Hotel & Tourism Marketing Blog

Caribbean Consulting

Merchandising w Marketing w Distribution w Profitability

Sabans, who were forced to emigrate to all parts of the world, never forgot the little island in the Caribbean where they or their parents were born. Recently more and more of them have been returning for vacations or to see for themselves the progress made in the past ten to twenty years.

Committed to stay abroad because of family ties, jobs, education for their children, they express their feelings toward their little Saba in poetry. Here is a poem taken from the pages for the Saba Herald, which captures the intentions of this book:

ADIEU, SABA

Now, the time has come to leave thee,
Saba, isle of the fairest flowers,
Cherished land where I was born and
Where I spent my childhood hours.
Thou art fairest of the islands
In the wide Caribbean sea,
None could be ever more precious,
Than thou, Saba, art to me.

When a carefree child I wandered
Through the hills and valleys green,
Listening to the songs of birdland,
Full of joy and thoughts serene,
Oh! those carefree days were happy
'Neath the blue and cloudless sky,
Ne'er a thought of care or sorrow
As the golden hours slipped by.

Then one day the future beckoned
And I gaily sailed away,
Just a starry-eyed young maiden
Setting forth on life's great way
But I missed thee, dearest Saba,
As the years have rolled away,
And my heart I always promised
That I would return some day.

Now once more I've trod thy pathways
As I did in years gone by,
Followed trails to secret places,
Watched the mountain kiss the sky,
Drunk the dew of early morning,
Listened to the cooing dove,
Seen the moon in all her glory
Shedding gold from heaven above.

Danced to tunes so well remembered,
Clasped the hands of friends I knew,
But too soon the time has vanished
And I have to say adieu.
Here I sit and watch thee, Saba,
As the ship puts out to sea,
All thy rugged slopes and ridges
Etched upon my memory.

This poem was written by Mrs. Stella Richardson-Sloterdijk. She was born and grew up on Saba and was among the large number of our people who had to leave Saba and seek their fortune elsewhere.

A well known Saban poet is Mr. Wycliffe S. Smith. He was born on Saba in 1948 and educated in Saba, St. Maarten, the Netherlands and the U.S.A. He worked as a teacher in on St. Maarten. Then he became the Head of the Federal Department of Education in the Dutch Windward Islands. In 1976 he published a small book of poems called 'A Voice from W-Inward'. He was appointed Lt. Governor of the Island Territory of Saba in 1983 and has served until 1989. As Lt. Governor of Saba he initiated and saw through to a successful completion, the official introduction of Saba's flag, coat of arms and national song.

Old village road in Windwardside

During his administration most streets were given names of Sabans who had contributed to their island's growth and development. He was also instrumental in bringing Saba's statistical data up to date and in having this data published.

This page was last updated on 10/10/2004