Amina Blackwood Meeks
MISS LADY sey de Church did pack. People far and near. All who never know de man, but know him by him reputation come fe send him off. But de parson teck de cake. Backa him back people call him de Reverend Hatch Match and Dispatch. For him ongle preach when people christen, when dem married and when dem fe bury. Dem is de tree time him guarantee a crowd, for him nuh preach to gathering him haffe have multitude. An dis time now him was not to be disappointed.
Mista Dead Man was a man of great reputation. Every Big Shot come wid dem mout full a encomiums fe heap up pan him dead. All some a dem who never pay de man no mind inna life come a ask bout who is in charge of de programme, a rush de mike like deejay, bout dem have a few words to say. Well de Reverend HMD was having none of it dat day.
Miss Lady sey when him see how de Church full him lack de door. It did teck all she by surprise. For she a sey inna har heart him right, for de place was packed to capacity and nuff more people was tryin to bore dem way fe come in. So she gi Parsons ratings fe foresight fe de preventive action. Well she swalla back all a dat. De man had but not one sentence fe sey bout Mister Dead Man. Hear him, "De man in de coffin, him gane. We kean do nutten fe him. If him gane to a place of eternal peace, we glad fe him an if him gane to a place of damnation, we kean bring him back. Unnu now, de living, me an unnu in yah today".
SARRRI
She sey she sarrri fe de poor man family. Dem up inna front row into dem nice fanciness ah wait fe bask in de reflected glory of de departed an dem bex when Parson start preach bout de man medical and physical afflictions. Why him had was to bring up de time bout when him did stub him toe an declare sey him kean badda go dacta fe a likkle ting like it dat? Well de toe did dehdeh till it heal crooked, twist up like piece a ginger, cudden straighten out fe fit proper into any shoes, so him did walk a limp. Miss Lady sey as far as she did concern him did have dat deh limp so long dat she an all did start to tink sey him an all maybe cudden memba a time when it didnt have it.
But it come in like him was a very unfortunate smaddy, for him always a bruk up part a himself. All de leff hand deh, people who never have de full knowledge use to sey a tight him jacket sleeve tight why de hand did crook up so. Likkle would dey know sey is was jus a likkle nick him did get inna de canepiece, for him didn't know one ting bout cane bush. But chu him him adventurous an did want to pick him own cane. A so comes de rusty part a de machete mout ketch a him elbow part an him decide sey it nuh big enuff fe waste time go a dacta, de ting heal an haul up. Well a so him gwaan inna life. So much a him bruk up till him never even know what was destroyed. Till by de time him teck himself in hand now, dacta cudden do a ting fe him. Except dacta never bold enough fe declare it like Mister Reverend him an de man jus stay dere till one day him cudden stay dere no more.
DE PINT
Well Miss Lady sey she did get de pint long before Parson pronounce it. Dat a de problem wid dis whole entire nation. We gwaan like we can live wid stumpa toe. Den we separate stumpa toe from haul up elbow. An every afflication dat come treat it like is it one an it into a category by itself separate from every odda afflication an gwaan like each one is jus a likkle one.
So dere it is, when we add disrepect fe hooman wid dutty lyrics what some people treat like a likkle joke pan freedom of expression an put dat wid how advertisers pay nuff money fe promote dem products pan de radio show dem what play dem tings dere de mose, throw de way how if some people ever dare open dem mout bout certain tings dem haffe suck salt chu a wooden spoon, season it wid de way Mister Big can get away wid any an every, ad put dat into a pat full of allegations of ruption and corruption, who nuh like who because of de colour of dem party, who mark yu off if you hole a different opinion dan dem, who nuh like you if you nuh like who dem like, if your favourite verse a scripture different from fe dem, ... de whole a we end up into a stew. A nuff ism and schism dat into de likkle body of Jamdung. De body parts dem are seeking to function separately wid dere various infirmities an it cannot work. Jus like Mister Dead Man dere, one day it is jus going to keel over and people will come from far an near to see if is really true.
She sey one time dat cudda never even surface as a possibility. Every ism and schism wudda get straighten out into a PTA meeting or a community group or huppa a de Tuesday Forum a Louise Bennett Garden Theatre or some such place where people siddung an talk bout which part a hurt dem an dem stap till it cure. Dem days deh she sey is like people did know sey is dem have control over dem body parts, a dem have de responsibility fe meck sure all de pieces function togedda.
So Miss Lady sey dat is challenge now. What we a go put in place fe heal from de modern day manifestations of dese various isms and schisms, dis sickness dat sick we so long we not even sure is which part hurting or how fe define healing anymore.
