Guyana Chronicle Pepperpot E-paper 11-25-2018

Sunday, November 25, 2018

The sweet, simple life

A view of Saxacalli Beach,one of the many destinations of an Essequibo River Circuit Familiarisation Tour hosted by the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG) in honour of Tourism Awareness Month.

(Photo by Vishani Ragobeer)

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Huge

By Telesha Ramnarine

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

Sacrifices

Visually impaired students celebrate graduating from UG

FOUR visually impaired students, who have all had to make tremendous sacrifices to be able to pursue higher education, have recently graduated from the University of Guyana (UG), making their families and other support groups very proud.

A lesson can surely be taken from the lives of these individuals, especially by other young ones who may have been born with ‘gold spoon’ in their mouths, so to speak; and who may be unappreciative of the efforts by their parents and others to help them achieve success.

Three of the four persons, all of modest means, were afforded the opportunity to study at UG thanks to government scholarships that they received through the Guyana Society for the Blind. Notwithstanding, these individuals have had to come up with lots of additional money on their own to be able to cover other costs, such as for transportation. And this was by no means easy on them and their families!

GOING THE DISTANCE Take 24-year-old Diane Singh, for example, who has to deal with total blindness.

She lives on the West Coast of Demerara and found it an impossibility to travel alone.

Therefore, getting to UG, at Turkeyen, East Coast Demerara, at least five times a week, posed a real challenge to her and family.

On some occasions, a family friend would drop her and a relative, whoever would be accompanying her that day, to the Guyana Society for the Blind on High Street, and then they would take a taxi to UG. Apart from finding money every day for transportation to and from UG, the family also had to come up with more money for Diane to be able to complete the practical aspects

Diane with her supportive family members

Ganesh Singh was the first to graduate with a Master’s Degree in Social Work

of her courses, such as when she had to visit different agencies and orphanages.

Diane, who graduated recently with an Associate Degree in Social Work, is grateful for the loving support her dad, Boodram, who is a taxi driver, provided; along with the help of her mother, Phulkumarie, and sister, Natalie. For two years, until Diane finished her studies, the family members had to take turns in taking Diane to UG and then picking her up in the afternoons.

“I was so proud of myself,” Diane told the Pepperpot Magazine, as she recounted all that was involved in making a success of her studies.

OVERCOMING LOSS Oddessa Alexis Blair, 40, of Farm Village, East Bank Essequibo, a stone’s throw away from Parika, also successfully completed her studies, and graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work.

Some years ago, Oddessa was looking forward each day to the birth of her bouncing baby boy. At five months pregnant, though, she developed hypertension that resulted in the sudden loss of her sight. She never got a chance to see her son.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

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‘Green’ Conversations Teaching Guyanese about the importance of a ‘Green’ Economy long time, we’ve been hearing about the green economy,” she said, “but people don’t really understand what this means to their lives in very, very material [and] tangible terms.”

The intent was for Green Conversations to help to sensitise people before Green State Development Strategy (GSDS) consultations reached their areas.

According to Forde, green development refers to a model that places emphasis on sustainability, one that keeps the integrity of the natural environment in mind while

taken to the big towns in the administrative regions. “We were selecting townships in regions that were really hubs for people,” she stated.

The topic areas were selected based on their relevance to the people of the given regions. Berbice has traditionally depended upon agriculture. The talk in New Amsterdam focused on more efficient agricultural practices, adopting green technology and green methods and the meaning of sustainable agriculture. In the case of Lethem, Bharrat

noted that Region Nine is the first region to have a draft of its plan of action for regional development in place. Governance then was a topic very relevant to Lethem. A strong green economy, or indeed any kind of economy, needs a strong governance system that understands the importance of planning, inclusive decision making and ensuring that all voices involved are heard in the decision making process Bharrat said.

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(From left ) Lethem panelists Guest Speaker Danielle Andrade; Attorney-at-law, Kevin Warde, Regional Executive Officer, Region Nine; Christina Edwards, Chairperson, Lethem Power Company and Hon. David Lammy, British Member of Parliament (Photo Credit: Green Conversations Facebook)

Sara Bharrat, Communications Coordinator at Conservation International (Photo courtesy of Sara Bharrat)

By Gibron Rahim The term “green economy” has become an increasingly familiar one. Yet, though the term itself has become well-known, we may still not understand how it applies to Guyana. Moreover, we may still not know how we can all personally benefit from a green economic development path. It is for these reasons that Green Conversations was created.

The Green Conversations series creates the opportunity for Guyanese to learn about green economic development and what it means to their future. Speakers in the Green Conversation series are experts in their respective fields, who deliver talks on various topics related to green economic development and tailored to the needs of communities surrounding the host capital town. Green Conversations is the result of a collaborative partnership between various stakeholders.

The current series of talks are a collaboration between the Ministry of the Presidency, Department of Environment and Conservational International.

The Pepperpot Magazine spoke to Sara Bharrat, Communications Coordinator at Conservation International, and Aretha Forde, Stakeholder Management Coordinator at the Ministry of the Presidency, Department of Environment, to gain some insights into Green Conversations. Forde related that Green Conversations was conceptualised by the Department of Environment at the start of 2018 with the intention of raising awareness on the green economy concept. At that time, Guyana was set to draft its Green State Development Strategy (GSDS). In January, Conservation International hosted a TED Talk-style event with Mr. Pavan Sukhdev, President of World Wildlife Fund (WWF) International and an international banker and environmental economist, who spoke on nature capital in a natural resource-rich state. This talk set the tone for subsequent talks.

Bharrat emphasised that Green Conversations are open, non-partisan spaces for learning about the green economy. “We’ve been hearing about green development for a

protecting human health and wellbeing and ensuring economic gains. As an example, she said that in the agricultural sector businesses are encouraged to move away from inorganic fertilisers, utilise drip irrigation, and diversify their output or engage in agro-processing.

The most recent series of Green Conversations took place in the five different regional locations. Thus far, Lethem, Bartica, New Amsterdam and Georgetown have had talks.

The topics of the talks have included good governance in relation to a green economy, human capital development in the context of renewable energies and sustainable agriculture. The focus is on thinking to the future and about models for solutions Bharrat noted.

“We’re not going into those spaces to rehash problems, we know what the challenges are,” she said. “We’re going there to think in a forward way.” She added that the aim is to give people the knowledge they need to begin designing their own solutions to secure the future.

In planning the current Green Conversation series it was recognised that conversations about development invariably take place in the city. “Rarely do these conversations make it outside of Georgetown and so the first mission was to ensure that we were taking the conversation to the rest of the country,” Bharrat related. This then brought up the question of which locations to include. It was decided that Green Conversations would be

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

The epitome of strength and perseverance

One young man’s drive to press on

By Vishani Ragobeer “The most important thing is that you have life.”

That’s the simple yet profound belief of Dakari Jordan, a young man who is defined by his fortitude and unwavering pursuit to make a positive impact in his country.

“I’m your typical 22-year-old,” he said during an interview with the Pepperpot Magazine, “I’m outgoing, fun to be around, despite my sometimes antisocial or dismissive appearance [and] I’m easy to approach.”

He considers himself a great friend since he always has the best interests of his friends at heart, and he takes pride in being a man of his word. He’s also a HUGE Game of Thrones fan and loves to watch and play cricket.

But below his infectious and affable personality, is a little boy who chose not to let his experiences stop him from making himself and his loved ones proud.

At just the tender age of eight, while at St. Gabriel’s Primary school, Dakari touched an exposed electrical wire. That incident nearly cost him his life, but miraculously, he survived.

It nevertheless claimed one of his arms but could not stop him from trying to live his best life. His mother was his “everything”. She nursed him back to health over the next few years and strived to reintegrate him into the school system, as best as possible. But Dakari lost his everything during that journey.

adapt to my new life,” young Jordan said but wasted no time in highlighting: “The challenges quickly disappeared as I adapted nicely to performing many tasks with one hand.”

In fact, he shared that sometimes he forgets that he only has one hand. “It must be nice having both hands but I’m perfectly okay with how I am,” Jordan said.

Dakari Jordan dons his graduation gown

These experiences, understandably, are ones he rather not talk about too much.

It takes a lot of emotional strength just to hear half of

what has happened to him, let alone actually experience his trials and tribulations.

“Growing up was challenging at first as I tried to

STRUGGLES His strength did not come overnight, though. He shared that his first few years in secondary school were a bit of a struggle. He shuffled around three schools and it took time before he really began excelling in his academics. Thankfully, there were persons in his life - like Ms. Gorrin, a teacher of his- who helped him build self-confidence.

Finally, entering the International Business College at the Grade Nine level, he managed to refocus himself and began his academic ascent.

He recalled that during the final term in Grade Nine, he scored 83 per cent.

“I was super excited as I finally gained more than 80 per cent, and was eligible to receive a trophy,” he recollected finally. But even this was short lived because the school closed its doors for good and he transferred to the Guyana Education Trust College (GETC).

He was placed back into Grade Nine despite his stellar grades because he did not sit the National Grade Nine Examinations. Though this infuriated him, he channelled

22-year-old Dakari Jordan

his anger into his studies and managed to top his class each term.

In 2014, he wrote the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations and garnered eight Grade Ones and four Grade Twos. Jordan was far from finished though, as he immediately began studying Medical Technology at the University of Guyana (UG).

The young man explained that he chose this field of study because he was amazed

at how critical the role of a technologist is in accurately diagnosing a disease, during a visit to UG’s career day sometime before. He decided that he wanted to be a part of it.

Microbiology and Hematology were two of his favourite courses during his Med-Tech journey.

“For Microbiology, being able to identify tiny organisms that cause great pain and discomfort was really exciting,” he related.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

‘Twenty two years and still alive in my heart’

Lucille Bacchus, a grieving mother who lost her two children by a drunken driver some 22 years ago.

By M Margaret Burke “AFTER 22 years of pain and suffering, losing almost even the rest of my family, I am still opening the newspaper, listening to the television and radio and hearing the reports of so many more who are killed almost every day on our roads.”

These are the words of a tear-stained and shaken Lucille Bacchus who lost both of her children in November 1996, due to the actions of a drunk driver.

“They are not stopping; I do not know what is going to stop these people from driving with all that speed and sometimes they are drunk; that is the worst thing – those who are driving drunk on the road, they are the worse killers and I do not know what would stop them,” she said.

Bacchus says that she is now celebrating the death anniversary of her son, Wallie Bacchus, who was just 17 years old and her daughter, Fareena Bacchus, who was only 16 at the time they were killed.

Bacchus tearfully told the Pepperpot Magazine that they would have been 39 and 38 years respectively, and may have

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Grieving mother warns against drunk driving

Wallie and Fareena Bacchus – a brother and sister who lost their lives by accident.

had their own family and career at this time.

She said that according to the post-mortem reports her son, Wallie, died on the day of the accident, on November 16, as a result of multiple internal injuries. These included severed intestines, broken pelvis, damaged liver and spleen.

However, what could have been considered double pain was the fact that her daughter, who was the younger of the two, suffered for 10 additional days and died on November 26, 1996. She was taken to Trinidad and underwent brain surgery, but died from kidney failure two days later.

The driver of the vehicle was eventually released from prison after spending only 16 months of a three-year sentence imposed on him on January 21, 1999.

PEOPLE DO NOT UNDERSTAND Bacchus said that her two children were on a motorcycle returning home to Lusignan when a drunken driver overtook another vehicle and hit them in the process. They had gone to a friend’s home at a neighbouring village – Enmore to collect a book because their lives were centered on their education.

“My daughter had just finished St. Joseph High School and the boy had just finished The Bishop’s High School; they were thinking of moving on with their careers when their lives were taken away from them,” Bacchus said.

PLEADING WITH DRIVERS Bacchus said that she is pleading with drivers all over the country to think before they drink and drive. She said that life for the families and loved ones of those who die as a result of accidents on the road does not end with the accident.

“People sorrow with you; they cry and all. Many come around for nights and days, bringing food, money or whatever they can. They say all sorts of things and are even there with you at the burial. But after all is said and done they have to go to their own homes with their own families. Some of them may remember you from time to time, but essentially you are left alone to grieve and feel your pain all by yourself,” she remarked. “Drivers please, I am begging you. You do not know and understand the pain and suffering you cause…Please stop the carnage on the roads.”

