For The Love Of Marjorie: Marjorie and Jean

By Maurice Pierre

Marjorie, an American citizen from Carson City Nevada, is a world class Photographer and Journalist.

Jean is of African-French heritage and a heart surgeon, born in West Africa and raised by his father Edmond, in France.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Nov 29, 2014
• ISBN: 9781483543444

Book preview

Socialite

Creak, creak, creak, is the rhythmic sound of a wicker rocking chair sitting on the veranda of a warm and loving home, facing the Atlantic Ocean. It's the residence of Marjorie Elizabeth. The not-too-distant cliffs adjacent to her residence seemed infested by the abundance of seabirds riding the swift air currents. Uninhibited waves crash against the rocky shoals without mercy or resistance, creating mist which moistened the balmy temperature. As she rocks, she recalls the complete details of the trials and tribulations that had shaped and re-shaped her life over the years. Her hazel coloured eyes stared deep into the core of the ocean's breeze as she breathed effortlessly. Her silvery windswept hair glistened in the setting sun, ever so beautiful and magnificent. Her face flushed with constant radiance as the warm wind current brushed against her pinkish sunburned cheeks. As she squinted ever so often in order to appease the wind, her beautifully detailed and ageless wrinkles graced her face with elegance, visible contentment and wisdom as she reminisced about her life.

It was May twenty fifth, nineteen twenty seven. Edmond Cauriem Fevrier, a rugged, handsome and soft spoken captain of a French exploring vessel, anchored off the Atlantic coastal region of western Africa. Today, there are many countries in that region such as Senegal, Guinea, Liberia, Cote D’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon and Gabon. Edmond’s middle name Cauriem always created intrigue whenever he introduced himself, being so unusual, which was actually an anagram of his father’s middle name, Gatineau (Maurice) Fevrier. Gatineau Maurice Fevrier had retired from a long career in sailing from France, to the island of Martinique, which is an overseas province of France, with his wife Christina Fevrier, born Zachette, Edmond’s mother. The island of Martinique lies just north of the French-English Caribbean island of Ste Lucie, in the West Indies, also known as Saint Lucia, separated by the channel where the Caribbean Sea joins the Atlantic Ocean.

After Gatineau’s death, Edmond relocated to France and pursued a maritime career just like his father. As an unmarried man, Captain Edmond Cauriem Fevrier's life was full of conquests, excitement, intrigue and risks. He and his crew explored the Ivory continent’s coastline in search of wealth and adventure. For about twelve days, the captain and his crew plundered and befriended a variety of coastal tribes in search of bounty.

On June 6, Captain Fevrier‘s land expedition stumbled upon a small but prosperous village where he encountered Tisha Zuini. She was a shy, but mysteriously curious and provocative daughter of a tribunal chief named Abukuto Zuini. Tisha's mother was just one of Abukuto's many wives who drowned in a dugout accident when Tisha was seven years old. The village chief ruled supreme by sovereignty, but welcomed the strangers to his land, but not without African precautionary measures.

In spite of Abukuto's ancient security preservation, Captain Fevrier roamed freely amongst the tribe as several personal contacts were initiated between Tisha and himself. The affair shrouded the Zuini clan for a very short spell, however, African traditional tolerance quickly gave way to tribal acceptance of the inconceivable union. As unusual, as the affair was between Edmond and Tisha, the Africans saw absolutely nothing wrong. To the Zuini clan it all seemed rather surreal and a somewhat misguided anachronism that didn’t seem to belong in their culture because of geographical location and customs. Regardless, it was all justified simply because their tribe had never experienced the mixing of the races before and had nothing to compare the experience to. Edmond and Tisha inadvertently set a precedent which took precedence by virtue of their actions from that day forward.

July brought the realism of departure for Edmond and his crew and Tisha was left love struck and very sad. The departure of her prince in shining armour had somehow crumbled her brief fairy tale romance.

Edmond sailed away not intending to return until the absence of Africa and Tisha made him request another commission to sail back to the dark continent after a six year absenteeism.

Upon arriving at the coast where he last docked six years ago, Edmond and his men longed to reach the land where they once inherited fortunes of ivory, gold and other precious commodities. After anchoring his ship, he and his crew began hiking for Abukuto's domain. As they entered the village it seemed temporarily abandoned. Even though there were enough remnants of recent occupation to confirm an existing and thriving community, he thought perhaps the tribe had been relocated for some unknown reason.

When the captain and his men reached the centre of the village, he yelled, Bonjour, Hello there, it’s Edmond Fevrier. I've brought gifts and well wishes from my country. In spite of his cry for a reunion, silence filled the commune with mystery and a bit of anxiety. They scattered throughout the dwellings of mud and straw, calling out and stretching out their necks to the far reaches of their shoulders, searching and surveying Abukuto’s domain, but to no avail. Edmond suggested that they wait just in case the tribe were out on a safari, hunting.

Moments later, on what seemed to have taken forever, Tisha, accompanied by a young boy and a few villagers, emerged from the main dwelling and slowly approached Edmond and his men. As Edmond stared in awe at Tisha and the boy, Chief Zuini ordered his warriors to engulf the village with inescapable precision as the Chief miraculously materialized out of thin air and sprawled his muscular frame on his throne of rock painted with the most vivid of exciting colours, manufactured from local plants and berries. Edmond gazed at the young boy with wonder and suspicion. The child stood out like an enigma in the midst of his people, and because of his mixed colouring, he did not seem to belong anywhere. Tisha spoke out to Edmond and said, this is your son, Jean Cauriem Zuini.

