MEET A BAJAN
loria Wilkie is on the cusp of 90 and very, very busy. What keeps her so? “Life!” she laughs. She has no false teeth, wears no glasses, still drives, works, makes sense, and stays cheerful. She attributes her longevity to working with flowers and plants. Her Sunset Crest home is surrounded by them. At this point, her gardening focuses on growing foliage for florists and nurturing her guava tree. (Goat manure is the secret.) It returns the favour by bearing enough for her to make gallons of guava stew for friends and associates. When she dies, she would love to be buried underneath it. She’s lucky to be alive at all. The Barbados typhoid epidemic of 1906-07 was over by the time she was four years old, but enough of it lingered in the island for her to catch it. She survived, but her sister didn’t. She is grateful for life and expounds a simple philosophy: “I believe in God and God believes in me.” Mrs. Wilkie comes from a humble background. Until she was 16, her family lived in the country without running water. They still managed to grow food. “When I was seven years old, I would get a hoe and go plant something,” she recalls. When
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her father was a shopkeeper in Tudor Street, they lived in the city and resided upstairs. Despite their struggles, she never felt poor. Instead what she remembers is good times with good people: “I grew up with six energetic siblings in a house of music. We all played piano. My mother was very talented and could do anything. My father devoted his whole life to his family’s advancement.” Like her mother, Mrs. Wilkie is a creative all-rounder. “I am not just flowers. That’s my first calling, but I have done everything. Whatever I saw, I tried to make. My clothes, earrings, big hats—I have made everything. Except a baby.” At 25, she married a man who knew that she wouldn’t be able to bear children. They adopted a baby from Scotland. It was a much simpler procedure in those days. “A doctor I knew up in England and his wife were coming down to Trinidad, and I asked them to bring him to me and they did.” This child was called Randall, and his name became known in the hotel business. He is now General Manager of Sandy Lane. Mrs. Wilkie doesn’t see herself as special. “I live an ordinary life. I’m just a truthful person who works very hard. I’ve been lucky.” She wasn’t asked, “What’s love got to do with it?” We suspect it’s probably a lot.
GLORIA WILKIE - LIFE BEGINS AT 90
By Sarah Venable
Gloria picking guavas in her garden Photo: Jon Farmer
Ins & Outs of Barbados •
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