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

Smith Memorial Congregational Church celebrates 175 Years

By Francis Quamina Farrier

WE keep hearing from time to time, that “Bad News Sells”, but the kind of responses I have been receiving over the years with the many “Feel-good Stories” which I’ve been producing, it seems somehow to negate that statement about the bad news being good for business.

Anyway, here’s another “feel good story” from me: it’s about the 175th anniversary of the Smith Memorial Congregational Church, which is located on Brickdam in

Georgetown. Today, November 25, 2018, there is a special service at that iconic wooden church, at which Pastor Loris Heywood of the Bethel Mission Chapel on Camp Street, Georgetown, is scheduled to deliver the special anniversary sermon.

Speaking with me last week, Retired Judge, Pastor Oslyn Small, who is the Senior Pastor at Smith Memorial Church, related some of the inspiring history of the church from its inception, which was during the period of slavery in the Guianas and elsewhere in the Western Hemisphere.

Those were the days when the English, Scots, Irish and others of Faith left family, friends and country, and travelled on ships for weeks, south-west across the Atlantic ocean, to the South American colony to spread the gospel. One of those persons was the Reverend John Wray, who preceded the Reverend John Smith to Demerara in the early 1800s. When John Wray was transferred to the equally historic Mission Chapel Congregational Church in New Amsterdam, Berbice, John Smith was sent by the London Missionary Society from England to Demerara, to minister at the Bethel Chapel which was located at Le Resouvenir on the East Coast Demerara.

The arrival of John Smith to Demerara,

in February 1817, was two years after John Wray was sent to Berbice and during the ensuing two years, it was the enslaved African, Quamina, who as the Senior Deacon at Bethel Chapel, efficiently took care of the affairs of the church at Le Resouvenir and ministered to the faithful. That is something which many Guyanese of today are unaware of; the fact that someone who was enslaved had the leadership abilities to keep the faith and the followers as motivated and disciplined, as any highly trained and qualified free man from a developed country.

At that period of slavery in the Western

Hemisphere, it was a crime for anyone to teach an enslaved person to read. Both John Wray and John Smith responded with civil disobedience and broke that law, and gave English lessons to the enslaved Africans. A situation developed which lead to the wellknown 1823 East Coast Demerara Slave revolt. That resulted with the murder of Deacon Quamina and the arrest and imprisonment of John Smith, who was condemned to death for the part he played in the revolt which had resulted in the deaths of many slaves and slave-owners as well as some Militia men.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

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Return to passion How one beekeeper realised he was meant to be doing what he loved “It is not a direct translation; the exact translation is, ‘mab dap.’ However, Mabadap is a name derived from the Wapichan language, which is the name my grandparents gave to the new place they made home after leaving Guyana as refugees and then returning and finding all their property destroyed. They chose the name Mabadap because the house they built was a huge thatch house with many

Yimochi cannot meet his honey demand at the moment.

By Telesha Ramnarine YIMOCHI Melville was on a scholarship in Cuba pursuing automation engineering, when he became disinterested in his studies and longed to be back home so

on a subsistence level. As a child, I helped mostly with cattle ranching. My father sent us to bring out the cows, slaughter, herd them.

We also helped out a little with the crops,” Yimochi fondly recalls.

He spoke to the Pepperpot Magazine on

Yimochi chose to brand his honey “Mabadap.”

that he could go after his true passion – to “get back to the soil”, and become more involved in the agricultural activities that he was exposed to as a child.

Yimochi, 37, was born and raised at Mabadap, Culvert City, Lethem, to parents Charles and Collette who did cattle ranching to support the family.

“We had a lot of fruit trees in the yard. We did cattle; pigs, crops, vegetables and corn

the sidelines of the ninth Caribbean Beekeeping Congress which opened last week at the Guyana School of Agriculture, Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara.

Yimochi may not have given much thought to the meaning of “Mabadap,” the place where he grew up. Today, though, when he is pursuing beekeeping in the Region 10 town, and the Wapishana meaning, “Bees House,” has much significance to him.

rooms, not unlike a bees hive.”

No matter what he did or where he went, today he can look back and see that he’s always had an interest in beekeeping. Perhaps his curiosity was aroused when his dad would always talk about beekeeping, while never having the know-how to actually pursue it.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

Essequibo Circuit Tour

Experience the best of Guyana’s resorts

By Michel Outridge THE Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana (THAG) on November 16 hosted its Essequibo River Circuit Familiarisation Tour for the media, as part of its Tourism Awareness Month of Activities.

The tour included stops at the THAG member properties and attractions namely: Fort Zeelandia (Fort Island), Saxacalli Reservation, Hurakabra Nature Resort, Municipality of Bartica, Aruwai White H20 Resort,

BK Quarries, Sloth Island Nature Resort and Baganara Island Resort.

THAG President Mitra Ramkumar, who was part of the tour, said the purpose of the Familiarisation Tour is to give visibility to the facilities within this region and showcase their varied day tour capabilities, as well as to create awareness of the new product offerings within the Essequibo Circuit.

He added that the tour is also geared towards informing on the importance of Heritage protection and the role of the stake-

Aruwai White Water H2O Water Resort

holders and to launch the Essequibo Circuit Tour by Old Fort Tours.

FORT ISLAND The tour started at Fort Island, Essequibo River where the tour guide, Jamal Thomas of Old Fort Tours was on hand to oversee the group of media operatives during their visit to the Court of Policy.

There, they were enthralled by the well-preserved Dutch artefacts which are secured in glass showcases. The Dutch Heritage Museum, also known as the Court of Policy, provides a meaningful contribution to the country’s cultural heritage sector. It was opened on February 19, 2007, by the National Trust of Guyana. In its collections are Dutch bottles and other pottery unearthed from the colonies of Essequibo, Berbice and Demerara along with a number of maps and informational pull-ups charts; all of which aids in highlighting the relationships the Dutch had with indigenous Indians and the slaves they owned.

Fort Island is located about 16 kilometres (10 miles) from the mouth of the Essequibo River and is home to about 73 residents, some of whom are farmers and fishermen.

The island has a nursery and primary school housed in one compound, a health centre and an army base (Coast Guard).

Fort Island also has a bird watching site (a trail) where many species of birds can be seen and is rich with flora and fauna.

HURAKABRA RIVER RESORT This place which is a beautiful getaway for anyone, is outfitted with brightly painted wooden buildings with all modern ameni-

ties and is located about three miles from Bartica.

This resort has two cottages for overnight accommodation and bountiful trees compliment the surroundings which is well-kept.

On arrival, visitors are greeted with a cool rag to ‘cool-off’ and iced lemonade accompanied with cassava bread and a sumptuous boulanger dip.

It is one of those places that when you get there, you never want to leave.

Caretaker, Vidya Gopaul told the media that it is a natural resort which was opened about 15 years ago by the Nascimentos, and that she simply likes her job which entails welcoming guests and cooking.

She is assisted by Ameer, a friendly guy who takes you on the nature trails, jungle walk and also bird watching.

MUNICIPALITY OF BARTICA The tour then moved on to Bartica, there the visitors were greeted by the Mayor Gifford Marshall, who even broke a meeting to accommodate us.

A tour bus which was arranged for the group since it was raining heavily, took the team around the town. There was a brief stop at the “Green Park” which is a lovely well-maintained garden-like place and the Golden Beach.

It was observed that the town has developed over the years and has many businesses. Bartica developed from an Anglican missionary settlement, established in 1842.

The name ‘Bartica’ comes from an Indigenous word meaning ‘red earth’, which is abundant in the area.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

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◄◄◄ From page VIII Fort Zeelandia, Fort Island

BK Quarries

Green Park, Bartica

The Denham Suspension Bridge, also known as the Garraway Stream Bride, links Bartica to Mahdia.

ARUWAI WHITE WATER H2O WATER RESORT On arrival at Aruwai, the team was welcomed with cool coconut water right out of the shell and by General Manager Lucresha Charles, who ensured there was an array of dishes and drinks available for sampling.

She told the media that the resort is manmade and was built on a sandbank by the owner. The resort stretches about five acres and is accompanied by its natural beauty of the beach.

Charles added that the resort has international chefs and well-trained staff to cater to all your culinary needs, along with very modern facilities including an outdoor jacuzzi, skiing, kayaking and other water activities.

The resort has a bartender service and fine-dining at its fully air-conditioned restaurant, lifeguard on site and it caters to accommodate any function in its spacious events hall.

BK QUARRIES, TEPERU/ITABU This place is located in the Essequibo River and is about 15 minutes by boat from Bartica.

On hand was Office Manager Rickford Inniss, who led the group on a guided tour to Marshall Falls, a truly beautiful natural wonder.

The property is huge and has 130 workers who are housed in wooden houses named after birds. They benefit from free house-keeping, laundry services and meals.

BK Quarries blasts every two weeks and has a large-scale operation to supply boulders and other quarry products to BK’s construction projects and BK Marine Inc. via its tugs and barges, as well as to various locations in Guyana.

The place has a three-storey building with all modern amenities for overnight visitors.

The residents rear their own poultry and even have two pets, a wild cow and a wild hog.

This place is simply breath-taking with an amazing view of the Essequibo River and even has its own police station which stores

dynamite for blasting.

SLOTH ISLAND Sloth Island is a quaint resort of pristine rainforest in the Essequibo River that is ideal for birders and holidaymakers.

According to Claude Benjamin, who welcomed the group, it is a private island getaway, with land and water activities, has hammocks and is like a paradise with comfortable rooms and equally delicious cuisine.

The feature of the island is the sloth, which was rescued and lives in a tree with a monkey in its natural habitat.

The owner, Rafel Adees said the place was just an island; a piece of land and 21 years ago he took on the project to make it habitable.

He related that it took years to build by dredging to prevent erosion. The island now stands on eight feet of sand and while it isn’t financially rewarding, he stated that a few visitors do come.

“It is my island, my legacy; a footprint I leave behind and it is a tranquil, peaceful place to unwind and find your inner self.

Come, you may be touched by something here, look at the birds and feel the true serenity of nature at its best,” Adees said.

BAGANARA ISLAND RESORT Densil Paddy told the group that the resort sits on 189 acres but only 1/3 of the island is being utilised for recreational purposes.

He added that they have several outbuildings which include a-15 room facility with 10 superior rooms and staff accommodations.

Baganara House has five rooms, a restaurant area, bar, kitchen and sitting area.

Paddy stated that there are outdoor gazebos, a souvenir shop and a barbeque hut inclusive of a wide range of activities, and off-island tours.

He explained that there is an airstrip on the island, and as part of the Correia Group of Companies they utilise Trans Guyana planes to get visitors on and off the island.

Paddy related too that they prepare all local foods and have adopted the green initiative, in that, in terms of power usage, fuel and solar are also used.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

◄◄◄ From page VII

Yimochi now has 12 hives, and is working to expand his business.

BEEKEEPING WORKSHOP, FIRST BEEHIVE BOX Yimochi attended Saint Ignatius Primary

in Lethem and then Christ Church Secondary on a scholarship. He transferred to Saint Stanislaus College where he completed fifth

You’re good to go once you have gotten over your fear of bees and use the right tools when capturing your hives.

and sixth forms.

On another government scholarship, Yimochi left Guyana for Cuba to study for five years. “I never graduated; I came back here and that was the end of my formal studies. I was interested in doing engineering at that time, but in hindsight, I probably wouldn’t have chosen that field.

“I became disinterested in what I was studying; my grades started to fall and I lost interest entirely. I was looking to become more involved in agriculture, to get back to the soil. As a child, my father did ranching, leather work and farming; so we always had an interest in those areas,” he recalled.

When Yimochi returned to Guyana in 2007, he opened a copy centre called Melville’s Photo Shop but opted to close it due to slow business and a robbery that affected him a lot. “All during that time, I had an interest in beekeeping. But I did whatever jobs I could get my hands on.”

In 2009, though, IPED hosted a workshop with one of its partners in Brazil on beekeeping, and this was just what Yimochi needed to start the ball rolling. “I took that course for a week and from then I was able to understand the bees, and how to go about making a start.”

