Dalton Sterling is Real Silver Ware – Part 1

First in an eight-part series.

Dalton Sterling was born in Springfield, a small farming village, some nine miles out of Montego Bay. His parents were regular churchgoers at the Pentecostal church. Egbert, his father, rose to be a deacon and his mother, Olgar, sang in the church choir. Dalton and his siblings grew up with strong Christian principles.

“We had to be in Sunday school, rain or shine. And, we loved being there because we saw ourselves as, one big family.”

“Sunday school was great and so was home. We had to pray with mom and dad before retiring to bed. Sometimes, we prayed in our parent’s room or the living room.”

Dalton attended Springfield All-Age School, which was about a good five miles walk from his home.

“We would wake up by six o’clock in the mornings and attend to our chores, which include making sure the yard was clean. We usually store water from the evening before.”

“We had a lot of land, so it was not difficult to get firewood. I loved roasted breadfruit and ripe pear but also ate ground provisions such as yellow yams and sweet potatoes.”

“Grandpa named Clifford, had a donkey which he rides to his field. The donkey had two hampers and this is where our parents would put us whenever we were going to grandpa’s field. We would be there, sometimes for a whole day on the weekend. And, our grandfather would cook pork with yellow yam.”

“We would drink what was called sugar and water with lemon. We didn’t have any ice. However, a nearby spring provided cool refreshing water.”

“At home, my mom did most of the cooking, other times it was my big sister or a bigger brother after our mother migrated to the United States; I was about twelve years old.”

“Mom would bake what was called blue draws. This was a mixture of cassava, cornmeal with sugar, flour, coconut milk, and spices, including nutmeg. This was tied in a small amount in banana leaves and boiled into a pot. When cooked it looked and eat like pudding.”

“Primary school had much fun. My favourite teachers were Mrs. Henry, Ms. Thomas, and Ms. Grant.
Mrs. Henry taught us Social Studies, Ms. Grant Mathematics.”

“I loved football and cricket. This was played in the school ground after school.”

Be sure to read part two: Dalton Sterling and his Music. Only on the Reggae-Vibes site.

(Photo courtesy of Dalton Sterling)