June 11, 2011A letter to all Bermudians, be encouraged! My name is Diane Pimentel, I came to Bermuda at ten months old and lived there for the first 40 years of my life. My dad came on a contract with BELCO and we received Bermuda status after about 20 years of living there. I now reside in the US but was recently there to surprise my husbands best friend who was up for entertainer of the year at the VIP Awards. We stayed at the Southampton Princess Hotel for four nights, and we never left the property except for brunch at Henry's.We enjoyed all the hotel had to offer. We were tourists and loved it! Great dining experiences, from the bell captains to the trolley drivers, to the beach. Not only did our friend win the award to highlight our weekend, I saw many faces of old, now at 50 years old. I looked back when I won Ms Tourism (as a Cooper) around 1981 and because of that great honour I still to this day talk about the beauty of the island to those I come in contact with in the US and tell them about her people. Many go to visit and I have never heard of anyone who was disappointed yet. We have a home there still and my husband and I always say that Bermuda has been good to us. Going as a tourist was so much fun. The weather was perfect and we brought friends from Tennessee with us. They loved the whole Bermuda experience and talk about it every time I see them, they have already visited twice and are now planning another trip. The island is breathtaking, clean and unique. The people are so friendly. You sell it just by being yourselves, smiling and speaking positive.Yes, we all have problems, so does the US and yes the economy is bad but we are a resilient people who bounce back. Hold your heads high Bermuda, not only do you have an island that is breathtakingly beautiful, you have such great restaurants and great people who go the extra mile to help. We need to keep our eyes on the author and finisher of our faith and we will be more than conquerors in the days to come. I also wanted to say that upon my return to the US, I had the privilege of sitting next to a retired police officer who wrote a book and was kind enough to give me a copy to read. It was done with excellence and I thoroughly enjoyed it, no matter what he experienced as an officer he learned to forgive and let go.We are all imperfect people trying to find our way, it just shows me more and more that you never know who you are going to run into and they are not coincidences but God instances. We as a people need to leave the past in the past and live each day to the fullest with that beautiful Bermuda smile and kind words on our lips, we are to come together in unity and love and extend the hand of God to others and show that same mercy and grace to others as he has shown to us.In closing, upon my return to the US, I received an amazing CD and DVD called “Proud to be a Bermudian” by John Woolridge. Well John, my hat is off to you my brother what an amazing song, truly anointed from God, the words could not be more perfect for Bermuda and her people, I feel the spirit of the Lord when I listen to it over and over in my car. What a gift to the people of Bermuda and to the tourists who visit the lovely island. The words in that song truly blessed me. So Bermuda, thanks for the memories, I hope to be back at Cup Match with my family for some more R&R, great friends and home cooking, sunshine, blue water and pink sand, but like the song goes, our wealth is not in the blue skies and pink sand, every good and perfect gift is from above. God bless you all,DIANE PIMENTELTennessee