Fish in the front yard

Purple clouds dance on the ocean today. They billow and seem to pile on top of each other though the sea remains calm. A couple sits in two chairs sipping coffee with their toes in the cool sand. While they missed the sun rise the clouds are putting on quite a show. There is no rain though moisture hangs heavy in the air. All is peaceful and quiet. The tourists traps are empty ... vacancy abounds. A Tropical Storm named Issac is churning in the Caribbean and leisurely making its way to St. Martin so I'm throwing up prayers for my friends there. Carlos, Verna and Chelsea, Nathalie, Karima, Mimi, Victor, Patu and others. Keep them safe. The island has seen its share of hurricanes. A couple of years ago one hit and everybody lost power in the midst of tremendous wind and rain. Verna hugged Chelsea in the darkness of their concrete block apartment and screamed out for Jesus to take care of them. When Jesus kept quiet about it all she yelled out "Holy Shit!" and that seemed to get his attention as the winds died a bit and the rain let up. She was shaking and crying as Carlos put his arms around her and opened the front door. "Verna," he said in his lilting French Creole accent, "do you see any fish in the yard?" Sniffling she shook her head from side to side. Carlos hugged her again. "OK then. Everything's OK. Leave Jesus alone." I laughed and laughed when he told me this story and when I saw Verna later for dinner, asked her if she was eating fish from the front yard. Watching Verna eat a fish is nothing short of miraculous. She eats everything including the eyeballs! She reminds me of Barney Rubble on The Flintstones picking up a whole fish, putting it in mouth and then pulling out nothing but the skeleton. I've watched her do it countless times sitting there mesmerized. Of course when she cooks me jerked chicken wings, I probably look the same to her. Sarah and I had supper with them a few months ago and it was special. They had big news and waited until the right moment to share it with us. Sometimes, meals turn into celebrations and this was such an occasion. But today I'm throwing prayers onto the ocean, bothering Jesus to ask him to keep them all safe. After Issac finishes with the Caribbean he'll decide whether to attend the Republican National Convention in Tampa or maybe take a side trip to Tybee Island. Now we all wait to see what happens. Isn't it funny how life is that way? So long as nobody has fish laying in the front yard it'll all be alright.