The information gathered at the workshop was especially helpful as there were not a lot of persons in Lethem and the Rupununi with beekeeping knowledge.

Yimochi purchased his first beehive box in 2012 and in the same year, captured his first hive. “Since then, I have managed to increase the bees. Sometimes I have four hives at a time. I had no one to reach out to, to help me understand. But I had them there and I went along by trial and error.

The internet, especially social media, worked to Yimochi’s advantage in that he was able to connect with fellow beekeepers across the world. He also read up as much as he could on the subject, having bought a few books online.

Yimochi’s help continued to increase when he met Linden Stewart from the Guyana Apiculture Society and Dexter Lyken from the Guyana Livestock Development Authority. “They have helped me a lot to grow my activities. So now, I have 12 hives and they are doing well. I have six of them close to my home, another four close to the Kanuku Mountains and the others are in the Savannahs.” All of his bees are considered Africanised bees.

Yimochi was really grateful to be able to participate at the Congress so as to be able to better understand how things are done in Guyana. “While I met many beekeepers online, I haven’t been able to meet them in person, so I was able to learn some of their techniques and exchange information.”

A BEEKEEPER’S HARD WORK Yimochi says that to be an effective beekeeper, you first need to overcome your fear of bees. “So far, I have captured hives from the wild; trees in the savannah, under a bridge,

in someone’s home. I take my hive boxes to the location and place the bees inside. Sometimes you are not successful, but as I go along, I learn how to capture more successfully. You need your smoker, veil, gloves, hive tools, and proper boxes.”

Explaining the process, Yimochi said: “You try to make the bees comfortable in the box so they would make it their home. If they have combs when you capture them, you put the combs in the box the way they would be in nature so they would feel it’s their home and stay. If they are not comfortable, they will leave. They usually go out to feed, but once they are comfortable, they will always come back. You make sure the queen is laying well and if not, get another queen. The queen is larger in size, has a longer abdomen, and is a bit more reddish coloured.”

“Sometimes we help them out with some syrup made of white sugar mostly, so they can start attaching their combs to the frames that you have in the hives. Once they start doing that, you know they are comfortable.

As you see them increasing in size, you need to keep adding boxes because if they run out of space, they will split in half; half will go and half will remain. They will remain in the hive and if you’re lucky, you will get honey,” he continued.

Yimochi says a lot of hard work is involved. “But when you like something, it doesn’t feel like work. You get to enjoy going outdoors; walking about in the bush, everything that I love doing.”

NO IMMEDIATE RETURNS Yimochi started off beekeeping as a hobby, but now does it as a side business. His main business is his butcher shop near the Lethem airstrip.

He is hoping to increase his hives so that he can actually have honey to sell. At the moment, it is impossible for him to supply the demand he has from even family and friends.

One of the biggest hurdles that Yimochi has to deal with is finding the capital to invest. “Beekeeping doesn’t have a return right away. You need at least two years before you actually see any returns. There’s no financial institution that will give you a loan and then wait two years before you start making any installments, so I have to spend whatever money I have and slowly, slowly go along.

It’s a long-term investment.”

As a word of advice, Yimochi said if attacked, someone should simply move away from the bees as soon as possible and eventually, they will retreat.

“Bees don’t trouble you unless you trouble them, or something troubles them. They are normally calm and doing their thing, they don’t go attacking anybody just like that.

When they attack, it’s usually a defence response,” he said.

Yimochi is in the process of creating a small group of beekeepers in the Rupununi which is called the “Rupununi Friendly Beekeepers.” It has five members so far.

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

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Yimochi captures his hives from the wild.

Yimochi bought his first beehive box in 2012 and captured his first hive in the same year.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

Sweet as honey

Getting ‘skin-timate’ with D’s Body Therapy

By M Margaret Burke BEAUTY therapist, fashion designer and all-rounded fashion entrepreneur, Denyse Grant, has carved out a special place in Guyana for her D’s Body Therapy industry. She doesn’t just create beautiful clothing that fits her clients – picking out the correct colourful fabrics, textures

and styles- but her work is much more specific and detailed than that.

The entrepreneur has been in the business of fashion designing and sewing for over 20 years, however, just over eight years ago she found her niche in the skin care and therapy industry in the form of the D’s Body Therapy.

“We are on a mission is to create, develop, manufacture,

Grant and her husband, Pastor Neil Grant

and distribute natural and effective body care products of the highest quality, using top quality raw materials that are natural and great for every skin-type and gives real results, and we never compromise on quality,” says Grant.

According to Grant, it is definitely a challenge putting time, thought, caring, information and energy into each day’s work in order to produce the best and highest quality products that can be offered in and out of Guyana.

She told the Pepperpot Magazine that the products being offered by D’s Body Therapy are from the freshest organic fruits, vegetables and herbs. She said that they believe that nature offers the best for safe and effective skin care and that beautiful skin begins with healthy skin. With that in mind, she stated that her company sets out to discover a unique blend of ingredients that are safe for all skin types and supports the skin’s natural barrier. The result of this specialised blend of herbs and organic oils ingredients support optimal skin health for real beauty results while promoting overall well-being.

MULTI-TASKING Grant is the wife of Pastor Neil Grant and she herself is very active in the church as well. In addition, she said that she takes the role of a full-time wife and mother of two young sons very seriously. But this does not keep her from putting her best efforts into her work in the beauty industry as a beauty therapist; also as a seamstress and fashion designer.

She said that eight years ago, after years of research and experimenting with various blends of organic oils and natural products she found her niche on the local market with natural and chemical free handmade soaps, body oils, lotions, herbal hair food, lip balms, among other products.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

XIII

◄◄◄ From page XII

Grant displaying some of her products manufactured at D’s Body Therapy Grant in company with First Lady of Guyana, Sandra Granger

Grant at the GMSA with Rosh Khan

HONEY PRODUCTS Grant said that her interests were supported by the fact that her husband is a beekeeper, and she has been using honey as a key ingredient in the creating of more natural and safer products. Whenever possible the company hires local people and utilises their own farm supply of organic herbs and honey from their rainforest beehives in order to create the best.

“Our vision is to have D’s Body Therapy be a household name and to be the best that we can be in the natural body care business. Producing natural and herbal beauty products that are free from harmful ingredients, and make them accessible to consumers across the globe is part of our main vision,” she said.

Further, D’s Body Therapy aims at being able to accomplish the goal of producing products that are second to none; at the same time establishing a specialised brand, which is aimed at one customer at a time, as well as making fantastic natural products, being unrelenting in delivering the highest performance skincare products to customers, Grant posited.

CUSTOMER SAFETY IS ENSHRINED She noted that her business places extreme importance on safety as they believe that their beauty routine should not be something to worry about. For this reason, they continually do research on the safety of every ingredient to ensure that there are no known health concerns about their products so that the products remain free from harmful ingredients.

“Furthermore, we make efforts to stay up-to-date on the health impacts of the ingredients that we use. We formulate our products to contain as many natural, organic and naturally-derived ingredients as possible,” she said. “In addition, we pledge to conduct our business in an environmentally aware manner emphasising reuse and recycling, the use of natural base ingredients, and the application of appropriate technology. We believe that everyone deserves access to natural and safe personal care products and we strive to empower and educate our consumers about the benefits of using natural and herbal ingredients by showing them how effective clean and natural beauty products can be.”

Grant concluded that the pursuit of excellence in any endeavour, but especially when it comes to taking care of people, is a path that requires a relentless mindset to overcome obstacles by constantly finding better solutions. And this, she says, goes well beyond the initial business plan.

Based on her emphasis of both the business of clothing and skin care, she stated that she believes in a culture of possibilities and positivity, which starts from within; that as leaders and culture shapers there is a need for them to be present, be always quick to listen and slow to speak, sharing the vision of the industry far and wide, not just in the form of quality, but quality and exigency.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

Phobias

CONSIDERING my past thread on anxiety disorders, I thought it best to write about phobias today. Everyone is afraid of something but the fear isn’t typically so overpowering that it causes a drastic overreaction or interruption of daily routines.

Phobias are defined as irrational, intense, and overwhelming fear – this could be of an object, place, situation or even person. If the phobia is really intense, just the thought of coming into contact with it brings discomfort.

This is important to me as I have a phobia of most insects and bugs. It’s ridiculous because constant exposure to something is supposed to build at least some sort of tolerance towards it.

Since I was a child, I have seen roaches, lizards and frogs almost daily and yet the sight of them still makes me very uncomfortable. I still can’t sleep in a room where there is a living bug.

Phobias may seem irrelevant but they can severely limit your possibilities and opportunities. For example, I don’t participate in some leisure or work trips out of town due to an intense fear of bugs. There are universal symptoms that come with phobias. These include shaking, sweating, nausea, pounding heart rate, shortness of breath as well as that empty, butterfly feeling in your stomach.

True to mental illness, there is no one cause of phobias. Genetics, learned behaviours or trauma are the main vulnerabilities for their development. If someone in your immediate family has a specific phobia, it is likely to be passed on to you. If someone around you often talks about a terrible encounter with a snake, and you develop a fear of snakes, that is a learned behaviour (and it is quite possible for this to happen). If you, yourself have an unpleasant incident with something, you are also likely to develop a phobia towards it.

There are a variety of phobias that fall under the two broad categories of specific or complex phobias. Specific phobias, just as they sound, centre on a particular thingwhether it be a person, place or thing. Some examples could be animal, environmental, or situational related such as fear of spiders, fear of oceans/rivers or fear of doctors/ dentists. These types of phobias are typically developed because of unpleasant experiences or learned behaviours during adolescence and normally lessen with age. While absolutely anyone can develop a phobia in general, women are more likely than men to experience specific phobias. These can but do not typically affect everyday life as avoidance is more often than not possible.

Complex phobias, however, are more difficult to deal with as they are usually developed later in life because of a first-hand, severely unpleasant experience. These include social phobia (anxiety) and agoraphobia (fear of going out at all) and they drastically affect everyday life. Doing normal activities such as grocery shopping is

difficult for those inflicted.

Unlike most illnesses, the diagnosis of a phobia does not typically require professional help as most people are aware of their fears as well as the restrictions they may cause. However, you can definitely seek professional help if you feel as though your fear is severely interrupting your life. Most people choose to just live with their phobia, avoiding interaction with it at all costs. However, there are counselling techniques as well as prescription medications that can decrease the fears as well as the symptoms they may cause. I think it is always better to confront your fears as that’s absolutely, and the only way to overcome them. I won’t lie, this is a bit hypocritical of me to say because I still avoid bugs. However, while writing this piece, I have decided to use the recommended therapeutic techniques. Hopefully, I’ll have partners in you all as you challenge your own fears.

A proven effective method is exposure therapy which is included in the general cognitive behavioural therapy (counselling) treatment process. This involves gradual exposure to your fear. For example, say you are afraid of snakes and want to practice exposure therapy, you would start by reading about snakes or simply looking at pictures of them. When the discomfort from that level of exposure passes, it is time to further challenge your fear.

You may then go to the zoo or anywhere where snakes are in a cage and therefore cannot come near to you. As you feel more comfortable doing that, you may ask someone to bring a snake around you. It is important that this is someone that can be trusted not to throw the snake on you but respect your restrictions. Eventually (take as long as you want- weeks, months or years), you will be able to hold the snake.

This technique can work with any fear, it just needs to be modified to suit the appropriate fear.

Treatment for phobias is as important as it is for any mental illness as its presence can cause a range of other issues. Unfortunately, certain phobias can increase the chances of developing other phobias and additional mental health issues in general. For example, those with social phobias, are more likely to develop agoraphobia. Those with agoraphobia are more likely to develop depression and substance abuse. However, I do have some good news, unlike other mental illnesses, phobias are actually curable.

Sooner or later, you may come face to face with your fear which can bring about severe panic and anxiety. Why not confront them before they have a chance to confront you?

Thanking you for reading. Please keep sending any topics you’d like to talk about to caitlinvieira@gmail.com Say Yes to Life and No to Drugs! Always!

