#GibsonLadies

My Alma Mater Sign

For those of us who hail from the parish of Manchester, have visited the cool town of Mandeville or affiliated with Mandeville, Manchester in any way, shape or form, you must have heard of the great Bishop Gibson High School for Girls that sits on top of what was the old Newleigh Hotel overlooking Pro Hardware & Texaco service station. Yes, I said it, the great Bishop Gibson High School o/c “Bishops” or “Gibson”, my alma mater (the pretty gal factory according to this customer at work). Its the school many girls dream of going long before sitting their GSAT exams but only a few like myself were lucky enough to grace “Bishops” with our presence. Gibson girls are the envy of many and there’s no need to question that; bottom line is, the institution doesn’t just prepare you for CXC’s but its the only high school in Manchester that grooms babies into ladies. To be a Gibson girl is more than an experience; its a lifestyle, you must live it to understand it. I’ve so much respect for my alma mater that no matter where life takes me, I’ll never disrespect ‘The Color Purple’ (even though I wore khaki in my era).

So after such a splendid description of my love for Bishop Gibson High, I was rather upset when on Tuesday, May 20 I stumbled on a Gibson girl eating on the street. There I was hurrying to the supermarket on my way from work when I approached a roadside ‘jerk stop’ at the corner of Willowgate Plaza and spotted the purple tunic; the girl stood there with a brown paper bag filled with jerk chicken neck and a Big Jo drink in her hand. She took the meat from the bag, chewed and licked the ketchup from her fingers before spitting the bones back into the bag. My gosh! How could a Gibson girl be eating on the street? I could not overlook this. Instantly, I diverted from the path to the supermarket and headed straight to her.

“Excuse me miss, may I have a word with you”.

At this time her facial expression resembled that of a woman who was about to beat another woman’s ass for taking her man. She stepped away from the jerk pan and fixed her eyes on me.

“Dear, Gibson girls don’t eat on the street”.

“How yuh know dat miss”?

I stretched out my right middle finger that holds my silver, purple stoned school ring that I wear everyday, everywhere.

“This is how I know, I’m sure you’re now getting the same training I got years ago”.

“Oh yuh use to guh Bishops”, she asked

“Proud of it”, I replied

Before leaving, she placed the food in her knapsack. How nice I thought 🙂 I don’t know about other schools but I know for sure having gone through “Bishops” you leave with more than just the mandatory 7-10 CXC’s, you’re equipped for life.

Salute the great Rev. Percival Bishop Gibson & the greats that came after him!

Per Ardua Ad Astra (google it)

I am Laydee Sharmz saying respect unu high school, all if it nah gwaan good lol.

Posted from WordPress for BlackBerry.