As the night creatures screech , the fowls from their roofs break out in a cacophony of sound from one end of the town to the other. Their sounds warn of strangers in the midst, as t carolers creep towards the darkened household, not wanting to be observed. Their voices split the air, as they begin their song.. They are continuing an old BVI custom.
     The darkened household awakes, as the carolers sing
     ‘Good Mawnin', good mawnin'
     A come for mi guavaberry, good mawnin'
     We wish you a merry Christmas,
     Good mawnin'
     We wish you a merry Christmas,
      Good mawnin'.
     The door opens, and the carolers are welcomed inside, where they continue caroling, and passing on or finding out the ;melee;until they are ready to move on to another household.
     Before they move on however, they are treated to some of the Christmas ‘goodies', which have been prepared. These would consist of cakes, tarts, and guavaberry. Some households serve biscuits and ham.
     
     It is customary that one member of the household joins the carolers as they move on and so the group expands.
     These days the carolers might end up at the Road Town Methodist Church where Mr. Merritt Herbert produces for the ZBVI Radio an early morning Christmas programme featuring some of the carolers.
     
     The Fungi Band groups also move around serenading households. Although some Fungi Band instruments have changed. In earlier times tsome of these were the bass guitar, made from a tin bath pan with a string attached to its center. This string was in turn attached to a wooden board. The vibration of the cord on the board, as it was plucked produced a musical sound. The guitar was a large sardine can also with board and strings attached another bit of instrument was an elongated pipe which stretched from the players mouth to the ground which produced a ‘flatulating' sound.
     
     
     
     
     Days before Christmas, it continues today, the household would engage in elaborate Christmas preparations. The guavaberry which long ago would steep in a demijohn under the bed until fermented,is now bottled and quite often vended.. The house itself may be dressed Christmas lights and decorations, and there are contests to choose the best. Whereas in the good old days a good fishing rod tree, cut from the pasture, sufficed, Today it is the pine, decorated with christmas lights and ornaments that stand in many homes
     
     
     
     Nature however, remains constant over the years
     There is no white Christmas ,with plenty of snow
     Just plenty of sunshine,
     Christmas carols, reggae and calypso.
     . Nature eagerly awaits Christmas as it always did,
      adorned in scarlet poinsettia, snow from the snow flower,
     the hibiscus, the Christmas candle and the frangipani