Unveiling Island Passion

By Wendy Crawford-Daniel

In this docu-novel an unlikely relationship developed between an island man from Grenada and a Kansas woman in the 1950s. Both worked in Brooklyn and became casually acquainted until they vacationed at his familys modest cottage in rural Grenada. Though mesmerized by everything Grenadian, his guest experienced disquieting cultural shocks. Every experience, pleasant and unpleasant, she diligently recorded including details of their slow moving island-style romance. Driven to socially construct her multicultural family tree, their American-born granddaughter visited Grenada sixty years later. The flamboyant social life, intimacy and intense spicy aura captivated her and like her grandmother she too was inescapably Caribbeanized.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Dec 15, 2011
• ISBN: 9781465394958

Wendy Crawford-Daniel

Wendy Crawford-Daniel is a leading Caribbean Social Scientist, who uses her training to research socio-cultural issues that affect the day-to-day life of the people of the Caribbean. Born and educated in Grenada, she later advanced her academic and research skills at The University of the West Indies, Jamaica; Polisher Research Institute; The Multicultural Training and Research Institute and Temple University in Philadelphia, where she earned a Ph.D. in Sociology. Wendy brilliantly engages difficult sociological concepts and controversial socio-cultural issues in a non-threatening, captivating manner, to convey knowledge, stimulate critical thinking, promote social justice and harness greater appreciation and respect for the diversities in society. In Son Rising she boldly engages the issue of sexuality which is almost taboo in her homophobic, Christian conservative Caribbean. Her profound writing appeals to the best of humanity to respectfully embrace differences and the many forms of diversity in our world. Wendy Crawford-Daniel is also author of Unveiling Island Passion, a celebration of the rich cultural heritage of her island nation Grenada.

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Foreword

Written with great warmth and sincerity, Unveiling Island Passion touches on the very essence of human relations in Grenada and how, traditionally, we have survived and thrived as a people. It highlights the value of community

This book offers a rare insight into one of the ‘darker’ largely untold story of the island men who built one of the greatest projects of the 19th century — the Panama Canal — at the cost of so many largely undocumented lives.

Unveiling Island Passion, is also a story of dislocation, of broken and reunited families and human striving. We witness the tensions between the abiding desire of Grenadian migrants to return ‘home’ and the tragedy of not being able to do so due to the demands of life in a world whose values and demands are antithetical to those they left behind.

Sharing and trust are shown to be not simply virtues in themselves… not every good deed must be rewarded…there are some things you cannot put a money value to.. but strategies for survival.

The writing is evocative, conjuring for us — very convincingly — the atmosphere of village life, the almost magical beauty of the island, the rituals of behaviour and daily interactions, the rich social educational and recreational life of its people and above all the values that underscore so much of human behaviour

Through personal letters, biographies, personal narratives and anecdotes we meet real people who are allowed to speak for themselves.

At the heart of the book lies a love story — the relationship between Rose — the author’s grandmother — a white educated Kansas born ‘farm-girl’ who observes and diarises in detail her profound life-transforming experience of Grenada and its people, and Randy, a Grenadian man who brings her home to visit.

Nothing in her life has prepared Rose for this world where relationships and community are valued above material accretions… ‘under the flickering lights of the small lamp, Rose experienced a major philosophical shift, a new consciousness of the years of brainwash she received at home.

While Crawford-Daniel’s thrust is auto/biographical she exploits the narrative mechanics of fiction to tell the story, shifting very effectively between her own account of her family and the points of view of two remarkable people who are this author’s forbears: Rose and Randy.

We are allowed to see the internal emotional workings and preoccupations of these two real-world characters. As readers, we experience their inner fears, their moments of self-doubt and their growing desire for each other, despite the challenges they foresee for themselves as a black and white couple in the United States.

We are happy for them when they finally come together.

Unveiling Island Passion is also a rich source of Grenadian cultural lore: ‘nancy’ stories, rhymes, folk-sayings, ring game chants, herbal remedies, and more than passing references to traditional rituals, customs and belief systems.

Ultimately, Unveiling Island Passion rises above a personal exploration of family. It is a heart warming and valuable insight into the social, cultural and historical forces which, despite our increasing *engagement* with ‘modernity’, have shaped and still shape, our idea of ourselves as a nation and the way we interact with the world.

Jacob J Ross (Fellow of the Royal Society for Literature)

Unveiling Island Passion

Wendy Crawford-Daniel

Copyright © 2011 by Wendy Crawford-Daniel.

