T,

All you have said and more, points to the dilemma and what seems to be the cruel reality that haunts the immigrant. Our new status extend beyond the borders of our adopted country, this time, placing us in the midle of an "emotional tug of war" (if you will) with yet another separation when our homeland calls. The decision whether to return to one's roots, leaving behind, our children/grands, compatriots, adopted friends and sometimes (in extreme cases) our spouse is even more poignant, particularly as the reality of displacement awaits us in the country of our birth.

Then upon returning, we realize that the momories of our youth may be there (some which we may have outgrown). However, most tend to lose their significance due to lack of interest and corroboration among friends who may have departed or taken up residence elsewhere. It is at this point when one feels that immigration has stripped us bare of the very meaning of life; the continuity of one's self.

So we begin a new process, this time, among those who share our pain and once common interests (our new friends) and salvage a life of happiness or existence by holding on to our new memories.These and those you have highlighted are indeed the world of the immigrant; the new malady resulting from wanting a better life.

On the more polite front, we are regarded as Returning Nationals but among our every-day folks we must be prepared to hear the impolite connotation of "JCB's" inflicted with the malady of "just-come-back-itist".The alternative of continuing to remain in the cold, some may say, is worse.

But as it relates to our Gouyave, our departure had robbed us from seeing  young men/women of humble beginning like "Green Chicken" Oscar Andall, Dominic and Tina, Lindona (Nen Grace) "waggy T" and many others, rise to take up their rightful place as entrepreneurs and modeled citizens in their own rights.

And who could have imagined going back to a Gouyave without a Doh Laugh; a Liggaroo; a Zwill; a Seon Frank; a Clighty; a Kootoon; a Carlyle John; a Bluggoe and a Pipe Head?

It sometimes feel as though we are being punished by "the Patriotic Gods" for immigrating.

VJL

>>These and those you have highlighted are indeed the world of the immigrant; the new malady resulting from wanting a better life.<<
>>It sometimes feel as though we are being punished by "the Patriotic Gods" for immigrating.<<

I wish those two lines were written by me.

For those of us who regard this as a dilemma, it becomes incumbent upon us to find ways to keep the memories of back home and those of our adopted lands alive and together. In short how do we appreciate what we have in our new homes without forgetting the original joys of our old homes. That's the dilemma immigration has left us with.

While that was not foremost when I wrote the book, A PLACE CALLED GOUYAVE appears to be one small step towards resolving that problem. Well, that's what an old friend told me some time ago. She said she bought several copies and shipped them to some of her relatives in England.
Yesterday another friend called to offer her condolences on my sister's passing, and surprisingly thanked me for helping her through the book, to explain back home life to her American grand-kids.

About 2 or 3 Sundays ago, Wendell "Tatoes" DeRiggs staged a free show focusing on folklores and sayings that we remembered in Grenada. At first, the big hall seemed way too empty, but as the afternoon rolled on, the place became packed with people from Grenada, T&T, Jamaica, Belize, Barbados, Guyana and St. Lucia all sharing the experiences of their homeland. What a wonderful afternoon it turned out to be!

Based on those two events, perhaps all is not lost after all, and as Jesse Jackson once put it, "let's keep hope alive."

A legacy of migration ....... will make an interesting read. give information where it can be purchased ...

My dear KOP, I do agree that a book on the legacy of migration would make very, very, interesting reading. Maybe Downstreet is getting one ready for publication, but as far as I know there isn't one as yet.
Nonetheless the idea is intriguing.