Coil: Going for Tangerines on Christmas Eve

by Vidyaratha Kissoon

“Uncle, 10 ice apple fuh $1,000,” said a man who looked a couple of years younger than me.
Apples are all over the market – $100 for one. Despite Burnham’s efforts, the apple-and-grapes-at–Christmas tradition is in full flow. “Ice apple” , like pepperpot is a Guyanese thing – descended probably from when apples were imported in ice boxes or something like that?

I bought a pineapple from the man , and tried a ting that I was  buying pineapple and not apple but it fell flat in the frenzy.

Christmas Eve day  and the itch to go downtown and finding an excuse in going and look for tangerines.

The woman who walks and sells the best citrus had warned me that the tangerines would be gone “soon as the holiday done”.  6 for $200 and 4 for $200 – and working out the golden colour which would show a sweet tangerine. There was a year when tangerines were 10 and 12 for $100 but that was in the past.

The tangerine sellers also asked if I wanted apples. $200 for 4 mangoes too, and $200 for a pound of sweet potato , though I wondered about that.. I said but how sweet potato more expensive than potato and the young man laughed .. said something about potato is imported. It is scary when the imported seems to be cheaper than the local and therefore more available.

“Is $800 fuh you grapes,” heard not far from a place with $600 for grapes.

The apples and grapes must be in demand even though the PNC is in power. Times change. I am a hypocrite in that while I might question the apple-and-grapes-at-Christmas, one scoop of my favourite foreign ice cream with no Made-in-Guyana flavours would cost the same as a pound of sweet potato.

A young man selling mangoes said that he planned to cook baigan and chicken on Christmas Day and relax. His mother has passed away and he said he did not really have anybody. He said no fancy food. Boxing Day he will go out. There is an irony in how the pressure at Christmas to push the ‘family’ thing while there is also some people posting .. by the way .. “please note that this season also creates more loneliness and depression “ maybe even in those who find themselves faking the family love and unity.

But, love and unity came from a surprising place on Christmas Day.  Two oldish coolie men, dressed almost the same, held hands.
Narendra Modi the Prime Minister of India and Nawaz Sharif, the Prime Minister of Pakistan.  hugged, held hands had tea and might have had a meal.

For readers who don’t know, this part of the world is the site of the ultimate in coolie family disputes… both nuclear powers, who have threatened every now and then to obliterate each other…

 
(Image from Indian Express via Scroll.In )

The closest fantasy we could have in Guyana is say.. well Moses going and sing Christmas Carols or even better yet, dancing masquerade outside Bharat gate, and Bharat inviting him for some ginger beer and black cake and then they hug up and hold hands and then.

Many Guyanese have fantasies left over from promises Bharat and/or  his cohorts would be part of the Guyana Prison Service carolling Moses next year but either way.. holding hands and hugging up and so..  as a way of the Christmas love.

Stabroek News on Christmas Day told stories of other oldish men. The former Mayor Compton Young talking about keeping interest in flowers, and living comfortably in the St Thomas Moore Homestead. Another story is about Mr Aubrey Squires and Mr Milton Squires who prefer to be on the streets rather than the Night Shelter or other shelters provided by the Government.

“The Night Shelter, it stink, not because we dey pon the street mean we gotta live under dem condition.”

In the same paper, someone from Demtoco is reported as telling the residents of the Night Shelter as they take the the Christmas cheer “I must remind you of how fortunate you are to be in this Shelter as there are others who have to make their homes along the roadway or on the parapet. “

There is no report of any of the people who give Christmas cheer or those who are in charge of providing the facilities have ever had to spend time residing at the Night Shelter.
Shelters and homes are different.  The Marriott could have been a home for the elderly and those who did not have access to homes and maybe the Night Shelter could have been turned into dormitories and inns for travellers who were just passing through and in need of well, Shelter.

It was reported that  Minister of Social Protection was working on “providing better facilities”, but facilities sound just like .. well facilities rather than housing which could be made into homes.

The Ministry of Social Protection and the Ministry of Citizenship would probably reach out to Mr Squires and Mr Massiah to sort out their birth certificates and access to old age pension and benefits.

Like Mr Modi and Mr Sharif holding hands this Christmas, what a wonderful picture it would be to see the Minister handing over the documents to the two gentlemen. I mean, a lot of the Christmas stories in Guyana have been about shopping , shopping, shopping and some about the people who are giving , giving giving ‘at this time of the year’.

Could you imagine a front page picture of Minister Felix handing over the birth certificates to Mr Squires and Mr Massiah?

Imagination is plenty at Christmas – Santa Claus is played out a lot in hot Guyana, and masquerade. The difference between the apples and grapes selling at Christmas Eve, and selling at any other time of the year, would be the masquerade dancers weaving through the stalls.

I heard a woman tell one of the children dancers.. something ‘like hear doan go and win’ up pun dat man’ with a face that looked like she would beat the child if the child did not obey.

I am not sure if masquerade was meant to be another form of ‘winin up’ –  in Jan 2014 one of the masquerade band  leaders had talked about the watering down of the art form.

There was another masquerade band at the traffic light. I asked the bus man if the drums didn’t sound like tassa drums. He laughed and said “dem man nah ah mek it now. Lang time, you could trow’ de money pun de groun’ and dem man would dance and go down fuh it, now dem a come up to de window.”

The hustle for money at this season of shopping is real. Another bus driver at 4pm was drinking an energy drink while his conductor had an alcoholic drink. The music was loud in the bus.

The caffeine fuelled driving to the pounding music to  get as much $80 as possible before the Angels Hark and Herald or Santa Comes down the Chimney must be a Guyanese Christmas thing like apples, grapes, pepper pot and black cake.

More imagination though, beyond Santa Claus, that Guyanese can get a Christmas thing which will ensure that tangerines can always be bountiful and that no minibus driver feels that he has to drink energy drink at 4pm.