By John Denny
Nevis Reporter
(Nevis) – In the tranquil setting of Golden Rock Plantation Inn, Clayton Huggins gave a reading from his latest book As deep as you are. Mr. Huggins has also released a CD from the collection. His subject material ranges from serious to humorous, touching on many things between.
His voice, meter and overall delivery of his poems make for very easy listening.
Originally from Nevis, he spent many years in Toronto, but is now “here to stay,” said Huggins. He has been writing poems since the 1970s, but never took the time to publish nor did he give it much consideration, until the last few years.
“I met someone I knew as a child who also writes poetry,” Huggins said. “She asked to see my work and when I went back to collect it, she asked ‘why aren’t you published?’”
This encounter gave Huggins the push to publish his first collection Sky blue roof. Both collections and CD can be found at Chapter 1 Bookstore in the Cotton Ginnery Mall, Charlestown.
Sales of the latest collection have been going well, said Huggins.
In addition to his writing, Huggins is also a massage therapist at Four Seasons. He has been in massage therapy for 10 years and is ranked as one of the top 10 in the world.
Many of Huggins’ family are also published writers in a wide variety of genre, from biographical and legal publications to dreams.
He attributes this to the supernatural.
“The house where we grew up was haunted,” Huggins said. “We would wake to sounds such as dishes breaking, but when we would get up to see what it was, there would be nothing. I believe growing up in such a place opened our minds and gave us the creativity to lead a different kind of life.”
He also credits Nevis and the Caribbean.
“It is hard to remain angry in a place like this,” Huggins said. “I spent many years in Toronto where the pace is faster and there is much more stress. Winter there can have a beauty of its own, but it cannot compare to this. Nevis is such a beautiful, peaceful place that it works its way into the culture of the people. It is a culture of wanting to get along with one another. There is something very special about living in a place where the people want to maintain peace and harmony with each other, but of course we aren’t talking about the politics, just the people.”
