I Remember Christmas chapter 7

 Christmas also means giving of oneself. One Christmas my mother was working very hard on a Nativity play for our local church. She had offered me a part in her play. I refused the part. Why? I had no idea I had become a stubborn and rebellious teenager. In retrospect, I had no good reason to turn down the part. Two days before the opening, her leading actor pulled out of the play. I believe he got cold feet. I was her only recourse and she came to me one more time. I accepted. What is my reward? A kiss from an old lady in the audience. How did my mother feel? Proud. Me? I love Christmas it brings out the best in people. It makes our goodness shine. What gift Christmas is but for us to accept. I Remember Christmas https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Above my website you may log on to purchase copies of I Remember Christmas and original artwork.

I Remember Christmas chapter 6 part 2

 Then I got a gift a pair of Cowboy guns and holster. My spirits perked up. Still sick but in a much better mood. Then one evening a man came visiting whom I had never seen before, and he took a picture of me, standing on my bed with my guns drawn. He promised to return a later with a copy of the photograph. My mood changed miraculously and I began to feel better. The spirit of Christmas was in the air again. Oh! How I love this festive season of the year. Soon come the day that I was to be discharged the man had not returned with the picture of me. I was packed and ready and waiting for my parents to pick me up. I sat on my bed feeling very sad and pensive. May be I would never see the man who took the picture of me again. Then I would never see how I looked? Howevera, remember this is Christmas just as I remove my hands from my eyes the man came rushing in, waving my picture over his head. I love it! I look great! I was overjoyed. I Remember Christmas https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

For copies of I Remember Christmas please visit my above website.Also art shown. You may also inbox me,

Chapter 6 part 1Sick and in Hospital

 

I had a part in a Nativity play I was Joseph, the leading actor. Every boy in the school wanted to be near the girl that played the lead female part. Deanna. Deanna was Mary. I had long since been in love with her, so of course I was devastated when I got ill and had to be hospitalized. No end seemed in sight. The doctors could not find out what ailed me. I went through a battery of test and still no results and not feeling any better. The Christmas season was fast approaching and I was feeling depressed. Sick and in hospital how miserable can that be? https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Please visit my above website to purchase copies of I Remember Christmas. And art shown on website. Feel free to in box me on art or Book.

❤️Rowan

I Remember Christmas chapter 5 part 2

 

Mummy got about decorating the living room area of the house. When the food was in the oven, everyone gathered around to help her. She was quite a boss, but we loved her all the same. The Christmas tree had to be lifted in and placed into position. We always had a very big natural Christmas tree. Last year’s carton with all the Christmas decorations was brought down and old lights were tested and all broken bulbs discarded and new ones put in place. Then came Christmas Eve night when we wrapped gifts and placed them under the tree. Oh! How I loved Christmas. Now all tired, we try to stay up as long as our eyes would permit to see when Santa would come with all our gifts. He only came after we drifted into a deep sleep. 

I Remember Christmas 

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Please visit above website for copies of I Remember Christmas and original art.

I Remember Christmas Chapter 5 Christmas Eve

 

Daddy loved Christmas. During this time of the year, he took control of the kitchen. Prepared the turkey, the ham the garlic pork, boiling the pigs feet and ears to make souse. Boiling down the beef for the pepper pot and using all of the rich spices. Not forgetting the rum punch and Punch a cream. We stood by like nurses passing the different cooking utensils to him the surgeon who performing the different cuts on the turkey, ham and roast pork. During all this cooking activity, loud calypso music was being played, With a Christmas festive flare. Infusing our minds with the sounds of Christmas, we will never forget. Mummy would peak every once a while. Concerned about the state of her kitchen, which was now taken over? This was the only time of the year she did not interfere with activities in her kitchen. https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Copies of I Remember Christmas can be purchase from the my above website.

I Remember Christmas Chapter 4 part 3

 

Christmas comes but once a year so flounce if you f louncing “Bato, Bato”! Christmas comes but once a year so wine and tumble down on the ground “Bato, Bato”! Up the road there steel pan players beating out sweet carols at a bouncy calypso beat. In addition, girls and boys, women and men dancing up a storm to the rhythm of Christmas calypso music. Oh! Boy I love this Christmas season. I Remember Christmas https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Copies of I Remember Christmas can be bought on my above website also original art.