Suicide Prevention Helpline – 223-0001, 223-0009, 623-4444 or 600-7896. Do not be afraid to reach out!

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

XV

Life on Fort Island Pretty Debideen walks out of the island’s health centre with her young daughter and a tourist

Carla Mittleholzer

By Vishani Ragobeer It was once known as Flag Island because of the huge flag mounted on the island to serve as a guide for Dutch ships traversing the lengthy and mighty Essequibo River. Later, the name was changed to Fort Island- perhaps because it houses Fort Zeelandia, the ‘youngest’ Dutch fort in Guyana.

Centuries ago, the fort was constructed closer to the mouth of the Essequibo River because the location gave the Dutch West India Company a more strategic vantage point than the other fort used by the Dutch: Fort Kyk-Over-Al, located at the confluence of the Cuyuni and Mazaruni rivers.

The island, three square miles in length and a mile in width, houses the Court of Policy too. This court was not only a Court House during the 17th century but a church and venture office as well. Really, Fort Island was a hub of some sorts as Essequibo transformed from a mere trading post to a Dutch colony. It is only imaginable that the island must have been busy with people during those times. And let’s not forget another characteristic of a Fort (and evidenced by the cannons present to this day), it was a place of warfare.

Nowadays, a resident of the island, Carla Mittleholzer related: “Life on the island is very quiet and peaceful.”

As the colony of Essequibo grew, and ownership changed from Dutch to the British, larger areas developed to advance the interests of the colonial rulers and the places like Fort Island were left neglected.

Farming and fishing became the main economic activity of the island, and due to its strategic location, islands further up the Essequibo came to trade produce. But the population dwindled.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

folklore

CATCH A BULL

BY THE TAIL

THE ‘Milkers Delight’ cattle farm had been hemorrhaging cows for the last year. Each time there was a herd count five to 10 animals would be missing.

Searches of the ranch lands and neighbouring territories failed to produce the cows. The police were called in but only went as far as taking a statement. They were not equipped to address the problem of rustling.

Cows kept disappearing in small numbers and the milk and meat supply started to suffer the effects of this. From700 heads the ranch now had 675. Something had to be done about this but what?

On a visit to Lethem, Mr. Vieira the manager met Cleatus, an Amerindian who was involved in the Annual Rodeo. Over drinks, Vieira told him about the farm and the problem of rustling. “Why don’t you track down the thieves?” asked Cleatus.

Vieira looked puzzled for a second then had a brilliant idea. He offered to hire the savannah cowboy to help him solve the problem. The friendly Amerindian accepted the offer and flew back to Georgetown with the manager.

Part of the trip to Black Bush Polder was spent with Mr. Vieira explaining the environment to Cleatus. Even after hearing how rough the terrain was the visitor was not daunted. He just smiled and said, “We’ll catch them.” The remainder of the journey was spent in silence, a quality that this stranger seemed to embrace.

When they arrived at the ranch Cleatus was shown to his quarters and then intro-

duced to the other staff members. He was later taken on a tour of the milking area and slaughterhouse. Tomorrow he would go to see the cattle, which was scattered, all across the 20 acres of grassland created for them. The other 70 acres was thick forest, which meant that a constant war of slashing and cutting had to be kept up in order to keep it at bay and stop it from reclaiming the grassland.

The next day Cleatus, Vieira and two experienced ranch hands left to check on the cows. As usual, they walked with food, water and sleeping equipment. The journey would take at least two days. Vieira had his shotgun. He was taking no chances.

On the first day, they covered the first section of the ranch. The cows could be seen grazing lazily. Cleatus told Vieira that the ranch needed horses so that the entire range could be covered in a day. In that way, regular checks could be made and stealing of cattle alleviated. The boss agreed.

The second and third days saw the team reaching the boundaries of the property.

Water holes were cleared and animals were driven back towards the ranch. It was while they were moving the cows back that Cleatus was introduced to ‘Ignar’. Ignar was the head of the herd-the bull in charge.

Everyone had forgotten about him and how he usually had workers climbing trees or fleeing to some other haven.

Because of his violent and unpredictable behaviour, he was named Ignar; a name given to persons with short fuses for

By Neil Primus tempers.

A few cows had broken away from the group and dashed into a clump of bushes.

Cleatus went after them but instead of returning with the cows running ahead of him, he came racing out with one cow after him; Ignar. Vieira headed for them his gun at the ready. He had every intention of shooting the pesky bull if necessary. He need not have worried.

The others were running to the aid of the poor fellow who had inadvertently stumbled onto mean old Ignar when the Amerindian suddenly dodged nimbly to the side and quickly grabbed the horn of his pursuer. With a deft flip, he had tossed the bull to the ground and held him there helpless. The others arrived out of breath and in shock at this strange and dangerous exercise. None had experienced this sort of cow handling except Mr. Vieira on his recent sojourn to the Lethem Rodeo.

The Amerindian let go and the big bull got quickly to its feet, shook himself off and looked indignantly at this new force.

He then trotted off to join the main group.

The others were rounded up and pushed towards the middle of the range and left there to graze.

A week after, six horses were bought.

Cleatus checked them before the purchase was made. After that, it took about a month to teach the other hands to ride, herd and rope the cows. Gradually they caught on.

Soon everyone was taking turns at herding.

The roping was harder and the cowboy knew he had his work cut out.

Patrols were mounted and every day two men would ride out to check the cattle.

Vieira hoped that this would discourage the rustlers. In this he was mistaken.

Two weeks into the patrols cows went missing again. Vieira was angry and wanted to set out that same evening but the Amerindian persuaded him to wait until the next day.

At the crack of dawn, the recovery team departed. They packed for a long journey and had a number of powerful torches with replacement batteries. It was easier and faster on horseback. By 10 that morning, they had reached the area that the cows were last known to be. Cleatus then went to work.

He circled the area and soon pointed out tracks of animals heading in the wrong direction. The group followed these deep into the forest. Soon the horses had to be left behind and the remainder of the journey done on foot. One member of the team was left behind to stay with them and the others pushed on.

Cleatus lead the way and soon passed the point beyond which none of the farm workers or Vieira had ventured before.

Night came and they ate around a small fire. They slept with each man keeping watch for a period of time.

The next day the trail led them off the land owned by the ranch. Now they were in the forest reserve. By now Cleatus had disclosed that two people were moving about 10 to 12 animals.

By mid-afternoon, they had closed in on

the thieves. Vieira was itching to have a go at them with his shotgun. He felt he had to make up for the many cows that were stolen. Travis had a razor sharp 22 cutlass and Cleatus a bow and sling of lethal-looking arrows which he had skillfully made on their journey through the bush. They were armed and ready to rumble.

They could now hear the sound of cows nearby. Cleatus indicated that they should be quiet and they crawled stealthily to the rim of a slight rise in the land. As they peered over the top they saw about two dozen cattle milling around restlessly in a clearing.

The area was crudely fenced with sticks cut from the surrounding trees. At the far corner of this makeshift corral was a badly built wall-less shack. Dangling from a rope tied to the roof of this structure was the carcass of a half skinned cow. The place stank of blood and flies were everywhere.

What caught and held their attention was the sight of two cowering and desperate men clinging to the roof of the now tilting slaughter pen and a rampaging Ignar giving the structure its final rites. After each savage butt, the building creaked and leaned over some more. A few more blows and it would come down. God help the two culprits when they hit the ground.

Amidst their screaming and shouting, Vieira and team moved in and took charge.

Cleatus was able to distract the enraged bull thus saving the two ‘butchers’ from certain death. Their hands were tied behind their backs and weapons seized.

None of the rustlers was recognised but their story was. The owner of a cattle ranch bordering Vieira’s had hired them.

Every month they would steal a few cows and slaughter them there. The meat was delivered to their dishonest boss who sold it to butcher shops in the capital. It was a lucrative business and easy pickings until they caught the wrong bull.

The stolen animals were returned to the ranchland and the two thieves handed over to the police. One of them who had been wounded by Ignar had to be hospitalised.

Danesh Persaud, the owner of the neighbouring farm was convicted of rustling.

In order to have the matter settled out of court, he had to replace the stolen cattle and pay a compensation fee for the loss of income due to the drop in milk and meat supplies suffered by Mr. Vieira. His was a small and failing project so he sold out and moved. Vieira bought his property and continued to improve his operations.

Cleatus was appointed manager of the nearby ranch which specialised in beef cows. He also started training new staff on branding, herding and roping cattle.

Pretty soon a mini rodeo was organised with the staff of nearby ranches. It was a huge success.

As for Ignar he continues to reign supreme. He is always a handful for the staff to handle, with the exception of Cleatus. Ignar is also the star of the mini rodeo. If you wanted to be the star, you have to ride Ignar. I can assure you, not many people have.

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

XVII

E FILES S A C T COUR Law firm won court battle against Mayor & Town Council

By George Barclay

Minibus terminus project for Hadfield Street, scrapped IN 1997 the law firm of Hughes, Fields & Stoby won a court battle that prevented the Mayor and City Council from constructing a minibus terminus and car park outside of their Chambers, Hadfield Street, that would have produced nuisance value and economic loss to the well established law firm.

The law firm firstly, approached a Judge in Chambers for a restraining order to compel the Council to discontinue its operations and was granted an exparte nisi order prayed for on November 24, 1994..

However, on December 2, the same year, the Judge, Mr. Prem Persaud after listening to counsel for all of the parties, discharged the injunction previously granted by him.

Originally, the Plaintiffs – lawyers - had applied for an interlocutory quia timet injunction to restrain a nuisance pending the hearing of the main action in which they sought permanent injunctions and damages.

On the question whether the plaintiffs had to show positively that their stated fears would materialise before the court could grant interlocutory relief.

The plaintiffs appealed to the Full Court of five judges which allowed the appeal and set side the order of discharge by the trial judge and grant an interlocutory quia timet (because he fears) injunction in the terms prayed.

According to Chancellor Kennard of the Court of Appeal, the respondents had instituted proceedings by way of a generally-indorsed writ on 24 November, 1994 claiming the following reliefs (a) an injunction restraining the mayor and councillors of the city of Georgetown whether by themselves, their servants, and/or agents or otherwise, howsoever, from constructing and/ or making a park or terminus for minibus over and along the parapet situate or running along the northern side of Hadfield Street, Stabroek, Georgetown, Demerara, between High Street, and Manget Place (b) an injunction restraining the Mayor and councillors of the City of Georgetown whether by themselves, their servants and/or agents, or otherwise howsoever from causing or permitting the parapet on the northern side of Hadfield Street , Stabroek, Georgetown, Demerara, running along between High Street and Manget Place to be used as a car park or terminus for mini-buses; and (c) damages in excess of $50, 000 for nuisance.

On the same day, 24th November, 1994, the respondents sought by way of an ex parte application by way of affidavit an interim injunction restraining the mayor and councillors of the city of Georgetown,whether by themselves, their servants and or agents or

otherwise, howsoever, from constructing and /or making a park or terminus for minibuses over and along the parapet situate on and running along the northern side of Hadfield Street, Stabroek, Georgetown, Demerara between High Street and Manget Place, and restraining the mayor and councilors of the city of Georgetown whether by themselves, their servants and/or agents or otherwise, howsoever, from causing or permitting the parapet on the northern side of Hadfield Street, Stabroek, Georgetown, Demerara running along and between the Avenue of the Republic and Manget Place to be used as a park or terminus for minibuses.

On the same day, 24 November, 1994, Persaud J. granted the injunction in the terms prayed for. However on December 2, 1994, after listening to counsel for all of the parties, Justice Persaud discharged the injunction previously granted by him. In doing so he stated (inter alia) “I have given careful and anxious consideration to the concerns and anxieties expressed by the respondents, and am unable at this stage to find positively that their fears would materialise. I have to take into account also that if the reliefs sought are granted it would open the flood-gates and cause developmental works in the city may grind to a halt.

In any event, if the fears of the respondents do materialise, the judge hearing the matter will certainly take that into account. The interim injunction is accordingly discharged.”

