From the Diaspora…OF CHRISTMAS PAST

Dec 25, 2011 News

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By Ralph Seeram
The music woke me up; it’s one o’clock in the morning. I am lying in bed in Kitty, Georgetown; it is very difficult to sleep in Georgetown if you are not accustomed to it. It is either dogs barking (the neighbour has five)or  someone playing music or television too loud or some neighbour speaking loudly, not to mention honking horns.
It would appear that Georgetown is a city that never sleeps. Some years ago a friend of mine advised me that if I want a good night’s rest in Georgetown don’t stay with friends or relatives; go to the Pegasus. I took the advice once, but basically I stayed mostly in Berbice.
Coming back to music. I was annoyed at first until I recognized the song. It was the Guyanese quartet, The Four Lords singing Happy Holiday. Only in Guyana you will hear that favourite Christmas song of mine. I have not heard that song for over twenty-odd years. As I was enjoying the tune nostalgia took over and I started to reflect on my earlier years of Christmas past in Guyana.
I visited quite a number of shops during my recent visit to Guyana and was impressed with the availability of Christmas supplies, artificial Christmas trees of all sizes, decorations, candies, lights and other items related to Christmas. No doubt, many homes in Guyana will be decorated no less than the ones in North America.
On my way to the airport around 2:00am I even saw one home with their Icicle lights still on, apparently on all night, a dangerous thing to do. It seemed that Guyana has come a far way since my “black sage” Christmas tree way, way back. That was the good news. The bad news was when I took the opportunity to check on some prices I was “sticker shocked”. The prices were higher than in Florida. Considering the wages paid in Guyana I figure some homes will not be enjoying those decorations.
Speaking of decorations– I could not understand why people then waited until Christmas Eve Day to decorate. The house had to be “cob webbed” that usually entails brushing the ceilings and roof. The house had to be scrubbed then new blinds installed. I once questioned my wife why we have to wait until Christmas Eve Day to install the new blinds or curtains. The answer; if she puts it up too early the neighbours will see and will “copy” her, meaning that the neighbour will go and buy the exact curtain she bought.
I guess it was a “woman thing”. Guys will never think of that. It’s not only the curtains that were “last minute”. So was the cooking and baking; all this last minute preparation was cutting into my “drinking time with the boys”.
One Christmas Eve Day I was out with my friends “ (whom my wife frequently referred to as my rum boogie friends) and completely forgot I should have been home to help. On my return I got a good “dressing down” on how I left’ all the wuk pon she”.
This last minute stuff had its consequences. At one time the floors had to be waxed, and that is spreading hot wax on the floor and polishing it to a gloss. That was a tough job, dealing with hot wax and getting on your knees to polish the floor.
Waxing became outdated with the introduction of lacquer. This was easy, just sand and lacquer. Trouble is you had to do it correctly. I recall vividly one Boxing Day a friend invited all the boys for a Boxing Day drink. He had prepared all the good stuff. Pepper pot, garlic pork, roast pork and other “cutters”, trouble was when we arrived at his home we could not enter. He had lacquered his floor Christmas Eve Day. Somehow the floor never dried; it was very sticky, the floor never absorbed the lacquer. The drinking had to be moved in the yard, which attracted a larger crowd.
You know it’s the season of goodwill so passers-by felt they could just drop in uninvited for a drink. Trouble was they stayed for more than a drink.
Earlier this week I went to the Caribbean Super Centre here in to purchase my pepper pot supplies, cow heel, ox tail, cow face etc. The Super Centre is Guyanese-owned and is probably the largest  Caribbean grocery in all of Florida  It would seemed as if all the West Indians were shopping for Christmas supplies that morning, but I had no fear of supplies running short. There were ample supplies. Waiting patiently in line I recalled the difficulty in getting cow heel and ox tail for Christmas.
Remember a cow has four hooves and one tail, and the average butcher in New Amsterdam then only sold one or two cows a week. To get around that, the trick was to purchase them about two weeks ahead and freeze them.
By the way do you know the best meat for pepper pot is manatee meat? Yes I know it’s protected, but there was a time when it was sold in New Amsterdam market before it was outlawed.
It’s a pity I had to leave Guyana a little under two weeks before Christmas; I really wanted to be in Guyana this Christmas especially for Boxing Day when my nephew Edward and his lovely bride Anastasia both of whom live in Florida, will be having their wedding reception in Georgetown.
While Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus, for me it is also a time for reflection. I think of all the friends whom I have been with together at previous Christmases many of whom have passed on, so in that context Guyanese has the right spirit. Invite your friends and enemies for Boxing Day, call up that relative you have not been speaking to all year; and the neighbour with whom you have been “quarreling” all year, because who knows who will be here to celebrate Christmas 2012.
In that vein, Mara, Gregory, Joey, Errol and Adam have a drink for me, and wish we can all be alive next year to celebrate Christmas. True friends are a rarity. We should all cherish every moment we share together with friends and relatives.
Merry Christmas to all.
Ralph Seeram could be reached at email [email protected]

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