I was excited on my arrival in Jamaica, and somewhat sad when I was leaving. Those two feelings I identified very clearly.
On my arrival, I was excited and had the biggest smile on my face as I looked at the island through the window of the aircraft. I immediately began anticipating everything I had conjured up in my mind, about what this trip would bring.
When I left the island, the thought of leaving family, friends, community of people in Epping Farm, what I consider a simple way of life, along with thoughts of what I was to return to, didn’t make me very happy.
It was the in-between parts of my visit that had my mind/my emotions on various tangents. From the time, I left the airport in Montego Bay, to the time I left the island in Kingston, what I saw, heard, felt, touched, and tasted, stirred emotions that have me still processing, and asking myself lots of questions.
Lord knows I consider myself a country girl, but I do have some ways about me that others would describe as “extra.” I don’t mind the “extra” label however because I do like that part of me. That part of me just reminds me every now and again, that I have standards that I expect to be met. All parts of me though, give me a good blend, and make me able to relate to everybody. Well, almost everybody.
Several things happened that I couldn’t relate to or didn’t want to relate to. Some include the girls in the bank who were “throwing words” as if trying to pick a fight with the “foreigners.” Their verbal sparring with each other but directed towards my mom, daughter, and me, was disturbing on many levels, and only stopped when we continued to focus on our business and each other. We didn’t engage them in any conversation or look their way. That was probably a good strategy as tensions could have escalated with people we didn’t even know.
The next thing was the invasion of my space along with my sister and cousin, by the taxi drivers in Cross Roads. They were like a swarm of bees, ready to latch onto you and sting you without mercy. I wasn’t quite ready for the attack, so I was caught off guard which didn’t help my mood. I immediately thought, “Whe happen to people?” “Why dem dwon’t hav no manners?” Mi no like di roughness! Everywhere mi look, everywhere mi gu, people just seem to have forgotten their manners! I started to feel sad for Jamaica and the people who struggle with this behavior daily. It seems to me that with some regulations, there could be a more orderly way for people to use the local taxi services.
The other things I couldn’t or didn’t want to relate to were the slow pace in the banks and other business establishments. Everyone just seem to move slowly, talked slowly, and didn’t seem to care that you needed “on time” service. Some even look at yu “funny” if you ask a question. I left many establishments disappointed at what seems like a lack of urgency for anything.
On my arrival, I was excited and had the biggest smile on my face as I looked at the island through the window of the aircraft. I immediately began anticipating everything I had conjured up in my mind, about what this trip would bring.
When I left the island, the thought of leaving family, friends, community of people in Epping Farm, what I consider a simple way of life, along with thoughts of what I was to return to, didn’t make me very happy.
It was the in-between parts of my visit that had my mind/my emotions on various tangents. From the time, I left the airport in Montego Bay, to the time I left the island in Kingston, what I saw, heard, felt, touched, and tasted, stirred emotions that have me still processing, and asking myself lots of questions.
Lord knows I consider myself a country girl, but I do have some ways about me that others would describe as “extra.” I don’t mind the “extra” label however because I do like that part of me. That part of me just reminds me every now and again, that I have standards that I expect to be met. All parts of me though, give me a good blend, and make me able to relate to everybody. Well, almost everybody.
Several things happened that I couldn’t relate to or didn’t want to relate to. Some include the girls in the bank who were “throwing words” as if trying to pick a fight with the “foreigners.” Their verbal sparring with each other but directed towards my mom, daughter, and me, was disturbing on many levels, and only stopped when we continued to focus on our business and each other. We didn’t engage them in any conversation or look their way. That was probably a good strategy as tensions could have escalated with people we didn’t even know.
The next thing was the invasion of my space along with my sister and cousin, by the taxi drivers in Cross Roads. They were like a swarm of bees, ready to latch onto you and sting you without mercy. I wasn’t quite ready for the attack, so I was caught off guard which didn’t help my mood. I immediately thought, “Whe happen to people?” “Why dem dwon’t hav no manners?” Mi no like di roughness! Everywhere mi look, everywhere mi gu, people just seem to have forgotten their manners! I started to feel sad for Jamaica and the people who struggle with this behavior daily. It seems to me that with some regulations, there could be a more orderly way for people to use the local taxi services.
The other things I couldn’t or didn’t want to relate to were the slow pace in the banks and other business establishments. Everyone just seem to move slowly, talked slowly, and didn’t seem to care that you needed “on time” service. Some even look at yu “funny” if you ask a question. I left many establishments disappointed at what seems like a lack of urgency for anything.
The experience that put me over the top was the store near Parade where I didn’t know where to pay the merchant for two fans my sister and I were purchasing. Someone seeing my frustration told me to “push di money through the hole” in what looked like a metal screen. Even though I was on the outside of that “fence,” I felt like a prisoner in a cage. How degrading I thought for people to pay for their merchandise through a hole in a screen. I was soon schooled while protesting, that the “tief dem” in a Jamaica is the cause for this contrapment. I was livid, but came to some understanding that for now, people would have to put up wid dis degrading way of life.
Last but not least, were the conditions of the roads especially driving from Kingston to Epping Farm, St. Thomas. Let’s just say that after each trip, mi bady bruck up and I couldn’t walk for at least a day. Di road bad, di road bad, di road bad. Lawd hav mercy!
What happen to the Jamaica I left as a teenager? Yes, the beautiful Blue Mountain view from Epping Farm is still there. Minto Church, the church I went to as a little girl is still going strong, and people in the community still greet you when dem pass you along the road. YES, a lot has changed, and I don’t like everything that has changed. Erosion has taken away most of the land, communities are filled with unemployed young people (same for the old but that’s not new), the poor are still struggling from day to day for their every need. I wondered if they still have hope or if they are losing it each day. I wonder if they have hope in themselves, their country, and their countrymen.
I am hopeful for positive changes in many areas, but only time will tell. Despite some of my negative experiences, I will be back in Jamaica again, and I hope I will be a little tougher and able to handle the “unpolished” nature of some of my countrymen and women. Maybe they will become “extra.” Whe yu tink
Last but not least, were the conditions of the roads especially driving from Kingston to Epping Farm, St. Thomas. Let’s just say that after each trip, mi bady bruck up and I couldn’t walk for at least a day. Di road bad, di road bad, di road bad. Lawd hav mercy!
What happen to the Jamaica I left as a teenager? Yes, the beautiful Blue Mountain view from Epping Farm is still there. Minto Church, the church I went to as a little girl is still going strong, and people in the community still greet you when dem pass you along the road. YES, a lot has changed, and I don’t like everything that has changed. Erosion has taken away most of the land, communities are filled with unemployed young people (same for the old but that’s not new), the poor are still struggling from day to day for their every need. I wondered if they still have hope or if they are losing it each day. I wonder if they have hope in themselves, their country, and their countrymen.
I am hopeful for positive changes in many areas, but only time will tell. Despite some of my negative experiences, I will be back in Jamaica again, and I hope I will be a little tougher and able to handle the “unpolished” nature of some of my countrymen and women. Maybe they will become “extra.” Whe yu tink
~~One of the better roads in the community of Minto.~~