According to Chancellor Kennard, the respondents being dissatisfied with that order, appealed to the Full Court. In its decision Justice Ganpatsingh who presided over a court which comprised of five judges stated: “To rule at this stage that the court should positively find that the fear of the respondents would materialise is to place too heavy a burden on them. In my opinion, the matters complained of show a sufficient interest to challenge the decision of the council on the ground of unfairness, but equally on the case they would have a legal right to a remedy in the probable event that their fears are realised.

“I cannot agree that on the available material before me and in the light of my analysis above, that the respondents have no real prospect of succeeding on their claim for a quia timet injunction.

“The question then is, would the creation of a nuisance cause incalculable harm to the respondents? Having regard to the nature of their business, the probability is that it may.

In that event they would hardly be adequately compensated in damages, as a result of any serious interference, for any loss sustained between the time of the application and final

judgment.

“The damage suffered could be recurring in nature. On the other hand, it could scarcely be said that the council would suffer reparable damage as a result of a delay in the establishment of the park.

“In the final analysis, I would have thought that the balance of convenience lies in favour of maintaining the status quo, until the issues are fully ventilated at the trial.

“I have come to the conclusion both in law and on the evidence that on the exercise of his discretion the trial judge, with due respect, fell into error. I would therefore allow the appeal and set aside the order of discharge, and grant an interlocutory quia timet injunction in the terms prayed.”

Dissatisfied with the Full Court ruling, the Mayor & Town Council, represented by lawyers Mr. C. M. Llewellyn John and Mr. Lennox Hannoman, appealed to the Guyana Court of Appeal.

At the hearing of the appeal, Senior Counsel Mr. Rex Mc Kay and Mr. Ashton Chase, S.C. appeared for the Respondents Law firm.

In his judgment, Chancellor Kennard who sat in the Court of Appeal along with Justice

of Appeal Lennox Perry and Justice Carl Singh as an additional judge, added, “I am satisfied that the claim of the respondents is not frivolous or vexatious as there is a serious issue to be tried and this ought to be ventilated at the trial. Whether the establishment of the terminus would inevitably lead to the creation of a nuisance by others and likely to be adopted by the council is essentially and seriously the triable issue here: “But to prevent the jurisdiction of the courts being stultified equity has invented the quia timet action, that is an action for an injunction to prevent an apprehended legal wrong though none has occurred at present , and the suppliant for such an injunction is without remedy at law. My Lords, quia timet actions are broadly applicable to two types of cases: first, where the defendant has as yet done no hurt to the plaintiff but is threatening and intending (so the plaintiff alleges) to do works which will render irreparable harm to him or his property if carried to completion…..”

Chancellor Kennard added, “In the circumstances the appeal is dismissed and the order of the Full Court is affirmed.”

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

Passive smoking and children’s dental health TOOTH decay is the most common childhood disease in Guyana running up annual treatment costs of about five million US dollars. While this disease has declined dramat-

ically over the last 20 years, it still remains a major public health problem for children, especially from low-income families. Nonetheless, parents who smoke must realise that

it has been proven that their habit can contribute to their child’s dental problem.

Whenever parents or guardians bring kids to my clinic and I see that most of their teeth are very decayed, I ask if anyone who lives in their home smokes because young children exposed to secondhand smoke appear to have a greater risk of developing tooth decay. They (parents or guardians) are usually surprised at the question as they do not see the relevance.

However, researchers of Rochester and now the founder of Pediathink, a research consulting firm in Rochester, New York, examined the connection between secondhand smoke and oral health problems among children and confirmed what they had always suspected. Cigarette smoke can result in children teeth becoming rotten.

The team used data collected from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention’s Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which was collected from 2008 to 2016.

Information on 3,531 children, ages four to 11, were analysed, including blood level measurements of cotinine, a byproduct of nicotine that serves as a marker for environmental tobacco smoke exposure.

As reported in an issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association, study results showed 25 per cent of the children had at least one unfilled decayed tooth surface or cavity and 33 per cent of the kids had at least one tooth filling, indicating a prior history of cavities.

Researchers found more than half the study group, that is, 53 per cent had cotinine levels indicating secondhand exposure. They reported, however, the association between cotinine levels and cavities was not as statistically significant in children’s permanent teeth.

Passive smoking is known to cause many health problems in kids and some are related to cavities. It is probably not that cotinine in and of itself in your blood is causing cavities.

Instead, secondhand smoke might cause children to breathe through their mouths more, creating dry mouth. Saliva protects the teeth from decay so dry mouth could increase the risk of cavities. Secondhand smoke exposure also might suppress children’s immune systems, making them more vulnerable to illness, even oral health illness.

Although the study looked at blood levels of cotinine, the measurements did not indicate how often household members surrounding the child were smoking. It is difficult to connect that to how many cigarettes mom is smoking. However, this is one more piece of evidence that passive smoking harms children.

Smoking is likely concentrated in people of less education and less affluence. The secondhand smoke linked to children’s cavities often reflect the association of poverty to children’s oral health problems, although obviously wealth is not necessarily directly connected to oral health.

This is another nail in the coffin for people not to smoke around children. But strangely, you would think that adult smokers would have more cavities than nonsmokers, but the statistics show that they do not.

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

XIX

Tourism in Guyana

TOURISM is a sector that can be used to harness economic benefits, with little to no depletion of existing natural resources.

It aligns with the path of sustainable development for countries but also fosters a great degree of community development.

For a country with pristine beauty and unimaginable adventure to offer, I truly believe that Guyana’s tourism sector is yet to transform itself into a very productive one.

During November, if there’s one thing I can attest to-it is that much of Guyana’s beauty will be highlighted. And why is that so? Well, November is designated as Tourism awareness month and this year it is being held under the theme: “Tourism: Promoting Sustainability, Celebrating Diversity.”

Tour companies and businesses within the service industry are provided with the unique opportunity to maximise on the national efforts being taken to appraise and bolster the industry.

In Guyana, these businesses offer packages at reduced rates- in an effort to target domestic tourists, primarily. But for me, personally, after the month of sweet deals goes by, many persons go back to forgetting that Guyana is a massive and magical place.

Speaking recently to the President of the Tourism and Hospitality Association

of Guyana (THAG), Mitra Ramkumar, he shared that a sore point for those seeking to develop the industry is that many locals do not appreciate their country and what it has to offer.

And in explaining what the country has to offer, Mitra noted that the tourism sector is an easy avenue for Guyanese (and foreigners, of course) to appreciate the land of many waters, while adding to the diversification of the economy.

“We need to diversify our economy and if you look at which industry could diversify our economy, earn foreign exchange and is not necessarily susceptible to [the] decline in commodity prices- there is tourism,” Ramkumar told the Pepperpot Magazine recently. He also shared that because of the very nature of tourism, it is one which seeks to sustainably develop the natural patrimony.

Isn’t that a win-win?

For him, the marriage between tourism and sustainable development is imminentespecially as Guyana moves towards President Granger’s vision of a ‘Green State’- but it is also one that should take place as soon as possible.

For context, the transformation to a green state is one where sectors that are sustainably managed. And sustainably managed sectors

are ones which have environmental responsiveness, resource efficiency, and community and cultural sensitivity.

The sense of immediacy Ramkumar is throwing behind the development of the tourism sector, however, comes at the heels of Guyana’s preparation towards becoming an ‘oil- producing’ state. While the oil/ petroleum industry takes root, it must be noted that it is an extractive sector that pulls natural resources out from Mother Earth.

Simultaneously, Guyana is focused on conserving the natural patrimony.

How Guyana chooses to navigate between an oil-rich company and its drive towards being a green state will be a tricky journey. But Ramkumar believes that the tourism sector could be the new developmental frontier for Guyana as the country seeks to advance its ‘Green Agenda’ and transform into the first Green State. And should this transformation occur- hopefully, sooner than later- I know Guyana will definitely become a powerhouse in the sector.

It seems like an easy enough task given that Guyana is filled with enticing people, places and events but transforming the tourism sector might that needs careful planning.

A huge hindrance to tourism, particularly domestic tourism, is the affordability of

transportation. Guyana is a big country and much of its landmass is covered in forests.

Travelling to these areas must be challenging sometimes.

Director of Resource Management and Training, at Iwokrama International Centre (IIC) for Rainforest Conservation and Development, Dr. Raquel Thomas related recently that the required infrastructure for making the journey to interior locations is a huge impediment. Getting to the Iwokrama conservation by bus, for example, is a journey susceptible to terrible conditions on the Lethem trail.

I think it is one thing to acknowledge that Guyana has immense tourism potential, but another issue entirely is to understand that the country has a far way to go if it intends on developing the sector to the point where it can be one of the main income earners.

Under the green state agenda, it is envisaged that Guyana will use the earnings from the petroleum industry to fund the creation of ‘green’ sectors. I believe that if the infrastructure in Guyana is developed, tourism will benefit tremendously and can contribute to this Green Agenda. I agree with Ramkumar when he says, tourism can really be a new frontier for Guyana’s development.

Determined to be her own boss Keisha Hope A C CORDI N G t o business expert, Peter Drucker, an entrepreneur is someone who searches for change and responds to it by exploiting that change as an opportunity. Not only does 29-year-old Keisha Hope fit this definition, but she also adds another dimension to it: the drive to be her own boss!

Her most recent venture was the creation of the first Kids’ Spa and Party Service in Guyana.

“One day I was brainstorming on what business I want to get into, and I realised that Guyana has nowhere for a child to get pampered in a kids’ friendly environment,” Hope shared.

From her experience, barbershops and salons are not children-friendly environments; these places usually feature indecent language and sometimes even drinking.

Seeking to provide a safe alternative to this, her kids’ spa idea was birthed.

“The idea came to me in January of this year,” she highlighted and noted that by April, the business was up and running at

its John and Bent Street location.

But not only did she want to provide an environment conducive for pampering children, she also wanted to offer a service that could be thoroughly enjoyed. Her business is replete with different packages which include manicures, pedicure, and facials for the children, but also has part packages which include pizzas, movies and special spa-bags.

As an entrepreneur, she has been seeking to maximise on her venture by always remaining innovative- since that is a key competitive advantage. And according to her, the support has been “tremendous” during the first few months of business.

“Mainly because it is something new to Guyana, everyone is fascinated and amazed,” an enthusiastic Hope related. In fact, she said she has served almost 100 children so far.

Aside from this venture, the entrepreneur has been creating her own businesses for some time now.

She is the proud mother of two young boys, and quite naturally, she wants to provide for them as best as she can.

But added to that, Hope stressed: “I always wanted to own my own business

and to be my own boss!” And being her own boss, she actually has three small businesses now.

She started out selling sweets, ice cream and popcorn in 2014 and later expanded to an online store selling collectables for children.

Hope nevertheless highlighted, “My main focus is the spa right now but by next year I’m going to make all three my prime focus.”

Hope has a Diploma in Tourism and Hospitality and she is certified in Occupational Health and Safety. But just as with her businesses, she is not satisfied with just there and she aims at pursuing business studies next year.

Nevertheless, she believes that she already has the requisite traits of a businesswoman; her determination, creativity and vision. “Whatever I want, I’ll push myself until I get it,” Hope affirmed and encouraged others to do the same.

She said: “Always follow your dreams and always believe in yourself no matter what people think or say about you. And most importantly always keep praying for what you want, God is always listening.”

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

A ‘green’ State for all PICTURE the Guyana of the future: pristine, economically diverse, developed, and resilient. Today’s Guyana represents the ‘green’ State in her early stages. Through the Green State Development Strategy (GSDS), the Government of Guyana (GoG) has devised a roadmap for development that highlights sustainability across all sectors. A completely ‘green’ and sustainable nation is within reach and even achievable by 2040.

The Department of Environment within the Ministry of the Presidency has already drafted the GSDS and presented it to Cabinet. Having had good reception at the policy level, the Department now shifts its focus raising awareness among the people of Guyana.

The Department of Energy’s Stakeholder

THE PRESIDENT’S VISION President David Granger, in his most recent address to the National Assembly, said that the GSDS is the vehicle through which all Guyanese will obtain the ‘good life’.

“The State’s principal objective is to secure the ‘good life’ for all. The ‘good life’ entails providing every citizen with opportunities to be the best that they can be.

The ‘good life’ is about securing sustained economic prosperity, ensuring citizens’ access to quality public services and promoting social cohesion.

