When yuh hear de riddim and de iron
And de man wit de congo drum
In de engine room
Is ah vibes in de session
When we jamming to de steelpan
Come and join de lime, grab yuh bottle and spoon
Is ah party in de engine room
In de engine room we go jam it steady
In de engine room we go get on wassy*
De Mother of all Carnival is spent.
De party in de engine room halted.
De Mother is dog-tired.
She now puts her feet up.
De riddim and de iron grudgingly slowed.
De man and congo drum part company.
De wicked temperature in the engine collapses.
De vibes in de session cease to vibrate.
De steelpan pauses, de jamming jumps no more.
De liming limes lurk to a pause.
De party in the engine room clicks on pause.
Yesterday the sun was naked in glory.
Today, she’s clothed with clouds
Offering raindrops to cool the carnival fever.
Yesterday, de party drowned out the sounds of chirping birds.
Today, birds replace ear-busting music.
Yesterday, sleep was placed on pause.
Today, sleep begins to play.
Yesterday, the alcohol spirit poured like rain.
Today, the water spirit takes over.
Yesterday, carnival apparel and cosmetics masked scars.
Today, the wrinkled face in the mirror is truly me.
Yesterday, we jammed and “wined” in thin air.
Today, gravity demands our attention.
Yesterday, de streets were like ants’ nests.
Today, it’s a ghost town.
Yesterday, bottles of alcohol lined dining tables.
Today, they disappear into the prison of cupboards.
Yesterday, bodies swirled violently as in a trance.
Today, bodies dance into hibernation.
Yesterday, houses stained with food.
Today, cleaning solutions purify – a sign that Lent arrives.
Yesterday, garbage littered the streets.
Today, diligent workers clean…
- A sign of Lent.
De party in the engine room is over.
De season of rest, reflection, and renewal begins.
De Sabbath of Lent announces her presence.
*Chorus from the 2023 Carnival Trinidad and Tobago Soca “Engine Room”. Olatunji Yearwood, songwriter Jason “Shaft Vibes” Bishop, and Bajan production duo The Red Boyz (Mikey Hulsmeier and Scott Galt) have come together to create a sweet tune called “Engine Room”.
Beloved Reflections 
Thank you for all your reflections. God bless you Fr. Don.
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You know Fr. Don because you are an excellent writer, you were able to capture the essence of the carnival spirit. I felt sad. I am 84 years old and I lived in Trinidad until I came to Jamaica to live with my daughter in 2017.
I loved Carnival. I played mass. I felt all the emotions as I read this article. However, the pictures I saw this carnival were terrible. Women have lost all modesty and they don’t realize that in trying to wine better than men they look pathetic.
I am sorry that carnival has reached to this level. It used to be great in de engine room. 😊 Who knows? Maybe when I played Mass older people felt what I feel now.
Thanks for sharing this article Fr. Don.
Blessings Yvonne
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There is a time for everything…under the heavens. (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Thank you Fr. D. The truth of the contrast of the two seasons is beautifully captured here. Reading this gave me hope. In spite of it all, Lent for many of us, still has the “final Word”. And what is this word? It is the Word that still exists in the lives of human beings; beckoning us in all our frailty to return again and again, to the Word made Flesh…Christ himself, during the season of Lent. Thank you Carnival! Your “farewell to the flesh” images, with all its beauty, creativity, magnificence, debauchery, drunkenness et al still makes way for the entrance of the Word to be made flesh once again in frail humanity.
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There is a time for everything…under the heavens. (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Thank you Fr. D. The truth of the contrast of the two seasons is beautifully captured here. Reading this gave me hope. In spite of it all, Lent for many of us, still has the “final Word”. And what is this word? It is the Word that still exists in the lives of human beings; beckoning us in all our frailty to return again and again, to the Word made Flesh…Christ himself, during the season of Lent. Thank you Carnival! Your “farewell to the flesh” images, with all its beauty, creativity, magnificence, debauchery, drunkenness et al still makes way for the entrance of the Word to be made flesh once again in frail humanity.
JT Leiba
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