I walked the beach yesterday afternoon with Lu. It’s not a long stretch – the beach peters out as you get to Speightstown. It also has a stream outflow at the beach which smells sewage-y. This is a good excuse to turn around. But still, it was nice to walk with Lu. I wish I could say the feeling was mutual.

She said these things, in this particular order:

‘Why are you standing under the tree with your mouth open?’

‘I swear, if you keep looking like that, I’m going to ditch you.’

‘Why are you so weird?’

She was correct too. I was standing under the tree with my mouth open. It’s a rather bad habit of mine. When I find something interesting, I forget to close my mouth. But the sound was so amazing. It came from a couple of turtle doves perched up in the sea almond trees. They were singing to each other.

It was the most potent love song. Warbling and cooing at one another with the softest of tones. If that wasn’t a song about love, I’d eat the bark off the tree we were standing under. Which of course would mortify Luli even more.

Ahh the awkwardness of the teenager. It was so palpable, I could have reached out and squeezed it. I felt bad for my teenager. Standing with her mother under a tree and looking upwards for no particular reason. It was obviously exacerbating her symptoms.

After her third complaint, I looked around to see if I was causing actual embarrassment. Literally three Bajans were standing around. None of them were looking at us.

Still, Lulu won. We carried on walking. The turtle doves continued on in the distance.

Three young men came towards us. They looked at Lu. She looked back at them. They passed her and afterwards, she turned around to face them. I know because I was slightly behind her. I was the one raising my eyebrows. Mouth closed.

‘What?’ she retorted at me. ‘I was just turning around. It has nothing to do with them. I was checking on you.’

Like I never lived. ‘You always wiggle your butt like that when you turn around to check on me?’

‘Dont be such a prude! I cant help it if I have to hang out with my mother all the time.’

‘I know. You must be one of the luckiest people I know.’

Snort. ‘Go stand under that tree again. I think those turtle doves want to poop on you now.’

Such a cheek. The student has become the master. But there was no denying it. The turtle doves had set the soundtrack. Friday afternoon. Love was in the air.