Edmond stood speechless and totally overwhelmed as Jean clung desperately to Tisha's skimpy beaded costume. In spite of all of Edmond’s confused moments, he inescapably discovered that Tisha had given the boy the same middle name as himself, Cauriem. That fact really pleased him since the only foregone conclusion was that the boy was his son.

The entire Zuini clan slowly surrounded Edmond and his men with their spears at hand, mocking a somewhat military attack. The Captain and his crew remained calm while hoping for a heavenly miracle. After two minutes in total fear of the enclosure, Abukuto ordered his warriors to retreat. Chief Zuini rose from his ancient throne and majestically walked over to Tisha. He gently lifted and carried Jean over and placed him at Edmond's side and said, your son. Edmond slowly knelt facing Jean and suddenly embraced him as Tisha's eyes danced a joyful tear. Within seconds and with Chief Zuini's seemed approval, the warriors grunted in friendship and immediately initiated a tribal welcome dance in Edmond's honour. Edmond and his crew unanimously echoed a sigh of relief and felt relieved that the whole episode was all part of the welcome ceremony. Jean knew about his foreign father due to Tisha's healthy teachings. Perhaps that's why he never resisted, but remained frozen during Edmond's emotional embrace.

The reunion was most uplifting considering the unusual partnership between Tisha and Edmond. In fact, six years had become a very necessary tool that made a vast difference in the maturity of the idea of racial equality in the land where human kind innocently evolved. The celebration lasted many days and nights as crewmen and warriors ignored their few cultural differences and focused on all the many things they all had in common.

After days of reviewing all circumstances and complications, Edmond and Tisha made the following conclusion. Edmond returned to France accompanied by his newly discovered son. Jean attended private school and began a new life. Tisha remained in Africa and hoped for a divine act. That was perhaps one of Edmund's most difficult decisions in his entire life.

The counterpart to this saga had emerged as planned by fate. Born Marjorie Elizabeth to homesteaders Eleanor and Richard Reiper of Carson City, Nevada, her future seemed predetermined. Marjorie’s childhood in Carson City was packed with adventure from curiosity to discovery. Her insatiable appetite for knowledge was also driven by a profound encouragement from Eleanor and Richard’s determination to make sure she excelled. Marjorie proved just that by devouring her early childhood studies through public and high school.

Miles across the ocean in Paris, Jean was adjusting perfectly to his new environment, language and culture. Through letters of correspondence, Tisha was informed and updated about the activities of Jean's progress by Edmond. Jean also kept in touch with short messages to his mother Tisha, and promised to return someday. Like a constant pounding headache, Jean experienced three kinds of prejudice. One, he was neither black or white. Two, he was from supposedly primitive Africa. Last but not least, he was without a mother present to ease his growing pains.

He was once detained briefly by bank authorities while making a small cash deposit. He was always calm and polite so he smiled and explained it all to the manager, who could not comprehend why a young boy had the Franc equivalent of a two hundred dollar balance in his account. Jean replied to the banker, I do many jobs during my school break Madame, because I am saving my money to attend medical school someday. The manager was so impressed that the following week she hired Jean for odd jobs and deliveries to fatten his account. The bank manager started mentoring Jean, including the financial ins and outs of banking whenever time permitted her to do so, from her family and work schedule.

In 1946, on Marjorie's birthday, Eleanor and Richard gave her a camera. She was so excited that she promised then that she would photograph the world someday. Richard laughed and replied you can become anything your precious heart desires. Marjorie, in her wildest dreams had no idea that someone thousands of miles away would one day write a chapter so vast that it would change her life forever.

Her love for her family was unshakable. The camera became an obsession. After high school, she attended a small college in Los Angeles, California, and graduated with flying colours in photography and journalism. Marjorie also developed a close friendship with Karen O'Brien, a feisty and inquisitive Midwestern girl in her class. They would go on to become the best of friends until incubated jealousy threatened to derail their great friendship.

Prior to Marjorie's graduation, Jean attended university and worked his way through medical school. With hard work, studying and many summer jobs, his fortune amassed quickly to an impressive total as he excelled in his medical studies. He was on his way to becoming rich and famous.

For a couple of years, Jean practiced surgery and medicine in Paris. His heritage kept him whole and his accomplishments had given him new power. He no longer worried about racial remarks because they became fewer and fewer. He had become a lifesaver, especially to the less fortunate. He occasionally wined and dined with the snobby socialites of Paris's aristocracy, but his heart longed for Africa, his mother Tisha, and its drought-condemned people.

Marjorie blossomed into a bright, warm, self-motivated and attractive woman. She had many eligible young bachelors proposing to take her away from her camera madness, but Marjorie declined them all because she was not ready to settle down. She pursued her dreams with utmost conviction.

Jean decided to leave France, and returned to Africa to continue his practice and to take care of his mother and people. Due to his dedication and professional knowledge, he was appointed to the medical board of his region. With his future looking brighter than ever, Jean invested his hard earned money in many ventures, while preoccupied with saving lives and becoming a major force in his profession.

With Jean's connections and fortune, Tishi finally had the chance to help those who were less fortunate than themselves.

Marjorie was also becoming rich and famous as she traveled Europe and Asia doing what she did best. Life was perfect with few complications. Her dream was finally a reality.

Keeping an ongoing diary of her thoughts, encounters and almost disasters, her handwritten memoirs promised a best-seller. Her photographs seemed to almost jump off the front and inside pages of American magazines due to her ultimate passion for detail and professionalism.

Marjorie's foremost and undying interest had always been Africa, the birthplace of civilization. She then received an extraordinary assignment from a geographic magazine to explore