You can usually find Ms. de Jesus in her backyard, which she lovingly refers to as “her bush.” Her face is lovely, with a bright glow to her skin, sparkling periwinkle eyes, and a few shiny gold teeth that flash when she laughs. And when she does, her big, passionate smile lights up her whole face. She takes her job picking wine berries to a high degree. She places the harvested berries in a big bucket and carries it home, accompanied by her grandchildren.

Her right leg is stiff. A couple of decades ago, in ’86, she hurt her leg bad in a car accident. But the steel rod in her leg from this accident doesn’t hold her back from walking a lot, she says. Her belief for longevity is walking a lot, as well as eating a lot of meat, beef in particular she “is not a great fan of chicken.” Not so long ago, her doctor advised her to eat less meat, but within no time she felt weak.

Good laugh and a long sleep are the best medication.

You can’t get away without trying her wine. She takes the berries off one by one from little branches, tosses the rotten ones, removes the stems, and washes the berries thoroughly. After crushing them, she lets her berries sleep in sugar for one week in an island style fermentation container.

Ms. de Jesus explains that the flowers begin to bloom in November, marking the start of her berry-picking season, which lasts until February. “The fruits are anti-inflammatory and high in vitamin C,” she says in her island accent that is so thick it’s difficult to understand for non-island residents. Pay her visit and you won’t get away without trying her wine. The taste is strong and sweet—perfectly complemented by a piece of rich, pure cacao chocolate.

Her daughter Chola has her own restaurant/bar a few doorsteps away. It is the place to be on the East part of the island. She is a hard worker, has strong values, and never met a stranger. Ms. Jesus has five children in total: three boys (one passed) Chola, and another daughter. Her husband passed in the 80s, when he was 78 years old. “No man in her life ever since,” she has her hands full with all her grand- and great-grandchildren. She thinks she has 28, she has lost track.

The bottles are ready to sell, right in time before Semana Santa. After the processing starts, Chola’s empty bottles from her café are used for her mom’s wine. Besides selling by the bottle (100 Lps) she also sells by half a gallon (600 Lps) or one gallon (1,200). “A real business lady she is”, her proud daughter says. “And of course I drink her wine almost every night.”

Cooking is her passion. She cooks coconut bread, meat, stew, soup, pancakes, you name it. When you see her grating a coconut down on a board, you realize how physically strong she still is. Most people trying to open them quit after the fifth time, at which point they usually slice open their thumb. “You ain’t no good, my friend,” she comments. Whether making her own coconut oil or producing wine, she keeps moving and never stops.

She loves to be surrounded by her family and most of them live around her. Her secret to a long and healthy life? “A good laugh and a long sleep are the best medication for everything. Time and health are two cherished valuables that we usually do not recognize and appreciate until they have gone,” Ms. Jesus says with a grin on her face.

Ms. de Jesus passed away in July, 2024; she was 94 years old.

A Lady with a Smile Reflects on the Past

She was born the sixth of ten children. “I had a bad, hard life,” Mrs. Zelda said of her early years. It was full of heavy, manual work harvesting bananas and fishing. She was just 15 when she began helping her parents to clear cut bush. Work clearing fields of bush and weeds employed many people on the island in the 1930s and 40s.

Mrs. Zelda married early. At 16 she met Harry McLaughlin, a local man who was looking to start a family. The next year, Mrs. Zelda was married in a simple ceremony at the “cabildo.” Mrs. Zelda and Mr. Harry ended up having 12 children, two boys and 10 girls.

O’Rella Bailey was the midwife that delivered all 12 of Mrs. Zelda’s children. Back then the delivery cost Lps. 35, 40 at the most. Mrs. Zelda was strong and healthy as were all her children.

She began helping her parents to clear cut bush.

The Achilles heel of the islanders was their dental troubles. There was no dentist, so people did their own dental work. The dental care consisted mostly of extractions, most often by pulling ailing teeth that would cause pain. Mrs. Zelda says all her teeth were pulled that way, usually with the assistance of helpful neighbors with pliers and a steady hand.

The Achilles heel of the islanders was their dental troubles. There was no dentist, so people did their own dental work. The dental care consisted mostly of extractions, most often by pulling ailing teeth that would cause pain. Mrs. Zelda says all her teeth were pulled that way, usually with the assistance of helpful neighbors with pliers and a steady hand.

Mrs. Zelda is most proud of her children. Now almost ninety, she is looked after by her four daughters. Two years ago her arthritis got really bad and made walking painful. Mrs. Zelda spends all her time in her large wooden house on the eastern side of Diamond Rock.

Mrs. Zelda still cooks for herself, but needs assistance from her daughters to prepare vegetables and other cooking ingredients. She spends her time “praying and singing. (…) I like hearing Christian hymns,” says Mrs. Zelda. Her favorite hymn is “What would I do without Jesus?”