Library of Congress Control Number:       2011960369

ISBN:         Hardcover                               978-1-4653-9494-1

                   Softcover                                 978-1-4653-9493-4

                   Ebook                                      978-1-4653-9495-8

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Cover Photo compliments Arthur Daniel – True Blue Bay

Graphics: Reynaldo Bernard

This book was printed in the United States of America.

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

Xlibris Corporation

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

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98884

Contents

Foreword

Acknowledgements

PART ONE

PART TWO

Acknowledgements

This book is the result of a collaboration of many. To my supportive family and many friends thanks for your invaluable input of stories, records and your constant inspiration. To my life-long friend Claudia ‘Hoody’ Halley, thank you for the thorough editing and your genius in helping to bring the characters to life. I am forever indebted to the many respondents who allowed me access to their homes and private lives. To my husband Leon, thank you for your patience, the material and emotional support and to my sister Hilary for your unwavering belief in me.

PART ONE

Kerri

I became interested in Grenada when I was given a school assignment to undertake a genealogical research project to trace my family tree. My Sociology Professor at Temple University who also has Caribbean connections, provided the initial stimulus for my inquiry. What started off as a simple school project evolved into a sociological journey that uncovered the essence of Caribbean living as I followed my family’s connection to Grenada and was intrigued by the social passage I embarked upon. I was fascinated by the depth of passion unveiled as I delved into every day life in Grenada.

I started my research with an in-depth exploration of a diary in which my grandmother religiously entered every experience, thought, regret, doubt, and question that she had during a one-week visit to Grenada in the 1950s. That diary served as a starting point and a blue print for the many family and social issues that I investigated. My research took me to the Panama Canal where my step great-grandfather and many other Caribbean men worked and perished. I got an opportunity to look at his grave in the cemetery where he and a number of West Indians are buried. I went to London where my great-grandfather migrated from Grenada with his family including his son, my grandfather, in search of a better life for his family. I journeyed to Kansas and Washington to gather information about my adventurous grandmother who was born and raised on a Kansas farm, to be acquainted with the Caucasian side of my family.

I spent a great deal of time in Grenada to understand the social situation in which my grandfather was born and raised and where my grandmother vacationed resulting in the passionate relationship that established our multicultural family. I engaged hundreds of letters, formal and informal documents, visited cemeteries, churches, registries of births and deaths and schools at some research sites. I visited many homes in Grenada and spoke to countless persons on just about every aspect of the island’s social life.

I was enthralled by island life – the relaxed pace, the intimacy, the intense romance, the close knit family units and vibrant community spirit as well as the history and richness of its cultural traditions. My year long experience in Grenada has been extremely entertaining, informative and fulfilling and was the turning point in the transformation of my philosophy of life and living.

Upon completion of my study I looked back and realized that any other focus would not have produced the type of insights I have derived about the families and the still vibrant community spirit which exists in Grenada. The experience allowed me to listen to the pulse of the people and provided me with a view of the community life - past and present - that makes me proud to be so deeply connected to Grenada.

The Island of Grenada

Located in the southernmost area of the Caribbean is a tiny island called Grenada. Washed on the eastern side by the Atlantic Ocean and the western side by the Caribbean Sea, Grenada is the most picturesque naturally decorated piece of volcanic rock one’s eye can behold. Nestled between the mountains are quaint-looking little villages with the strangest names conceivable. The population within these villages is as diverse as the plant and animal life that share the eco system.

Generations of travelers and explorers from Europe, North America, Asia and African royalties whose fore-parents survived the Atlantic slave trade and plantation slavery, now live side by side. They, together with the offspring of indentured servants from Asia and Europe and indigenous natives who traveled throughout north, central and south America before making one of the Caribbean islands home, have created a population milieu on the tiny island paradise.

Generations of intermarriages among the groups have resulted in a population mix that can no longer clearly identify with any particular or singular race. Many of the world’s civilizations have left their legacy in Grenada. Some residents with the darkest complexion can trace their family tree in part to Scotland, Australia or Portugal and some of the most Caucasian looking can trace a family member from West Africa or India. A favorite past time of the residents is to discuss with pride their various origins and relations and to lay equal claim to each ethnicity.

Social issues of the First World such as racial discrimination, sexism and feminism are not part of the regular discourse in Grenada. Despite its close proximity to the United States of America and its regular interactions with Europe and North America for employment, business, health care, leisure, sports, tourism, romance and education, Grenada has been able to maintain much of its traditional ways of life and at the same time embrace the best the First World has to offer in technology, goods, jobs and services such as education, professional training, medical care and sports.

While much of the social situation in Grenada has experienced changes, two aspects have remained virtually unchanged. One aspect is the strong sense of community and intimate and informal connections that continue to prevail in spite of modernity. The other aspect is the uniquely Caribbean perception of the ‘time’ concept that continues to define the pace of everything from economic development to relationship and romance to business.