❤️Rowan Folk Incognito blog Master 

I Remember Christmas Chapter 4 part 2

 

Of course, one cannot leave out the masquerade dancers they were fun. Accompanied by flute players and drummers making merry music. Joining them was the scary “Mad Bull with his horns and fearsome face. Then there was the Granny long lady on stilts with her face painted white. “Man is fun.” The masquerade dancers and the flouncing musicians singing and chanting ‘Christmas comes but once a year so drinks your rum and tumble down, “Bato, Bato”!

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

To purchase copies of I Remember Christmas please visit my website above also original art paintings.

❤️Rowan Folk Incognito Blog Master 

I Remember Christmas Chapter 4 part 1

 On Christmas Eve, we excitedly took a trip to the shopping district. The roads were packed with shoppers and hawkers. There were vendors on both sides of the street making it difficult to walk on the pavement. Firecrackers went off “Bang! Bang!” Whistles and horns blaring in the esthetic Christmas air.They were tons of toys and lots of food for sale. https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Copies of I Remember Christmas can bought on my above website.

I Remember Christmas Chapter 3 part 2 Aunt Yvonne

 

Suddenly while flouncing away with the majesty of Christmas Aunt Yvonne raised the hem of skirt and out flew a toy. Then with one, more whirl and toss of the hem of her skirt out flew another toy. To my brother and I these were the best of gifts of the season, nothing else mattered. Our hearts were so content it would not have mattered if we received no new gifts. We were completely satisfied. Her dance of an angle f lowing with joy and Peace lifted our hearts with promise and happiness. I Remember Christmas

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Copies of I Remember Christmas can be bought from my website above or inbox me.

I Remember Christmas Chapter 3 Aunt Yvonne

 

In the sixties in Guyana was going through a period of political unrest. There was protest, rioting looting and thousands of workers were on strike. There were food shortages and many houses and business were burnt to the ground. These were frightening times for children. My aunt Yvonne whom we lived with then was also on strike. My brother and I had gone to live with her while; our parents were away in Ghana West Africa. Therefore I will always remember the sad rainy day when the miracle of Christmas came rippling into our world. Our aunt Yvonne came bursting into our bedroom dancing and flouncing. Flouncing is a traditional dance step in Guyana, preformed mainly during the Christmas season. https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

copies of I Remember Christmas can be purchased on the above website or inbox me for further information.

I Remember Christmas Chapter 2 part 2

 

It was Christmas Eve and my elder brother, Clarence and I decided to climb a tall tree to cut down a few posts to build our little Christmas house. While my tall and on the way to becoming fat brother climbed the tree I stood at the bottom of the tree to point out which of the best limbs to cut. Suddenly I heard a loud “crack.” Then before my horrified eyes, Clarence came crashing down from the tree landing on a pointed tree stump with a loud “thump”. That then punctured his right thigh. Bravely he held on to his thigh and told me not to cry. Quickly he ripped his shirt off and told me to tie a tourniquet above the wound. How that taught came to him, I would never know. I scampered home screaming for help. What a courageous big brother Clarence was. Lucky for us my parents were home, they rushed him to the Hospital. “Oh! For the love of parents what would kids do?”   I Remember Christmas

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Copies of I Remember Christmas can be purchased from my website above.

❤️Rowao Folk incognito blog master 

I Remember Christmas. Chapter 1part1 (Brother Ent Heavy)

During the Christmas season, one of the traditions in Ghana was to build a trash house. This trash house was built out of the leaves from a palm tree. You then spend Christmas Eve and Christmas morning in it rejoicing the day Christ was born. This custom symbolized the humble way that Christ came into the world born in a stable. Although I must confess that, I was never able to spend the whole night in the palm house. I missed my bed and the nights were cold.

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Copies of IRemember Christmas can be bought on the above website.

I Remember Christmas. chapter 1

 

 I remember Christmas, when as a little boy I sat Under the Christmas tree and gazed at all the toys that Santa had brought for my brother and I. Me saying aloud “Santa must be a very good man”. Those words brought tears of joy to my grandfather’s eyes. At that age I had no idea that he was one of Santa’s great helpers, who brought all those wonderful gifts that were, adorned the bottom of our Christmas tree. The essence of Christmas, giving gifts of love. 

I Remember Christmas.

Copies of I Remember Christmas can be purchased online at website below or inbox me for further information.

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

I Remember Christmas part 2 prologue

    

The truth became apparent to me when I had my new, lovely, then nine years old daughter, Deanna, read this script.  She totally enjoyed the script, she even laughed.  She then encouraged her teenage brother Marlon to read the script. His response was a wide smile. He also enjoyed the script.  I have since had this children story adapted and “performed” as a play by my local church in Brooklyn.  The play was well received by a multicultural congregation with much acclaim.

