This one stuck with me. Everything truly happens at its own perfect time. Had this happened any earlier, when my understanding of life and the events therein was limited, I would have simply brushed it off as a coincidence. The more I learn and understand, the more my experiences are shaped, as if to reinforce the lesson that life has taught me, or is trying to teach me.

I am writing this on a Caribbean Island where many different fruits are aplenty. It’s 2020 and Covid_19 isn’t quite done with the world yet. This island is not where I am from and so I am still getting used to the availability of what types are grown here, and when and where they are available. On the island where I grew up, I have always had access to many fruits as we grow them on our land. Wherever I am in the world, you can surely find me buying fruit.

My workload has been heavy for the past few weeks and my body reacts to stress by craving “comfort situations” to establish some sort of familiarity or normalcy.

It comes in various forms. It could be through food. I resort to cooking foods that my grandmother or mother did, sometimes having to travel with some of the ingredients just to ensure that I can have them when I need them. Cacao Tea (Natural Hot Chocolate) is one of my favorites without a doubt. (See my Blog on this).

It can also be by wearing specific clothing. when I am extremely stressed, wearing certain clothes that I carry with me all the time, that I have had for years, brings about a calm and soothe to me. Some of my necessary pieces are from my late Grandma. They still smell like her and floods my heart with love.

The vibe of the environment usually goes hand in hand with what other efforts that I make. Listening to the local radio station of my island, hearing familiar voices of the presenters, and listening to a few good songs almost always does the trick.  My comfort situations are tied to memories of home, and so calling up someone that I could speak in creole with, or just speak on things that we both identify with and understand brings about a form of grounding that keeps me going through the next day, week or month if needed.

During my stressful period of work, somewhat confined to this new island until the quota had been met, with my skin breaking out, very little sleep, a disappointing relapse into hair pulling and lip picking, I suddenly began craving Passion Fruits. It was very strong and so I began searching for them. I found Passionfruit juice in boxes. Processed and packaged. My mind and body instantly rejected it. You see, back on my island, we grew our own passion fruits and made the juice ourselves.

Search all I would, I could not find them how I wanted them. Fresh. Not in juice form, processed or anything. I kept saying over and over, as the days flew by and my workload got even crazier, “I want passion fruits, and though I may not see them now, I see myself drinking a nice homemade glass”. If course listening to Florence Scovel Shinn had a massive impact on my perception of life and reality.

I had been renting a house for about 8 weeks and hardly ever ventured into the yard for three reasons. One because I did not have the time. Two, because there was usually a troop of Green Monkeys attacking the mango tree therein, and I had learnt through past experiences that they can be quite feisty. Three, because I could not find someone to cut the tall grass. The area that I lived in was also one that rained a lot, which meant that the grass was not just tall, it was also wet.

When I finally did find someone to come cut, bag, and take away the grass, I discovered a rather low hanging clothing line. It was hidden in a yellow flower hedge that was not properly trimmed, and so along with the previous tall grass, surely would not be seen. I was delighted because my house did not come equipped with a dryer and the clothes rack that came with the house was small. Seeing that there were multiple occupants, that clothes rack was almost never available.

I decided to try out the line in the yard the next time I washed. A few repairs had to be made to the line so that it was lifted higher off of the ground and I did not wish my clean clothes to drag, so I went to it that very day and sort-of fixed it. It was obviously not used in quite some time.

About a week later, while I was hanging out the clothes on the line for the first time, I had to brush off quite a few dried vines that had grown along it and thought nothing of them at the time. They were wrapped around it tightly and so it took me a few minutes to unwind some of them, and finally get the job done. I cleared them all away and successfully hung up the clothes.

The vines however, for some reason, stayed on my mind for about three hours while I tried to work before I finally figured it out.

When I did, I ran out of the house past my bewildered partner, and the other people from our team who were in the house at that time shouting “Passion Fruit Vines!” I ran straight to the hedge, and lo and behold, there were passion fruits in full bloom tucked away on the underside of the untrimmed hedge. Because they are yellow, like the flowers in the bush, I must have seen those that had fallen to the ground, but thought they were flowers from afar.

I gathered as many as I could and headed to the kitchen to make myself a tall glass of homemade passion Fruit juice. I was so happy. I drank to my heart’s content and shared with everyone around. It was a first taste for a couple of them, and the first time actually seeing the fruit raw and unprocessed.  Later that night I laughed like a psycho to myself, thanking the Universe for giving me just what I needed. I marveled at how close they were to me all this time.

Though I could not see them, something told me to keep the faith. To ask knowing that I would receive. I did not know how and when, but I trusted in the way I learned that life works and knew I would be eventually blessed with what I wanted. I began reciting “God is truly my supply” for the rest of that night and well into the next week. Needless to say, a few more manifestations came into play, but that’s another blog. Whenever my partner and I talk about it, he recalls how excited I was, and how great the juice tasted. He was at the time, was being introduced to the many pros and cons of island living, and was happy to witness the creation of some spectacular homemade Passion Fruit juice.

I have spoken the word for many things in my life, and finding those passion fruits was my sign of land. I now have stronger faith that the bigger things asked for, are already on their way to me, and may just be closer than I think.

Thank You Infinite Spirit and thank you Florence Scovel Shinn. 😊

Sincerely a Faithful Island Girl.