Thoughts of a minibus traveller

  "Healing and Trauma : Stages" was the theme of the 13th virtual conversation on domestic violence on 29 July, 2021. Persons joined from New Amsterdam, Linden and Georgetown in Guyana; Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago, Canada, UK, USA.  Carlotta Boodie-Walcott shared the opening thoughts and the conversation was facilitated by Vidyaratha Kissoon Trauma The following points were noted about surviving traumatic experiences:- the experiences could be one off (eg an accident, experience of a crime, incidence of violence,), or pattern of experiences (in abusive situations, neglect as a child, compounded with other experiences) Trauma results in a disconnection/disassociation with self as a way the body uses to survive.. the memory/memories can be hidden or suppressed trauma can be manifested in different ways - insomnia, physical health problems, mental health problems, eating disorders and other addictions, dysfunctional relationships and sometimes much later on from when the inc...

Cabinet about crying Cabinet meeting and Real Prezident was vex really bad. "What yall tink it is, a blasted funeral"  Pretend Prezident was not listening as he was thinking of the shade thrown about how there were no more post-Cabinet press briefings like the good old days. But how could he explain that no decisions were really made in Cabinet and that just in Whatsapp messages and exchanges and that he only found out sometimes when he was reading the newspapers or scrolling through his fake Facebook profile.  Real Prezident had called the meeting because there was an increase of Ministuhs breaking down and crying when they were out and about . The flood disasters had ended and he had been pleased with how the camera people had found nice images of the Ministuhs wading in the waters and so. But now that flood  Crying "You are supposed to make people cry, not cry in front of people. " He turned to the Ministuh of Misinformation - and you.. you need to tell your peop...

  Dear Penis, the recent deaths by suicide of men are on my mind. In the last two months, I am aware of about seven deaths by suicide, five of men - four of them - men my age group. I know two of the men - men almost like me, connected in some way to community, Hindu, 50 + and who would have said 'okay' if anybody had asked them how they doing. It seems like while dealing with the pandemic and the floods, that we continue to have deaths by suicide and that we are heading back to 2014 when Guyana had the highest rate of suicide in the world. The society in Guyana had then tried to respond and there were groups and so who did public education work. Covid-19 and so on have probably limited some of this work now. Dear Penis, are there more people who are thinking about, attempting  and dying by suicide that we know about? And is there a problem  and like most problems affecting us, your owners, we are not going to do something about it? What the hell going on Penis? I learned...

  Bus "I aint see you fuh a long time" bus conductor says and I could hear the smile behind the mask as we bump fists in the Covid greeting.. I jump in the front seat. Radio playing and bus driver and conductor stopping, reversing, looking for passengers and having nice back and forth conversation that kind of mellow and cool in the hot sun. Driver with cap and so.. mask on his chin . Driver tell me jump out so passenger could come in. Tall woman, yellow tee shirt tucked in white jeans and yellow band around her afro. She says afternoon, and sits between me and driver. Radio man talk about how to eat avocado with some crush up Club Social and put honey on it and driver say whah.. and conductor say yeah honey... you aint know honey does wuk good wid anything and we talk about what to eat honey wid and how some people have 'honey roasted chicken' on de menu board but is really bun shugah chicken..  Conductor ask if we never drink XM wid honey..  woman on the radio say h...