the biggest nut
We are anchored at Long Cay, in Lighthouse Reef, 30 miles off the coast of Belize. It is our favorite spot from last year’s sail. This morning at sunrise, the island’s skyline was silhouetted in pink. And the sun, when it rose, was the distinctive color it has when shining through smoke: a brilliant pink/red. March and April are the months when Central America burns in preparation for planting, turning stifling and hot. Here offshore, we are on the fringes of that, and it is livable. Above the mangroves rise the coconut palms, distinctive and elegant. Coconuts are the largest seeds on earth, and are expert survivors, floating themselves over oceans to far islands, and planting themselves there. They are a rich, lifesaving food. They are used to feed pigs and chickens. And they have figured large in our diet this year: coconut milk in our coffee and hot chocolate, and in Thai curry soup. ~robin~