The ‘good life’ involves eliminating extreme poverty and removing social, ethnic and geographic inequalities. The ultimate indicators of the ‘good life’ are happy communities, happy households and happy people,” the Head of State said.

The President added, “Your government has chosen a ‘green’ pathway to guide it towards achieving a ‘good life’. The economy, for too long, has been dependent on the production and export of primary commodities, all of which are vulnerable to exogenous market shocks and natural hazards. A ‘green’ pathway Student at the University of Guyana, Mr. Alex Muniram allows us to benefit from our counsays that Guyana will be an eco-tourism hub. try’s abundant natural resources.

A ‘green’ development trajectory will ensure a diversified, resilient economy, Management Coordinator, Ms. Aretha Forde, promote sustainable development, social explains the importance of participation from cohesion and good governance and protect the population on this formidable endeavour. the environment while generating wealth and “It is a good thing that the document is an employment. The Green State Development ambitious one. In order for the recommenStrategy is our roadmap for the transition dations that are in the strategy document to towards the ‘good’ life.” work, however, we as a collective citizenry need to work together… It is intended that INFORMING GUYANA’S CITIZENRY whatever benefit stems from the policies and The document, while encouraging a the programmes that we implement would ‘greener’ way forward for Guyana, is pri- go to each and every Guyanese and not just marily focused on diversifying Guyana’s a section of the population. We all want the economy, opening it up to sustainable income country to move forward and we all want to and investment opportunities with benefits benefit from whatever development activities that trickle down to the average Guyanese. take place,” she said.

Stakeholder Management Coordinator at the Department of Environment, Ms. Aretha Forde.

Student at the University of Guyana, Ms. Demelsha Nnamani hopes Guyana will become a model ‘green’ nation.

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Karasabai, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo (Region Nine)

Lamenting the fact the average Guyanese may assume that the GSDS targets only environmental issues, Ms. Forde said that the Department is hard at work at keeping the nation informed as implementation activities are set to begin in 2019.

“One of the things that the department has been doing to help Guyanese understand what… a ‘green’ State really means is to have these ‘green’ conversations that we have been hosting in collaboration with Conservation International… We… bring in international speakers who would touch on various aspects of the ‘green’ economy. We would do these ‘green’ conversations with a topic that’s appropriate for the location,” she said.

Acknowledging that to most Guyanese, a change like this can only seem intimidating, Ms. Forde said the secret to embracing the

GSDS is relatively simple. Learn more about Guyana, she says, be conscious consumers, buy local, want more for our country, and, most importantly, practice unity.

A ‘GREEN’ STATE FOR ALL The Ministry of the Presidency sought the opinions of Guyana’s future leaders, students attending the University of Guyana for their opinions on how the ‘green’ State reshapes their futures.

Mr. Bhim Ramkissoon is eager to see the ‘green’ State come to fruition. “We have potential. [We have] lush forest… 76 per cent of the place is covered in forest. We have abundant sunlight all year, tremendous amounts of wind. We should have gone ‘green’ 50 years ago… Now that they are doing it, it is a positive step forward,” he said.

Mr. Alex Muniram sees big tourism gains in Guyana’s future. “It will help… put Guyana on the map because by going ‘green’ we will… preserve a lot of ecosystems in the country. In the future, a lot of these habitats and ecosystems [will be] extinct. So, if Guyana can preserve those, we will be able to boost tourism because we [will be] one of the few places where those ecosystems exist,” he said.

Ms. Charlene Gilliard also expects great things from Guyana’s imminent ‘green’ State. “I think this strategy would open up new doors… education-wise and business-wise and [with] employment… I’ve been watching tv… People will focus on Brazil, Venezuela, [and] Suriname. It’s like they are going around, but what [about] Guyana,” she said.

In agreement, her friend, Ms. Erica Moore said that she sees a future where Guyana takes centre stage. “I want to see a Guyana where people are proud, Guyanese are proud to say that they are Guyanese. A lot of people go abroad and talk… [badly] about Guyana… That is not nice. I would like people to be proud of Guyanese and for people to be one [and] to work together,” she said. Ms. Demiesha Nnamani said that Guyana ought to be a model for other nations to follow. “I want to see a country helping other countries… We… are developing this strategy. I want to see us assisting [others] and helping them to develop their strategy also,” she said.

A new Guyana is on the rise and this Government is committed to seeing Guyana reach her full ‘green’ potential.

Aishalton, Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo (Region Nine)

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The Caribbean Beekeepers Congress and the honey industry HONEY as a food and as a substitute for manufactured sugar is in growing demand worldwide. This is partly due to the fact that sugar is now regarded as dangerous to health and consumers are moving away from it.

Honey is now generally accepted as a healthier sweetener than sugar. Some weeks ago, this column dealt with the Caribbean Beekeepers Congress; the Congress was held from November 19-23.

The congress was a success and, indeed had many of the features of a seminar. It was opened by the Hon Minister of Agriculture, Mr Noel Holder and there were representatives from Dominica, Jamaica, St Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize and The Bahamas together with a large Guyanese representation. In his feature address, Mr Holder indicated that legislation was mooted since it is only by such legislation would the country be able to expand its markets and improve and modernise production.

Among the items the congress addressed were an introductory programme for new beekeepers; fake honey and some of the risks beekeepers could face financially and even socially, and how could these be surmounted. There was discussion of inter-Caribbean trade and the acquisition of international markets.

Trinidad bans foreign honey and particularly Guyana honey from its market. This issue could not have been resolved at the congress though there is some indication that the Trinidad and Tobago government will modernise its legislation. As an example of how gauchely the Trinidadian legislation works, is the case of Laparkan, a Guyanese company was fined US $3,000 in 2015 by the Trinidad Customs for trans-shipping honey.

Honey is now established worldwide as a valuable health food which could also be used medicinally. It is used in cooking, making of deserts, as a jam, as a sweetener for drinks and even in cocktail mixtures. Medicinally, it is used for the treatment of colds, abrasions and skin damage and in serious burns.

Of any of the Anglophone Caribbean territories, Guyana has the most possibilities of becoming a world-class honey producer and exporter. Its vast forested Interior regions which are sparsely populated could be used as honey farms. The type of honey produced in wilderness conditions has its own flavour. This was the kind of honey ancient man used and which animals like bears prefer. It is multi-floral and contrasts with much of the honey produced in the developed world where the hives are moved to farms to pollinate blossoms so that more bountiful harvests could be achieved. It is this movement of hives to specialised farms that allow for the production of certain types of honey such as “orange blossom” or “apple blossom”.

Though hives are placed in the vicinity of flower farms, honey from specific types of flowers is unusual. One of the rarest of flower honey is lotus honey which is of pale pink and is produced mostly in India in small quantities.

The State should help to stimulate the honey industry by offering it various incentives as well as incentives for new entrants to the industry. There is a need to mount training programmes countrywide beginning with the schools. The State should also explore foreign markets since beekeepers, being largely amateurs, usually do not have the knowledge and capability of so doing. Strict quality controls should be established so that beekeepers do not adopt the foreign habit of diluting honey with various substances. It should also be pointed out that the industry could provide employment for thousands and a comfortable living for many families. These topics were touched on during the Congress.

One important problem that was not substantively considered is the issue of Africanised bees. These bees have been taking over the hives and beekeepers have to develop new ways of dealing with them. There has been much scientific research abroad done on these bees but so far no conclusions have been arrived at. The public looks upon these bees as dangerous wasps that have to

be eliminated. More education about the bees needs to be disseminated so that there would be less fear of them and more capability of dealing with swarms. Probably, exploring an insect repellent which could keep off those bees may be a short-term answer. The Africanised bees are now an inescapable and unpleasant component of the

honey industry and constructive ways have to be worked out to accommodate them.

Caribbean Beekeepers Congresses are useful and their value could be further enhanced if there is a greater scientific input and governmental support and involvement.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

#SupportCreativity

By Subraj Singh

Observing the Minorities in ‘Crimes of Grindelwald’ IT is difficult to believe that “Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald,” J.K.Rowling’s second entry into her ever-expanding Wizarding World, was written by the woman who taught an entire generation of children to love reading with her Harry Potter books. Similarly, it is also difficult to

believe that this film was directed by the man who brought us the last, and perhaps, the best Harry Potter movies in the original series. “Crimes of Grindelwald” is such a contradictory, hurried, pointless, mish-mash of muchness that it is sure to underwhelm many fans of the original series

“Crimes of Grindelwald,” 2018, Warner Bros. Pictures – Image source: IMDB

who were expecting something more acclaim-worthy. Not only does the film fail by being a lacklustre addition to the Harry Potter canon, but it also fails as a film by undermining the one rule of films: be entertaining.

To watch the movie is to be confronted with the sad fact that Hogwarts and the rest of the Wizarding World, in the hands of the wrong people with misplaced motives, can be dreadfully boring. There are some aspects of the film that are good, but like a baby sinking into the sea (an actual image from the film), these are all drowned out by the flaws that loom as large as the paper-thin characterisations that the film highlights.

There are several facets of commentary that can be gleaned from analysing various parts of the film, but the one that is most relevant right now, in my opinion, happens to be Rowling’s treatment of minorities in her work. There has already much talk about this throughout the years (see: Black Hermione, allegations of the cultural appropriation of Native American culture by Rowling, and the casting of Nagini in “Crimes of Grindelwald”), so for this article, I will only focus on “Crimes of Grindelwald” as it is the most recent expression of Rowling’s work in the media/pop culture/literary landscape.

The first type of minority that demands exploration is the sexual minority in “Crimes of Grindelwald.” The Harry Potter fandom erupted into a furor when Rowling announced, years ago, that Albus Dumbledore (the kind, brilliant headmaster of Hogwarts) was gay. This was revealed after literally no explicit evidence about his sexuality ever appeared in the books, and, logically, fans began to hope that Dumbledore’s queerness (particularly his love for his friend, and enemy, Gellert Grindelwald) would appear in “Crimes of Grindelwald.” Leading up to the release of the films, fans were assured that this movie would finally, after a long time, shed light on Dumbledore’s sexuality and finally give us the information we needed on Dumbledore and Grindelwald’s relationship.

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018 ◄◄◄ From page XV

And as time progressed and Guyana gained independence and continued to develop, Carla related that the already depleted population further dwindled because persons left the island in search of educational and occupational opportunities.

Carla, who is 54 years old, was born on the island and lived there all her life. She has seen the population move from about 200 to less than 100 for these reasons. But she was one that did not leave, for the simple fact that the island became a tourist attraction.

“The only time we see lots of people here is when tourists come because there aren’t too many people living on the island now,” Carla told this newspaper.

On holidays and even on Saturdays and Sundays, there would be about “five jetboats” of tourists coming to the island, according to the woman. Each boat carries about 30 persons.

And during the peak tourism season- June to August- as many as 300 persons could visit the island some weekends and sometimes, even as many as 500 persons would visit the island for the week, she shared.

Tourists primarily visit the island for the requiems of the Dutch culture. In fact, the Court of Policy has been made into a Dutch Heritage Museum by the Guyana National Trust.

“I worked with the [Guyana] National Trust for 13 years now,” she highlighted and related that because she has a job on the island that she enjoys, she never opted to leave the island.

She is a guide on the island, and with her knowledge of the island and particularly of the Court of Policy, she is able to edify visitors.

Reminiscent of the olden days, Carla and her now-late husband also created a trading business on the island where they would ‘buy and sell’ goods for persons heading into Guyana’s interior locations.

Known as a local tourist destination now, there is still a semblance of a community living on the island. Perhaps, this adds to the appeal of the island because you get the Dutch culture juxtaposed with community life.

On the island, there is a health centre that serves other islands on the Essequibo River, as well as a nursery and primary school. Pretty Debideen resides on the island with her family and she is the local nurse but also works indirectly with the tourism activities on the island.

There is a dilapidated bird trail on the island, just before the Fort, where there are supposed to be scores of tropical birds that would amaze any person from your average tourist to expert birdwatcher.

By next year though, Pretty hopes that she and her family can develop this trail so that it can add to the aesthetic and overall appeal of the island so that many more tourists would visit.

