Oxy Moron, Contributor

It's the end of sports day at the popular Kingston school for girls. The young ladies are going home, and a minivan travels slowly up Marescaux Road. Rampin' Shop blares from it, over and over again. The girls, who were on the way from a day of romping on the field, dance and sway to the tune.

It's banned from radio and television, and that's good, very good. But, it is also a joke. For Rampin' is still spicy and the vibes are hot. The children, especially the girls, are loving it. And we refuse to admit that we are living in a failed society. For Rampin' Shop has not only been the first, and it will not be the last.

Rampin' van

Farther up the road, girls from a primary school gyrate and sing along. The van crawls; the conductor is calling the girls to get into the Rampin' van. The road is busy; schools are out; Rampin' is in. An elderly woman passes a group of girls. One holds a boy's hand tightly. The woman is upset. She looks at them with scorn, and utters something inaudible. "What you say, Granny?" one girl asks. 'Granny' replies, "That dutty gyal a de back!" The girls giggle and Granny moves on, still cussing. She wasn't romping with them.

The van picks up pace. The girls of another school are in sight. They hear the noise, and see the van; they are excited. The van clears the bend and stops. The girls rush towards it. The conductor pokes them inside. If you see that van a-rocking, don't go a-knocking. Rampin' Shop is in session. It's music lesson time. What great lyrics, fantastic composer, unmatched vocal skills! Do we hear Grammy Award?

My mother, my mentor

Flashback to two days before on a bus from St Catherine to Kingston. Sexy songs, including Rampin' Shop, are thumping. A mother sits with her very young daughter on her lap. Music plays, mother bounces and snaps her fingers. She's singing along; the daughter looks at her. She's learning so much. Oh, my mother, my mentor, she thinks, beaming with pride.

Where have all the young girls gone? To rampin' shops, everyone? What a sexy nation! And oh, a Christian one too. The most churches per square mile, with many a rampin' shop nearby. Yet, there is Hope. A UWI Dr endorses the rampin'. Donna is not romping. But the children are rampin' and daggerin'.

oxydmoron@gmail.com