Pa Joe - My Paternal Great-Grandfather

I discovered that my paternal great grandfather, Pa Joe, had migrated from Grenada to the United Kingdom after World War I having served the British Navy as a dishwasher on one of the reserved fighter vessels. At the end of the war, many Grenadians of the British West Indian regiment were given an opportunity to migrate to London in search of jobs reserved for veterans. At that time the journey to the UK was only possible by boat and it took more than one month to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Many of the migrants fell sick during the journey and others established new relationships and new friendships some of which lasted beyond the journey. Families, a few young women and scores of young men, were the main passengers. Many left young lovers, young spouses and children with sincere promises to return. The monthly trip from Grenada to London attracted crowds of relatives and well-wishers at the port in St. George’s, Grenada, to bid farewell to close ones. The environment was always emotionally charged, as many knew that that would be the last time they would see departing relatives. Attired in their ‘Sunday Best’, or new apparels from the hat on their heads, the hand-made dresses and tailored suits adorned with white embroidered handkerchiefs to the polished shoes on their weary feet, the departing relatives were always hopeful with big dreams and long-term plans to return to Grenada in grandeur and style. For most, like my great grandfather, the promise to return to their homeland was not realized.

There are many accounts of young mothers, married and unmarried, who left children behind with grandparents convinced that the trip was strictly economically driven and necessary to improve the living situation of the family. They assured guardians of their children that they would either return for them or send for them within a specified time. Many migrants had unrealistic expectations about job opportunities and their options in the UK. Unaware of the power of racial discrimination and inexperienced in living in a society so deeply polarized racially, socially and economically, they experienced unsettling culture shocks. Some found ways to acculturate while others developed serious mental health problems. Others chose to socialize only with their kind. Many of the women developed relationships with men who could help regularize their living situation and could potentially improve their economic status and help the families they left behind. Many denied their marital or parental status in Grenada for fear that any revelation may result in the termination of the new or prospective relationships. Young migrant men from Grenada sought the attention of British women, irrespective of age differences or attractiveness, as a necessary measure to get along in the United Kingdom. For most, the promises made to loved-ones back in Grenada were perpetually postponed. This frustrated the children and the guardians left behind. Many became disenchanted, grew into adulthood and, established their own families long before they gave up the dream of traveling to the UK.

Despite his greatest efforts and strongest desires, my great grandfather never returned to Grenada. He was unable to secure enough money to purchase a ticket for the return home – an ambition that he never abandoned since he landed in London until his death. Pa Joe settled in a West Indian community in London and found a job as janitor at a school attended primarily by the children of first generation West Indian immigrants. He made more money however from his part-time self-employment as a tailor’s assistant, than he did with his regular job. He later sent for his wife and young children to join him in England including Randy, his oldest son. Randy was the product of a common law union when my great grandfather was still a teenager.

Conrad - My Step Great-Grandfather

Conrad, my step great-grandfather was recruited in 1905, as a migrant worker for the construction of the Panama Canal. Conrad was married to my great-grandmother Agatha, but they had no children together. Conrad adopted her son, Randy, who is my grandfather. Like many other young males from the West Indies at the time, Conrad responded to the call for workers in Panama, since he saw it as a golden opportunity to improve the quality of life of his small family. Although they needed the income, his young wife privately hoped that her husband would not stay in Panama too long. He wrote to his wife quite often and sent money carefully placed in the letters he sent from Panama. His letters were sad and detailed accounts of racial discrimination. He provided details of a life of hard work under inhumane working conditions. He wrote about supervisors who were brutal, racist and never satisfied with the long hours of work they were made to put in. Every letter spoke of friends who died from accidents which occurred with the dynamite process involved in cutting through the rocks, some who drowned in the vast water works, even some who succumbed to bites from poisonous insects and reptiles, and more who contracted a range of tropical diseases including malaria and yellow fever, that were ever present in the cramped barracks that they occupied.

Caribbean workers formed a substantial number of the work force recruited to construct the Panama Canal. They were referred to as ‘Silver’ while the Caucasians were referred to as ‘Gold’. The ‘Silvers’ were not even provided with seats to have their meals while their Caucasian counterparts were assigned all the comforts of civilized living. There were huge disparities in their earnings, living and working conditions, the type of work assigned, the liberty to move around the canal compound, the types of food available for purchase and even in the provisions made for sleeping and recreation. Caucasian workers were guaranteed mosquito nets while the Caribbean workers were left to the mercy of the mosquitoes that infested the barracks.