Andy Kam is the manager of Old Fort Tours, a tour company that does tours almost exclusively on the Essequibo River. On the island, he chatted with Carla and Pretty as though they are old friends (and maybe, they are). He affirmed that maintaining a good relationship with the residents is paramount to offering a good tourist experience.

He explained that tourism must be engaged in a sustainable way so as to preserve the product (the island) and the people inhabiting it. Resultantly, the tour company has thought that it would be better to have the locals be tour guides, but this avenue did not work out as planned.

The company began training its own guides who would conduct the tours on the islands, and who could also function as guides on the islands visited subsequent to Fort Island.

Nevertheless, Fort Island is home to a small and closeknit community. And in some way or the other, tourism has become an economic activity for each person on the island- just like farming and fishing.

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Beyond the Runway

with Dr. Sonia Noel

... Inspiring lives through fashion

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

I absolutely enjoyed a recent date with me A FEW days ago I decided to have a date with me. I did it before but not in a while and it felt so GOOD. Pegasus was my choice and I absolutely enjoyed it. I was in the mood to have some alone time and some reflection in the process with good food and great wine. I opted for flipflops and resort kind of attire with my hat and sunglasses.

Millionaire Success Habits by Dean Graziosi was part of the package for my alone time.

I was so intentional about forgetting the world for a few hours and just have a time for reflection. The rain came pouring down and even that did not stop me because my mind was so made up to have a blast.

I knew I had to recharge because I had the launch of Women in Business Expo 2019 and the last two personal development classes to teach. I can only serve well from my overflow and I am committed to giving my best. This year was amazing but not without challenges and now there are only 36 days left.

My mind drifted to many things and the recently celebrated International Men’s Day was one of them. Not many were talking about it because even men did not know about it. International Men’s Day (IMD) is an annual international event celebrated every year on November 19. It was inaugurated in 1992 on February 7 by Thomas Oaster. I dedicated last Sunday’s Living With Intention Radio Show to discuss the importance of positive male role models in our society. We had some interesting discussions with Gospel Singer Saiku Andrews and we discussed my new anthology Men Across Borders. We also had meaningful contributions from Jamaal Abdul-Ali, Russel Lancaster, Diego Alphonso and Neil Life Changer McPhoy .

WHY MEN ACROSS BORDERS? “Ever since I wrote the anthology Women Across Borders I started working on Men Across Borders because I believe men need more forums to tell their stories and to challenges. I discussed artwork and cover concept with Compton Babb and Shiv Dindyal and a wonderful cover was created.

It was appropriate to launch the cover on this day that celebrated men.

I am sharing the synopsis with you: Turn to page XXVIII►►►

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Heal Guyana begins 16-day ‘human rights’ activism today Founder of Heal Guyana Sharon Lalljee-Richard.

THE Heal Guyana Civil Society Organisation, which launched an anti?racism initiative in August of this year, is now calling on all Guyanese to unite in order to end violence against women and girls in Guyana.

Over the next 16 days, beginning today and up until Human Rights Day on December 10, practical recommendations for dealing with abusive relationships will be published and promoted daily throughout the organisation’s social media network, advising victims of domestic violence and how to stay safe in the event of life-threatening situations.

There will also be recommendations for those who are not directly involved in violent relationships but are witnesses to abusive situations.

Heal Guyana’s Founder Sharon Lalljee?Richard explained, “It is important to realise that our mindset plays a significant part in keeping the scourge of domestic violence alive and growing in Guyana. Every time we witness a violent incident between a couple and we comfort ourselves with the thought that says, ‘yuh don’t get into man and woman story’, we inadvertently make it socially acceptable for a crime (which is punishable by law) to be committed, reinforcing violence as a norm within our society and becoming a part of the problem ourselves.”

Lalljee-Richard said each time a woman is physically abused by her partner and she comforts herself by saying, “If he doesn’t beat me, he doesn’t love me,” she is deluding herself as to what ‘love’ really is, as a result of low self?esteem.

It is, therefore, an imperative for her to get urgent professional help which can restore her sense of self-worth and start her on the road to healing.

“But she must be courageous enough to take that first step and we must as a collective, do all that we can to help her get there. Too often as neighbours, family members and friends, we relinquish our power by not taking a stand, because we feel it will be a waste of time. We become disappointed and disparaged and to appease ourselves, we turn a blind eye to the continued abuse, feeling powerless or unwilling to intervene,” Lalljee-Richard said.

As much as this sort of emotion may be understandable under the circumstances, as a nation and as individuals, Lalljee-Richard said the nation must not give in to apathy and allow violence to thrive.

“You see, when a person is being abused, there are many hidden factors at play which often influence their decision to stay in a troubled situation, much longer than it is healthy for them to do so.”

Lalljee-Richard observed that factors such as mental illness caused by the abuse itself, cultural conditioning, poor self?image, inadequate emotional support or a gripping fear of increased poverty, especially if the abuser supports the home/children are sometimes frightening considerations for a victim which they must mentally overcome before they can feel confident to do what is necessary to step away from the relationship and change their lives for the better.

It is not always cut?and?dry for someone who is suffering and we must, therefore, remain patient and steadfast in our

continued attempts to support and empower those who are being abused. As an immediate benefit of outside intervention, an abuser may be more reluctant to inflict harm when they are made to feel that others are readily present and willing to take a dominant stand against their unacceptable behaviour, each

time they attempted it. Even a stranger can intervene on behalf of someone who is being battered. Abuse is never a private matter. It affects our entire society, our future generations, and therefore, it impacts us all.”

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XXVIII ◄◄◄ From page XXVI

Men Across Borders is a compilation of compelling stories told by a diverse cross-section of men from across many borders curated by me.

These stories reveal unique truths as testified by men who have confronted peculiar realities which resulted in life-altering choices.

Men Across Borders is a multi-layered account of men’s experiences which, at first glance, are different, but on closer observation bespeak similar commentaries of the human condition.

We are all faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles which, when approached with empathy and humanity, can be overcome.

These stories signify that gender does not define our life. Men face challenges which are not masculine but human.

At this juncture, on the observance of International Men’s Day, it is more than opportune that Men Across Borders be launched to render gender balance to our collective existence.

Men Across Borders explores real-life journeys of men who chose to expose their sensibilities, all in an effort to promote true gender equality, to enhance gender relations and to bring attention to male role models. The book becomes an avenue to showcase prejudices against males and to commemorate their contributions to their social milieu, all in all, their testimonies would foster the distinctive worth of humanitarian interaction. “

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

I am very excited about this project and thrilled that The Foreword will be written by Dr. Nigel Gravesande who is someone I admire. We really need to have more discussions on the importance of positive male role models in society because the lack of it is damaging.

Thinking about it reminded me of the Frederick Douglass quote: “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.”

Male or female we have to continue to contribute in a positive way to our communities.

Send us an email to beyondtherunway1@gmail.com and check out our FB page as we continue to celebrate this beautiful journey called life BEYOND THE RUNWAY.

◄◄◄ From page XXVII

She urged that the nation ought to begin seeing the true magnitude of this issue and get involved to stop the violence once and for all. Citizens are encouraged to ‘like’ and ‘follow’ ‘Heal Guyana’ on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or Twitter in order to gain access to the recommendations being released over the next 16 days of activism which is the organisation’s response to the international campaign challenging gender-based violence against women and girls; an initiative originating from the Center for Women’s Global Leadership (CWGL) in 1991.

The CWGL is both an academic centre at the public research university (Rutgers) as well as a non?governmental organisation with ECOSOC Special Consultative Status at the United Nations working on policy and advocacy. The CWGL develops and facilitates women’s leadership worldwide, not only for women’s human rights but also for international social justice.

Lalljee-Richard affirmed that Heal Guyana’s number one recommendation to all victims of domestic violence is to end the troubled relationship with their abuser, as soon as possible.

She added, “The knowledge being disseminated over the next few days is not intended to be a substitute for leaving but an interim strategy for staying safe while you prepare yourself to leave. Living in constant fear is no way to spend your life and Heaven forbid, you do find yourself in such a situation, know that no one else can help you unless you are brave and determined enough to help yourself.”

The organisation, which was launched in December 2017, currently has over 140 confirmed volunteers.

Their members are Caitlin Vieira, Saeed Hamid (Jr.), Lawrence Lachmansingh, Wil Campbell, Sara Bharrat, Gerald Forde, Heetasmin Singh, Fidal Bassier, Patrick Mc Andrew, Tarron Kemraj, Rawle Small and Joshua Abdool. Arun Sudesh Richard is the co?founder and the Board of Directors includes Sharon Lalljee?Richard, Rayann Hinckson and Egbert Alexander Carter.

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The State of the Environment: Biodiversity

GUYANA is known as the land of many waters but unknown to many it is also the home of many giants, such as the Giant River Otter, Giant River Turtle and Arapaima.

The country is unlike any other when it comes to its flora and fauna. Many rare animals and plants are able to strive in Guyana because of its unique ecosystems sitting between biologically rich zones of both the Amazon Region and the Guiana Shield These ecosystems such as rainforests, savannahs and wetlands provide unique characteristics to allow for flourishing habitats which sustain a multitude of organisms. However, while Guyana’s biodiversity is largely intact, the increase of human activities is at the forefront of pressuring this unique resource.

PRESSURE ON BIODIVERSITY RESOURCES Guyana’s biodiversity faces both direct and indirect threats. Economic activities such as over-fishing, mining and logging have a direct impact on pollution and habitat loss. Invasive alien species which are species brought into the country that do not naturally belong here also pressure the biodiversity as they compete with them for resources. Presently, there are 21 known invasive species in Guyana, many of which have not been studied so their impacts are not completely understood.

Indirect threats are as a result of challenges with policies and legislation, for example, conflicting legislation and the lack of compliance enforcement and monitoring. Additionally, limited knowledge of Guyana’s biodiversity and the importance of protecting ecosystems contributes to the indirect destruction.

As the world continues to battle the effects of climate change, this has both a direct and indirect impact on Guyana’s rich ecosystems. Climate change is already affecting the availability of food and water for wildlife while the increase of global temperatures causing major floods, droughts and extreme storms which are resulting in habitat loss.

GUYANA’S COMMITMENT TO PRESERVING ITS BIODIVERSITY When it comes to putting measures in place to protecting its natural resources, Guyana is committed to leading by example, the country has committed to the EU-FLEGT project, the REDD+ initiative and developing the National Water Council (NWC). In addition, Guyana has taken significant steps at the national level towards conserving its biological resources by signing on to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD). Along with submitting five National Reports on the status of the country’s biological resources to the Convention, Guyana has enacted a key legislation to ensure the protection and conservation of its biodiversity. This includes the Environmental Protection Act and Regulations which governs the work of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Furthermore, the development of national strategies such as the Protected Areas Strategy and the soon-to-be-implemented, Green State Development Strategy (GSDS) are also tools used to guide biodiversity conservation and protection. In fact, one of the principles of the GSDS is the Sustainable Use of Biodiversity and Resource Efficiency. A number of policies and plans were also developed, for example, the National Land Use Plan along with the National Land Use Policy.

In addition to the development of policies, strategies, legislation and plans, institutional and governance agreements were strengthened via the development of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in 20, which a number of agencies had functioned under, including the EPA. However, some of these sectors are now operating under the Department of Environment which is responsible for overseeing environmental compliance and monitoring. This department not only comprises of the EPA but also the Protected Areas Commission (PAC) and the Wildlife Conservation and Management Com-

mission (WCMC), which both have crucial responsibilities in biodiversity conservation and protection.

Much more has been done to ensure Guyana’s biodiversity is sustained. Several committees have been formed, there has been the establishment of new protected areas and the strengthening of monitoring and capacity building in biodiversity. In recent years, there has been an increase in research and study on Guyana’s biodiversity.

Guyana is progressively moving towards keeping its precious and rare organisms safe. In order for Guyana to continue to maintain its low rate of ecosystem degradation, Guyanese must continue to put measures in place to conserve and protect this resource as failing to do so will have detrimental impacts

on us all. This means that when embarking in an economic activity that will likely to have environmental impacts, we must remember to keep the environment in mind and proceed in a sustainable manner.

