things

Although Arthur and Danny do not have two beans to rub together, their baby is going to have plenty of gadgets and things to make life interesting for him/her. Bev Kilner arranged to have some lovely things that her baby has outgrown, dropped off at the manse. Here is a photo of the play mat and mobile to keep the little one stimulated while it is still in the "lying on the back" stage. I wonder how we managed to raise our children without all these wonderful things.

As I walked into the kitchen after work this evening, I was met by a slightly antiseptic smell. Arthur had spring cleaned the kitchen, washed the floor and rearranged things to be more practical - at least according to him. It lifted my tired heart.

Birthday cake

In South Africa, a birthday cake has to be a chocolate one in order for it to qualify. On St Helena, it has to be a multicoloured pink, green and yellow with a slight almond taste and plastic icing. Here is a photo of a slice of birthday cake that was given to Graeme to bring home for me

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Sunday afternoon

After vowing that I would never knit another baby blanket, I started knitting one for my first grandchild.... I found out that Danni has wanted to learn to knit for some time, so I found some scrap wool, and started teaching her the basics. She has caught on quickly, and we spent a few hours on Sunday afternoon, knitting together while we watched a DVD.