martin luther king memorial day just past a few days ago and i must comment that my favourite quote of his is the one of the street sweeper: If a man is called to be a streetsweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great streetsweeper who did his job well.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

it means that we should give our best in the situation we finds ourselves. we should always put our best foot forward, regardless of our situation. i try to do that with my life, with the job that i find myself in, and i encourage all others to live their lives to the fullest.

d

Hosting the ICC Cricket World Cup, the third largest international sporting event after the Olympics and the soccer World Cup, is an “impossible dream come true" for the Caribbean.
This is particularly noteworthy for these small and mini-states that are not exactly well-endowed with a multitude of cricket stadia, financial and other kinds of resources.

But it’s a dream, that’s come true.

Having been one of the major cricketing nations for at least 56 years, it had to happen sooner rather than later that the West Indies would bring home the ICC Cricket World Cup - for now, the event that is.

And it will happen between March and April this year in nine individual states which make up the W.I. cricket nation.


Hundreds of millions of hard-currency dollars have been spent on constructing new stadia, renovating old ones, refurbishing hotels; even individual home owners have invested large sums in the expectation to attract guests when all hotel rooms are sold out.


(Expected earnings from CWC) will be enough to at least get W.I cricket back on (firm) financial footing


Chris Dehring, CWC Managing Director

People in villages and towns in Guyana, Jamaica and Antigua have been astonished to see open pastures and cane fields transformed into modern cricket stadia.

Governments too have given financial guarantees for cruise liners to be moored at ports to offer accommodation to those of the expected 100,000 visitors who cannot find rooms on land.

Great expectations

The great expectation is to “host the best ever ICC cricket World Cup.”

The organisers have consistently said this is not mere mobilisation for a major sporting event; but rather a show-piece for a small developing group of individual nations to demonstrate to the world what they can do.

The expectation from the W.I. Cricket Board is that the tens of million of dollars to be earned from staging the Cricket World Cup “will be enough to at least get W.I cricket back on financial footing after years of losses,” says Managing Director of the event.


Mello, the CWC mascot

Governments and officials at the Caribbean Community Secretariat, are said to be “a little bit jealous to see the kind of cooperation and effort that regional people have put into this event,” says Dehring.

But governments too have had successes in passing so-called Sunset Legislation (laws which apply only for the duration of the CWC) to allow for free movement of cricket fans from one country to the other.

This will follow an initial inspection at one port and the acquisition of one visa to cross several national immigration borders. (see 'Visa Update' below)

“And we are sure that the security arrangements and linkages would endure well beyond the World Cup, to fundamentally improve the capacity of law enforcement within the region,” says Barbados’ Deputy Prime Minister, Mia Mottley.

Whatever those “secular” expectations, what will bring greatest pride to West Indians, would be victory for in the finals.

If that expectation climaxes in reality on April 28 at the Kensington Oval, Barbados the prolonged roar and celebrations will reverberate throughout the region and be heard and felt everywhere in the cricketing world and for a long time.



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http://www.dachronicle.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=556

By Rudy Joseph Jr.

The New Year has brought joy to the life of a young mother, as seventeen-year-old Zena Roberts of Bath Estate gave birth to Dominica’s first baby in 2007, Zakiah Bertrand (a 6-pound 14-ounce boy) at 12:33 am on New Year’s Day at the Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH).



When asked about the experience, Roberts explained that because it was her first child, she was rather worried about how the procedure would play out.
“I didn’t know how it would turn out. I know that making a child would not be easy, but it was really, really difficult,” she said.
“It was very painful and up to now I have some pain. I saw little stars while I was giving birth,” Roberts added.
She said that although giving birth was a learning experience, she doesn’t foresee repeating it in the near future.
“It is really nice to see your child for the first time and to hold him for the first time, but I don’t think I can go through that again, at least not any time soon,” the new mother stated.
Also born in the early hours of Monday morning was young Israel Jervier, who was brought into the world at about 1:30 am, also at the PMH.
It turned out not to be a hectic day for the doctors and nurses of the Stronach Ward, as there were only three babies born on New Year’s Day.

well new year's eve ended nicely for me, i got to meet my long lost family. well i wouldnt say long lost, but lost, because some of them lived just a few metres from my home, some a few miles and i didnt even know they were family. it all started earlier this year when my mother was having a convo with a coworker and she was talking about her children and mentioned my surname. so her coworker asked her who my father was and grandfather, so she mentioned a good for nothing williams from bath estate, remember she said that not me, lol. the coworker then said if is a williams from bath estate then it must be his cousin, so that is how it came to knowing that my extended family on one part of my father's side of my family actually existed more than a mere illusion or more than names mentioned under the breathes of other people. my cousin then contacted me and told me he would one day bring me to meet up with the entire family. i didnt take that for much cuz my father had always promised to do that but we never made it outside of bath estate. u would swear it was the biggest community in the world.

so months after, i met my cousin, well for details sake, grand cousin, in the streets of bath estate, he said he would return the following day, to check on me to bring me to meet the rest of the family. i waited that day until i grew tired of waiting. i was already in bed when he arrived, althought it was quite early, around 5 in the afternoon, dont laugh, i was feeling under the weather that day. i still went ahead and i didnt regret it either. although i only met a handful of members, i got to understand the scope of my family, the huge numbers, the fact that most were out of the island in america, england, st martin and other places, there were more williams out of Dominica than in it. some told me that they never knew my father had a child or children. my grand aunt spent the time telling me of my great grand parents and grand father, i had only met him briefly once before his death. the semi-reunion made me feel good, for long i had wondered, well just to myself, if i was part of a bigger family and who my family was. well now i know, i intend to keep the communication lines open, nothing can compare to family, even if it is one you only got at 26

Jetzzz

During the month of JANUARY 2007, Caribtempo Communications will be devoting a number of pages at www.caribtempo. com towards the promotion of THE NATURE ISLE...DOMINICA.

We begin with an introduction to the island at www.caribtempo. com/press. htm. This page is on display right now...posted at 10:00 P.M. December 31.

The next page will be www.caribtempo. com/vybe. htm. There we intend to highlight upcoming carnival events. To this effect, we seek trhe cooperation on all concerned.

To make this volunatrily patriotic venture at projecting our nation's image to the world, we urge you to "spread the word around"..encouragin g all your contacts to view the relevant pages.

We also hope to display poems and short stories by local writers. Poems must not exceed 30 loines..and, short stories be kept to a maximum 2,500 words. Brief bio and facial photo should accompany contributions.

Poems and short stories will be changed, weekly.

Interested parties seeking small adverts should call 317-0942.

May God Bless You..As we wish you the greatest of success throughout 2007