Add kindness, honesty to watchwords

Dara E Healy

Music is the atmosphere

Sweet music is everywhere

Even in the back, in the dark, a blind man can find a melody

Music fills the world with happiness

Plenty sweetness and togetherness

Music have no friends or enemies

Everybody could dingolay

Dingolay!

– Mighty Shadow, Dingolay

HIS JOY while he was playing the pan was palpable, infectious and necessary. I prayed that Joshua Regrello could infuse our nation with his smile and passion.

I thought about this when a driver almost hit me coming around a corner too fast, then revved his engine and kept coming forward. He could have reversed a couple inches to where there were no cars parked on the narrow street, but chose instead to behave in an intimidatory manner.

Seeing that he was with two other men in the car and I was alone, I figured it was more important to stay alive than be right. Joshua’s energy is powerful, but in light of what we are facing, it is not enough.

Discipline, production and tolerance. On August 30, 1962, Dr Eric Williams declared these as our national watchwords. I believe we need two more – kindness and honesty. Corruption and dishonesty have seeped into the fabric of our behaviour.

I take no pride in the term "trickydadian;" in fact, I cringe a little whenever someone uses it. Yet, across government, business and civil society, more rules, regulations and restrictions are constantly being implemented to try and foster honourable approaches. Including honesty as a watchword will help address this serious flaw in our national personality.

Kindness is another huge concept for us right now. From a boy who took his own life because he was bullied to aggressive conduct across political and corporate settings and abuse at home, our country needs a reset.

The creative community remains an essential aspect of bringing our watchwords to life. For instance, Alicia Jagassar and her team at the National Parang Association continue to be disciplined about elevating and sustaining this genre of music that we evolved.

World Steelpan Day as a government initiative was welcomed, while the World Steelpan Festival allowed us to witness again the dedication of pan players across the nation.

Our festivals continue to be sources of unity and creativity as seen with Hosay in St James and the First Annual Indigenous Festival held by the Warao Community of San Fernando and Siparia.

At the Intellectual Chutney Soca Competition, the popular songs celebrated unity and love of country.

Unfortunately, there are some in our sector who see culture purely as an avenue for profit, as Rohlehr calls it, “a commodity for sale in the market.” For them, it does not seem to matter if the artists they are promoting are bleaching their skin, denigrating women or using words that are insulting to an entire race of people. One hundred hours of pan will not teach such people any lessons. As we say in the theatre, the rest of us simply focus on doing the work.

So, how do we harness the energy and hope generated by Joshua’s joy? Transformation of the education system appears to be a distant reality, so for now innovation must take place within communities. First, we can revive the tradition of apprenticeship in the arts.

In almost every field, from wire-bending to sewing or mas-making, there are not enough elders passing on ancestral knowledge. These efforts should be documented by our national television station as part of its responsibility for preserving and sharing our cultural heritage.

We also have an opportunity to infuse values of love, kindness and empathy into our Carnival. In 2025, every event from Soca and Calypso Monarch competitions to tents and fetes should only feature songs of positivity and nation-building, even if treating with politics and social issues.

And Ash Wednesday should now be recognised as a day of rest. It is time to move away from colonial prejudices surrounding Carnival and acknowledge that the people who create this globally recognised festival are working, we are productive.

Our watchwords have not really had a strong presence in our evolution as a nation, but they should. In schools, communities and offices across our country, curricula around these concepts should be developed and widely shared. As Mighty Shadow reminds us, music can defeat all darkness.

Let creativity shine the light and guide us to the power of our words. Hold on to Joshua’s joy. Hold on.

Dara E Healy is a performing artist and founder of the Indigenous Creative Arts Network – ICAN