I Remember Christmas.Prologue

 

PROLOGUE

December 1992

The background of this children’s book has a distinctive Caribbean flare. Remembrance of Christmas opens windows on different cultures and their similarities.  The comparable backgrounds I feel children the world over can relate to and also adults.  Remembrance of Christmas narrative was drawn from memorable episodes of the Christmas season in my life “as a child growing up” in Guyana, South America and Ghana, West Africa.

          My desire to write about the joys of Christmas was ironically triggered by a feeling of sadness.

It was close to Christmas day I was far from home in New York, and I had not received a Christmas card from my son who then lived in Guyana.  It was a cold day the snow had fallen all night and into the morning.  I was on my way to work and had just missed the bus; all I could do was stand and lament. Then it slowly dawned on me I had to snap out of this feeling of sadness before it affected my new loving family. Hence the idea for Remembrance of Christmas was born.

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Copies of I Remember Christmas can be bought at above website.

Anxiety

 With the thunder and lightning the rains came pouring down we rushed for cover; but there was nowhere to hide. We tried to find our Book bags, with our food.  They were lost in the mad dash of humanity to nowhere. 

We then decided to head home soaking wet from head to toe from the rain. Half way home we remembered Kite Man dashed back to find him he was nowhere to be seen. The Back Dam was clear of all humans only broken kites and mud puddles and stray dogs going through left over food.

We finally got home and knocked on his door. It swung open with a creaking sound. We then crept into the room, it was bare.  Kite Man had vanished. Worried, struck now we ran upstairs shouting for my aunt and mother Gertis. To be met only by silence we now began a frantic search of the house fearing the worst.  Maybe Kite Man had used his infamous knife ‘Baby Gal’ and sliced Aunt Sybil and mother to pieces?

Then we spotted a note which apparently had been blown off the kitchen table. It read ‘Gone with your mother to the hospital where she is having a baby’.

Once upon an Easter.

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Finality

 

Then with a running start we raised Baby Gal, straight up with her, “pulling the loop” Kite Man made on her Baby Gal. 

Now there were only two kites left in the air and we battled a bad man kite named Pitt Street Bull. Twice our tail with razor blades crossed over his rope but he still was flying and dipping and crossing and coming for our kite. 

Pitt Street Bull’s tail crossed our rope three times. It looked like he was winning the battle. ‘So we pretended we were hurt and started to fall flapping in the wind like a bird whose wing is broken’. 

Pitt Street Bull, saw that and was coming in for the kill.  The Kite Man shouted “Pull! Pull! Pull!” I pulled and  balled the rope furiously, the rope burning my hands. I already had blisters. Our kite rose and just as Pit was coming for the kill our tail cut his rope. We won the battle.

At the same moment a big thunder and lightning flashed through the sky, Kite Man shouted “Lego! Lego!  Lego the rope!”  Away flew Baby Gal, into the thunder and lightning razor blades sparking! Baby Gal was on fire! 

Once upon an Easter 

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Visit my website for more art.

Kaleidoscope

When we got to the back Dam there were thousands of kites already in the air, kites of every sort, shape and size; box kites, bird kites, boy and girl kites. A buzz of excitement engulfed us.  

On one end of the dam a jukebox was playing loud calypso music and on the other a steel band was warming up.  Kite Man, as our instructor said “Raise the kite with the cloth tail fus, let’s see how bad?”  

Ten minutes after the kite was raised bad boys, bad men, and girl’s kites started to make an attack on our kite. Our kite was the best looking kite on the dam and therefore the envy of many a kite flier. 

When Kite Man saw the attack he said “let her pitch and come do like she got cut”.

That we did. Then he said “Replace the tail with the rope tail which we bring wid we”. That tail had razor blades placed strategically on its length and also broken sharp glass. We waited for a good breeze and like a plane taking off we flew straight up in the air. The bandits quickly saw us and so much coveted our kite they wasted no time and attacked immediately. 

In minutes we cut down two girl kites. Then came the boy kites which we fought off and eventually won over. 

A big kite war had broken out! Four times we got tangled up and had to bring down Baby Gal, and another two times we had to cut and join the rope and bring her down because she got into some dangerous tangles.

Once upon an Easter.

More art can be viewed on attached website.

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Kite Man

 The test kite now more damaged from the journey, we had no time to waste.  The next morning we started rummaging through our aunt’s yard looking for old box boards to cut and make parts for our broken kite. We found a few pieces and with a cutlass started chopping down on the wood. 

