Running out of free tape and time, I was at Marilyn’s and Sammy and Ma Lucy Simmons were on their front stoop. Sammy was more than happy to get his accordion out and play for me.

I was amazed at Sammy and Lucy’s memories and stories. Lucy was the teacher at one time. Sammy had the largest mule on the island and the best and strongest cart.

They had 13 children, the first, Dorothy, died 2 weeks after her birth. They raised all the children in the house they live in now. Sammy was born in the ruin that fronts Mike and Marilyn James’ property on Victoria.

Sammy’s first accordion came to him from his sister in New York and it cost $5.90. Can you imagine how much effort went into getting it to Salt Cay? He taught himself to play it. Most men played "1 key" accordion, but he taught himself "2 key" and that made way better music. He won accordion contests, and the older men who played weren’t hired in favor of Sammy.

Salt Cay had the best band in the islands, bar none. Just like Georgie said.

Miss Ella Hamilton told me she has no picture of her late husband. Nothing, not even a wedding picture. No one had a camera and the one’s who did "didn’t take pictures of us". They barely had money to put food on the table so a camera, or a picture, was out of the question. Again I heard "2 shillings, 6 pence a day". And again, life was filled with the entertainment you made, your church and your family.

So, here we are on Salt Cay with our DVD’s, computers, DirectTV satelite dishes and CD’s, and trying to entertain ourselves or our kids. But, when times were hard, the entertainment flowed. Men like Sammy Simmons taught themselves to play the accordion without any lessons, books, tapes or help. It was in their minds and flowed out of them naturally.