David Mac-Clean Johnson

I was born in 1943 in my parents’ home going towards the sulfur mine. It's the ruins of the sulfur mine today. We used to have the midwives, so many of my age, I do believe, was born in their own homes. Completely different than it is today.

My father was one of the farmers and I had the privilege to work with him in so many different places. We had these big gourds and peas and stuff that my mother used. Today, we depend on vitamins, but we had all the vitamins. We had all the things. We had beets, carrots, turnips, I mean everything that you want to put in your body to make you healthy. We had a lot of goats and sheep and pigs. We had some bulls, well most people on the island had a cow. I think the reason was to get the milk from the cow, but there was animals all over the island then. We had fresh cow's milk, we had fresh goat's milk, and mother would use to tell me this: “Only one way to learn, Dave — just try to help your father milk the goat!" It was more simpler. We didn't have no roads, we didn't have no vehicles. I think the first vehicle came on the island was 1947, so then I was four years.

My biggest life story is I helped to build the airport. I was like 18, 19 years then, I think. The airport officially opened 1963. That was a great adventure, and I had the privilege to work from the first to the end, to build the airport. And it's just me and the next guy on the island who worked from the first to the end who's alive. I don't believe that many people on the island realize that just two or three people are left alive here on the island who helped to build the airport. And there I learned to drive. There was French people who had a contract who made sure the airport was built in a proper way. All the people in Saba gathered to go down what we call Flat Point, where the airport is today, to see the first plane come in for a trial landing. And it worked!

And then my church life was busy. I always went to church with my parents. Then, the churches used to be full with people. If you wasn't there on time you wouldn't get anywhere to sit. Now, I play and I sing in the church. I play guitar, cuatro, and I play harmonica. I learned to play harmonica when I was a boy. Then after that, I found out I could get my harmonicas from Canada because me and my deceased best friend, my wife, we took care of many homes right here in this village. And one of the homes we took care of, Canadian people owned it, so he found out I could play harmonica, he said, "I can get you the harmonicas in Canada, less the price I can get them in Sint Maarten." And it was all the Marine Band, which is one of the best brands of harmonicas.

Growing up, I fell in love. I lived in one part of the village in Zion's Hill and she lived in the next part, but I would see her every Sunday, Phyllis. Phyllis Louise, and she was a Johnson also. We had church during the week too with the nuns. And I fell in love with a young woman while she was 13, I was 16. We didn't know what it was at first. But we somehow we couldn't keep our eyes off of each other. Them years, you had to prove to the parents that you loved their daughter. So when I was 19 years, I think she was 16, I got engaged. And then when she was 20 and I was 23, we got married. And we had a good life together. We have two sons and our daughter-in-laws and we have five grandchildren.

I lost her in 2017, the 12th of January. I think on her every day and every night. She was my life. We had a great life. We went on vacations to Sint Maarten many times and I rent a car over there. We went all over. We went for dinners all over the place, on cruise ships, all through the Caribbean. We had a lot in common. She didn't sing much but she would back me up and she always believed she couldn't sing well but she had a carrying voice, which was important, and she would really back me up with all my singing I did. But that was one of the reasons I keep singing and playing my music, because she made me promise her. She said, "Just because I'm dying, don't give up something we love." So sometimes it's not the easiest thing to do. I sing for many funerals. She encouraged me. We were dancers. We even danced once by Lollipop, St. John's, against the motion dancers from Sint Maarten. A lot of people took part that night but we came out as second. So that was a great thing. Our best hobby was the sea, we love the sea. We used to snorkel and swim. A snorkel around Saba is beautiful, so much to see. We had a great life on this beautiful island.