Suddenly we heard someone shouting at us. “Hey there! Hey you there!” 

We looked round and there was this tall skinny man pointing at us. “Stop that racket, what do you all think you are doing?” 

We replied, “We’re trying to repair our kite”. 

“Oh! I see” he said, “Come here, let me help you I have a knife the sharpest gal I ever had, when she cut, she does cut real clean and smooth”. Me use am to chop up nuff of them”. “Bring them boards, leh me help you all build a big man kite”.

 I am the Kite Man. Wait here, Ah gon bring out my favorite knife Baby Gal! 

His fingers were long, and his hands were steady as he chopped and planed the boards to be used for our kite. 

“Go get me some pace.  Pacie is a gummy sticky fruit that grew on a large tree in Aunt Sybil’s yard.  So we climbed the pacie tree and picked as many bunches of pacie as we could, as fast as possible, because red ants were biting us on all parts.  Red ants always bite you in parts unmentionable.   Red ants live in pacie trees, they love the fruit because it is so sweet. 

Next we had to cut some bamboo to make the ‘bull’ of the kite.  We then asked our mother for a few dollars and ran down to Main Street to buy some kite paper to pace on the kite frame.  Because the kite was so big we could not use our crochet # 0 twine, we had to buy a thicker twine more like a fine rope. Then for the tail we cut some old clothes and joined the pieces together. But the Kite Man said we had to get some rope so we found a big old rope in the yard and split it in two to make the tail. The Kite man said “I am a fight man and we are going to battle any bad man kite that challenges us on the Back Dam tomorrow”. 

Then we made some cut out of and wrote out the name of the kite “Baby Gal”. It was the biggest kite my brother and I had ever seen and the most beautiful. Only one thing disturbed us, was the name “Baby Gal”. Next the Kite Man said “find some razor blades and broken old glass and bottles with sharp edges' '. With all these items procured and the kite completed; he declared “I am done now. How you all gon pay me?”  Big problem for us was we had no money.  While “Kite Man '' was building our kite he kept on rambling about the different people he used “Baby Gal” to slash. By then we had figured that Aunt Sybil’s boarder was the infamous murder who sliced up his victims.  However the police could never pin any definite murder on him. Hence he would spend a short time in prison and then be released. He was also known as the New Amsterdam Butcher Man.   While scratching our head he blurted out “I want Rum”!  

Well Aunt Sybil had a bottle of Rum which she used for black cake and to preserve fruits. So we raided her cupboard, poured out all her rum and replaced it with some lime swank – (lemonade made with brown sugar).

 

 We now had the best looking kites in New Amsterdam, but feared Aunt Sybil’s border was the notorious “Kite Man '' known criminal for cutting up his victims. This knowledge lingered in our minds. That night we hardly slept a wink. Both my brother and I had constant nightmares of Kite Man creeping up and cutting us into pieces while we slept. 

Once upon an Easter.

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

The British Soldiers

With our spirits uplifted Clarence, our Aunt Yvonne and I began preparing for the big Easter Monday kite flying day.  Only to receive a letter from my mother Gertis stating that she wanted us to spend Easter with her in New Amsterdam. 

The next couple days were now spent preparing for the long journey to New Amsterdam. We boarded the train in Georgetown, Lamaha Street in Cummingsburg to begin the trip.  

To our amazement and joy as boys we were in the same compartment with two British soldiers. 

Guyana, then “British Guiana” was a sovereign colony of England.  The British army sent soldiers to help squash the unrest and riots and return the country to a state of peace.                            

Between strained snips of conversation we got to know the English soldiers. They proved to be saviors to us after the train made one of its major stops at Mahaica. At this stop we are allowed to leave the train to stretch our feet and buy food and stuff. 

What we did not know was Mahaica was also World HeadQuarters for Sand Flies and Mosquitoes. The moment the train pulled out of the Mahaica station, colonies of sand flies and mosquitoes descended on us with the most vicious insect attack on man ever. Sand flies will attack you in swarms on every exposed part of your body. They will find their way through your hair down to your skull and bite every exposed part unprotected by hair and leave your head full of bumps; they are bad. The mosquitoes there will bite and drink every drop of blood you own by the time you reach to Rossignol, you will have no blood and become pale. 

So there we were facing imminent death when the two English soldiers produced the most complete defense in the form of a bottle of Citronella oil. They offered to share some with us.  We graciously accepted their offer. We rubbed that oil on our body from head to toe. We literally took off our yachting boots and rubbed the oil between our toes and of course on our heads, under our shirt and pants. It just takes one sand fly to get under your shirt and pants to have you scratching and itching.  