He also related gruesome acts of butchery among some of the workers particularly between the Jamaicans and Colombians who were locked in a never ending state of conflict which was callously covered up by authorities. Each piece of mail from Conrad resulted in a flood of tears from his wife.

After years of consistent correspondence, the letters stopped altogether and the family later learned that Conrad died of yellow fever during the construction of the Canal. He was buried in an unmarked grave at Corozal ‘Silver-Roll’ Cemetery, which was then a segregated cemetery for the black workers of the Canal who originated from the Caribbean. His name, date and cause of death can still be found in the Death Registry of the Panama Canal along with thousands of others from the Caribbean who worked and perished during the Canal’s construction. To date little homage is paid to the West Indian workers who were among the most significant builders of the most important and most widely used world famous canal which connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.

Auntie Gatha - My Great-Grandmother

Randy’s mother, my great grand mother and Conrad’s wife, fondly known as Auntie Gatha, whose proper name was Agatha, migrated to the United States a few years before the Great Depression. She was able to secure a job as helper to a retired Jewish-American, middle class couple from Queens. The husband was a former Vice President of a leading Manhattan investment bank. His wife was a stay-at-home- mother who raised her two children with strict teachings of the Jewish faith. Then in their 70’s, they both experienced some limitations with their muscle movements from a combination of health problems and the aging process. Their adult children and grand children visited occasionally and always turned up for birthdays and important Jewish holidays.

It took Auntie Gatha some panic moments and training before she could be acquainted with and master the operations of various appliances in the home such as the washing machine, dishwasher and the vacuum cleaner. All of these were new to her and with the help of her employers’ daughter, cleaning and cooking to their specification became easier. Once she got the hang of it she kept the family home immaculately clean and prepared the most delicious Jewish dishes. She learned to cook veal and a variety of Jewish foods using kosher ingredients previously unknown to her. She was respectable, kind and courteous to her employers. These were traits learnt in Grenada as unscripted rules of conduct particularly to the elderly. Being middle-aged herself that treatment would have been naturally bestowed unto her while in Grenada. She loved the elderly couple but felt intimidated by the children and grandchildren. She spoke only when spoken to and never initiated conversations with her employers. They treated her well and provided her with comfortable residence in the maid’s quarters for which she was grateful, but she was never genuinely happy in the environment.

Auntie Gatha was not allowed to eat in the family dining room. She, however, welcomed that arrangement, since she was not anxious to become familiar with or discuss her affairs with them. They knew nothing about her family situation and she never volunteered information. During her monthly day off she traveled to Brooklyn to visit with the few West Indians she knew who lived there. They spent the day in discussion about their employers who were praised and criticized as it was the only time they could vent, knowing that nothing would get back to their employers’ ears. They also exchanged news about family and friends back home and enjoyed the cultural connection with home through food, music and news. The day would not be complete without a feast of traditionally prepared, spicy island food consumed amidst the sounds of Calypso, Zouk, Ska and other popular genres of Caribbean music of the day, ringing in their ears.

Brooklyn was the one place where they were able to easily find salted beef, salted pork, smoked herrings and salted cod fish that were essential parts of their diet. In addition, the Puerto Rican corner stores sold a wide range of ground provisions such as sweet potatoes and yams, together with breadfruit and other tropical foods, much to their delight.

Auntie Gatha never quite got over her husband’s demise in Panama. She did not have a long-term game plan but clung to the hope that some day she would visit her husband’s grave in Panama and maybe live out the rest of her life in Grenada. She did not get involved in any other serious relationships nor did she have any more children. During the nights when she was not providing personal care services to her employers, she would sit in her quarters crocheting or knitting beautiful tablecloths or chair back runners. She made additional money with this hobby as she sold the pieces to friends in Brooklyn. She enjoyed the peace and quiet those activities brought to her. Whenever she felt lonely and started questioning her decision in migrating to the USA she would pull out the last letter she received from her husband and read it to remind herself that migrating to the USA with their son Randy, was part of the plan that she and Conrad intended to carry out together after his Panama Canal contract ended. Agatha kept all his letters but this one in particular consoled her with the thought that Conrad would have been happy that she did not give up the dream of migrating to the USA.

Panama Canal - Barrack #24

My Darlin Gatty,

Today is the Lord’s day. It is the same bad tasting food selling again. I skip lunch to write you this quick note. The Super is collecting mails for postage in an hour so I have to hurry. Don’t want to miss the chance of writing you. Got your last letter and is happy to hear about Randy and how good he is doing at school. Randy is a fine chap. Am proud of him. I pray for you two everyday. I miss you a whole lot, plenty, plenty Counting down the months when I will be back to take you and Randy