My brother and I will always be grateful to those two English soldiers.

Once upon an Easter.

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

 

Test Flight

 With Easter approaching fast and not having acquired a wooden kite to fly my brother, Clarence and I were worried.  We explained our dilemma to the gardener. He convinced us that our fears were unfounded and we could build our own wooden kite. 

Up to that time we could only build ‘pointer broom’ kites -using the spines of the coconut tree leaves.  These were not very efficient kites. They were prone to breaking easily and had disastrous flying records.  

The gardener then proceeded to lead us through the steps of making our own wood kite with old pieces of board laying around our yard.  And assisted by my aunt Yvonne who provided us with some of her greaseproof paper and some colored Barbados Kite Paper, we built two ‘singing engine’ kites with big bulls  so that they could hum in the air.  The kites, having been completed, were put to the test flight. It flew so high it hummed so loudly it could be heard for miles, my heart could not stop pounding with happiness.  Then out of nowhere a strong gust of wind blew and pop went the twine (Crochet #0) and away flew my kite.  

There was no time to waste. Straight away we plunged into action running in the direction of the falling kite.  The kite fell fast and it disappeared  speedily. We now had to go from yard to yard over fences fearing bad dogs and angry shouts. 

Finally we got to the yard of an old lady and  asked her if she had seen a fallen kite.  “Yes” she said, and asked us to describe the kite. 

I slept well that night with my kite by my bedside.

Once upon an Easter

Attached two paintings from Once Upon An Easter. Also art (Lovely People).

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

The Gardner

 It was getting close to Easter and my brother Clarence and I were facing the daunting prospect of going without a kite. (In Guyana it is traditional to fly kites on Easter Monday symbolizing the resurrection of Christ from the grave.)  We were moping around the house feeling sorry for ourselves and being lazy. Because Guyana experiences bursts of heavy rain at any time and extreme heat and sunshine, the grass grows at an aggressive pace. It therefore happened on one of those hot spells that a gardener came by and offered to cut the grass on our Aunt Yvonne’s lawn for a small fee.  My Aunt Yvonne quickly agreed.  

We as boys stood and watched in amazement as he used his scythe to swipe through the tall grass. Due to the extreme heat and humidity the gardener had to take a break - which he did. 

We sat around him in my aunt’s backyard and chatted with him and watched in amazement as he sharpened his scythe.

Once Upon an Easter

Attached for sale Damballah, Legba,Moko, $500.00 

https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/

Tribute to Phyllis Eleazar

Tribute 

Phyllis was a woman with a sense of practicality and a no-nonsense approach on

many issues and positions. She was also full of empathy for humankind in her

daily attitude in approaching matters.  Phyllis was also a true family person, and faithful to friends. There was also a mischievous side to

Phyllis which I will tell about. 

I will illustrate two stories which speak about Phyllis not in entirety, however these two stories have a nice sense of her humorous side.

My dad George now passed promised to buy a new Bicycle for me. Before he

went to the store, he picked up Cousin Phyllis from work at the Canadian High

Commission . Now I can only imagine the conversation between them. Phyllis:

“You must be Mad, You gon buy Rowan a new bicycle? They gon teef it. Come leh

we go to Joee, he does have some good second hand bicycles.” 

Later they picked me

up from Tutorial High school drove me to Joees second hand and bicycle repairs.   I

was stunned the bike was an old time “Preggie” - woman’s bike - converted to a

man’s bike with a welded bar across. The good news is when I took her home I got

a few laughs;  then along with my friends in the neighborhood we painted her yellow and

called her Yellow Bird. Yellow Bird became a hit.

Phyllis was mischievous and a prankster.  

Much earlier in Campbellville there was a famous trench we called Milky. Now Milky flooded every rainy season and the boys in the neighborhood honed their swimming skills there. Swimming with only our

Buckta (underwear) or naked. 

On one of these swimming escapades we hid our cloths under some shrubs. 

The mischievous prankster Phyllis struck!   She crept under the shrubs where our clothes were hidden, stole them and took them home.  

 What a dilemma we faced; the prospect of going back home pants-less and naked!

But that’s another story.

Phyllis we love you

Attached to blog is art Unity. Unity is on sale for $400.00. Also attached link to website Marabunta enterprise. There you can find link to book I Remember Christmas. You may also inbox me for details on art and book I Remember Christmas. https://www.marabuntaenterprise.com/