If you wish to know more about the state and trends of Land Resources in Guyana, you can download the State of the Environment Report 2016 from the EPA’s website, www. epaguyana.org You can share your ideas and questions by sending letters to: “Our Earth, Our Environment”, C/O ECEA Programme, Environmental Protection Agency, Ganges Street, Sophia, Georgetown, or email us at eit.epaguyana@ gmail.com or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

XXXII ◄◄◄ From page XXIV

It was to be an important move for Millenials who grew up on Harry Potter to see Dumbledore (portrayed in quite a good performance

by Jude Law in the movie), one of the most powerful wizards of all-time and one of the Harry Potter series’ best known and bestloved characters, as a flaming homosexual. Needless to say, this did not come to pass in “Crimes of Grindelwald.” In

fact, it came nowhere close to what fans expected to see.

All we got was an instance of Dumbledore saying that he and Grindelwald were “closer than brothers” and a scene of the two as young men, cutting their palms and pressing the blood together – like something out of a bad teen romance – and then holding hands. It lacked all the emotion, all the fire, all the intensity that was needed

to highlight this relationship.

A simple kiss would have done the trick, but Rowling chose another route. “What is she scared of?” “Why doesn’t she want to make Dumbledore explicitly gay?” I have no idea. All I know is that this continuous putting off of any expression of Dumbledore’s queerness in the movies makes it extremely easy for critics to slam her work as being another example of queerbaiting in the media, another example of constantly

hinting at the queerness of a character in order to rack up fans, engender promotion, or to stimulate interest, without actually giving manifest to the character’s queer nature in the film or book.

The second concept of “minority” that we need to look at in “Crimes of Grindelwald” has to do with race.

First off, kudos to Rowling for including more people of colour in the second installment of this franchise. That’s definitely a good thing. However,

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018 there is still much more work to be done.

People were very upset when they found out that South Korean actress, Claudia Kim had been cast as Nagini, a character who is later permanently transformed into a snake, and made into a slave and vessel for Harry’s arch-nemesis, Lord Voldemort. The problem with this, as pointed out by Megan C. Hills, in a piece for “Marie Claire,” is that Nagini’s persona as being a non-verbal, submissive slave of a “dominant, white male” reeks of tropes associated with Asian stereotypes. This analysis is apt and becomes more profound especially after one has seen the film. Nagini in the movie is relegated to a bare handful of lines, with very little to do besides befriend another character. Her presentation immediately seems to confirm the “non-verbal” aspect of things, given how little lines she has and how little of an impact she makes. Claudia Kim seems like a capable actress, and I hope for her sake, and the sake of her character, and the sake of the entire Harry Potter fandom, that in the upcoming movies, Rowling gives her more to do instead of simply keeping her on the sidelines as she waits for the moment to be permanently turned into Voldemort’s pet.

Next, in how the presentations of people of colour failed in “Crimes of Grindelwald,” we have the character of Leta Lestrange – played by Zoe Kravitz. The actress must be commended for being one of the few actors who was able to draw nuance while helping to develop her own character despite the sketchy draft she was given to work with. Truly, Kravitz is one of the rare aspects of the movie that I actually enjoyed. How-

ever, her character as a representation of a racial minority in the Harry Potter universe is flawed. Leta Lestrange is a child borne of a black woman (already married with a son of her own) who is cursed and controlled by a white man who forces this woman to become his wife, after which she becomes pregnant. The woman dies giving birth to Leta. Kadeen Griffiths, in an article for “Bustle,” points out that “…a white man magically taking control of a black woman and then using that control, in part, to rape her is an uncomfortable slavery narrative…” Griffiths also points out how this narrative is then used in the film to portray Leta as the “tragic mulatto.” Why this slavery narrative was drawn without a full analysis of its role in the film by the filmmakers is unclear to me, and Leta, despite all her potential, eventually is reduced to nothing more than another attempt at including a person of colour, without all the necessary pain and hard work it takes to render her accurate and worthy of contribution in a positive manner to the discourse on race.

Of course, one can continue the analysis of other minority characters in the film. We can talk about the failings of Seraphina Picquery as a character, or of Queenie (my favourite character from the first film) – as a woman – being reduced to nothing more than an airheaded, lovelorn girl, or more about Dumbledore and his yet to be seen queerness. However, I have a feeling that the upcoming movies will provide much more to talk about, especially when it comes to the presentation of a subject as current and as important as minorities in film.

◄◄◄ From page VI

John Smith died in prison while on Death Row. He was buried at a small cemetery just west of where the St. Phillip’s Anglican Church is located. On November 24, 1843, exactly 20 years after the date on which the Reverend John Smith was sentenced to death, Smith Memorial Congregational Church was opened and dedicated as a tribute to his work and suffering to spread the gospel - the good news - of the Holy Bible the enslaved Africans in Demerara were taught to read. The Reverend John Smith has since been referred to as “The Demerara Martyr”. A bronze bust of him, which was on display for many years in the front of the church on Brickdam, was removed during the early 1990s, and has never been seen again.

During more recent years, many notable Guyanese have been members of Smith Memorial. They include the late Minister of Government Dr Kenneth King and the late Headmistress of the Bishops’ High School, Carmen Jervis, who wrote a book on the History of The Bishops’ High School. Also a member of the church was Englishman Hawley Bryan who spent many years in British Guiana and is buried in the front of the church. Like Carmen Jervis, he was an educator and composer, and composed some of Guyana’s best-loved patriotic songs, such as “Song of Guyana’s Children”. At present, the oldest living member of the church is 104-year-old Cathlyn Headley.

A few months ago, the building of a new manse, just west of the church commenced. It is being constructed in concrete and will replace the demolished wooden manse which had been there for many decades.

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018 ◄◄◄ From page II

Rosemarie Ramitt (right) and one of her friends who supported her, Samantha Thompson

Now having to cope with total blindness, Oddessa related that a lot of hard work and studying had to be employed at UG. “But I did my best. I’m so proud. I never thought I could’ve done it, so I am very much overwhelmed,” she told this publication.

Oddessa Alexis Blair

HIGHER HEIGHTS Rosemarie Ramitt, 23, of Triumph Village, East Coast of Demerara, also graduated lately with an Associate Degree in Social Work.

She was not born with visual problems but somewhere at age 13, loss of proper sight suddenly descended upon her.

Today, she sees bright colours and can discern when an object or someone is in front of her. But she cannot see to read nor can she comprehend graphs, charts and pictures.

Rosemarie, who graduated from the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) in 2016, is now working to complete her Bachelor’s Degree in Education by 2020.

‘MASTERMIND’ Ganesh Singh, a 34-year-old executive member of the Society, completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work in 2016 and graduated recently with his Master’s Degree, which he had to fund on his own.

Ganesh told this publication that this is the first time that a ‘Masters’ in Social Work has been offered in Guyana. He is also proud of the fact that he is the first person with a vision disability to graduate with a Master’s Degree. “There are many other persons with the degrees and ‘masters’ but they never

really acquired them whilst being blind; they acquired them before getting a disability,” said Ganesh.

For his research, he said he focused on analysing the Guyana Disability Act in comparison to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the American Disability Act and the Antiguan Disability Act. He also developed a disability policy for UG and CPCE. “I had an excellent support system; very good friends in my class. And this was a dream come true because I always

XXXIII wanted to acquire a ‘Masters’ level degree, and to be able to make myself more marketable in the job market. It also facilitated me having a different approach to my disability rights advocacy. I feel very satisfied and accomplished.

Ganesh is hoping to move on to achieving his PhD and is still deciding whether to pursue it online or to migrate for a while.” I’m ready to invest these additional four years and despite it will be costly, I am pretty optimistic about being able to do it.”

XXXIV ◄◄◄ From page III

Green Conversations and its topics are deeply relevant to Guyanese. Forde noted that Guyana has developed its Green State Development Strategy which outlines policy recommendations and actions to transition the country to a green state.

She said, “It is the understanding that the concept of a green economy is one that is relatively new to Guyanese and given the direction in which the country is headed, it is necessary

to raise awareness.” She added, “We believe that raising awareness and encouraging participation all Guyanese can be involved in moving our country along a sustainable path.”

One of the desired outcomes of Green Conversations is to help Guyanese understand that green state/sustainable development concerns are more than just environmental in nature. Bharrat explained, “It’s more than just environmental in nature in that people, and people’s decision-making processes and everything that people need are at the centre of it.”

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018 Guyana can be thought of as a puzzle or landscape. “Think about all the parts of that puzzle,” Bharrat said. She related that the process of answering the question of ensuring we have an economy and nation that is functioning and developing in a way that secures people’s wellbeing and their future while also reducing the impact of how they operate on the environment to ensure that people are making the best use of natural resources turns up numerous responses.

These include the areas of mining, agriculture, education and culture. “When you look at all these things, they’re all [a] very necessary part of a landscape and so you cannot have a green economy without first securing all of the things Aretha Forde, Stakeholder that people need to feel safe, Management Coordinawell provided for, to be able to tor at the Ministry of the think for themselves,” Bharrat Presidency, Department of Environment (Photo stated. She added, “A green courtesy of Aretha Forde) economy is not just about natural resources, a green economy is about people and systems and holistic development.”

Another of the desired outcomes of Green Conversations is to build the capacity of the Guyanese people to participate effectively in green/sustainable development conversations. The bottom line is simple related Bharrat. “[The bottom line] is that people at least come out of that room having a better understanding of what green development really means,” she stated. Moreover, she said, a further goal is that they understand a bit more about their place in green development and hopefully, having gotten that information and internalised it, can go to green development conversations with more capacity than they had before to join the national conversation and produce ideas and influence end results. ◄◄◄ From page IV

But his affinity for Hematology (the study of blood), perhaps, was a bit closer to home. According to him, “Even though we might know that blood is really important but we don’t really know the extent of how important it is.”

It was learning about diseases like leukaemia and sickle cell that really got his attention given that his mother died from sickle cell and he currently has a trait of the disease. So it was really edifying for him because he knows what steps he can take to prevent his future offspring from inheriting the disease.

Accumulating this knowledge and so much more, Dakari graduated with distinction recently after completing his Bachelor’s Degree of Science in Medical Technology.

Reflecting on his journey, he related: “It was rough at the start as I was unfamiliar with the university life.” Joggling long days spent in classes, with a host of examinations, assignments, presentations and lab work sometimes became tiring. But he persevered.

This took a toll on his social life, however, but Dakari noted that as time went by be found great friends who have made an indelible mark in his life. He also began volunteering with quite a few youth advocacy groups.

Now that this journey is over, he aims to continue his studies for a bit more- but not right away- because he doesn’t want to rush into the next chapter of his life.

Certainly, whatever he does decide to do will align with all those things he is passionate about.

These include equal and affordable access to Sexual & Reproductive health services, safeguarding the environment and lessening the effects of global warming and equal opportunities for women and girls.

On Dakari’s list of things he is passionate about, there are also equal opportunities for people with disabilities because he himself faced discrimination because of his disability. He shared that though he has the requisite academic qualifications, he was turned down when he applied for a few part-time jobs while at UG. He has vowed not to ever let his disability deter him and said to other persons with disabilities. “I know it might be hard to adjust to your new life, but life is unpredictable and challenging and you either accept it and make the best of it or waste your second opportunity of life and forever live with regrets,” he said.

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

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Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

STUDY SUCCESS

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Dear Student, Stress, one authority says, can be thought of as an individual’s response to threats and challenges in the environment.

But note this: stress can manifest itself psychologically or physiologically or both in a good or bad way depending upon your reaction. Maybe you have examination stress. Maybe your self-esteem is threatened potentially because of your perception of the gap between your existing state of knowledge and the requirements of the examination. Develop a positive attitude; press on. Be wise.

Love you THE FIRST PASSAGE Keep your eyes open to the way good writers structure their paragraphs. Here are two of our favourite teaching pieces.

In each case say what you think is the writer’s opinion of his/her subject.

It is the opinion of my grandmother,

English

God bless her, that all men should labour, and at the table, a moment ago, she said to me: You must learn to do some good work, the making of some item useful to man, something out of clay, or out of wood, or metal, or cloth. It is not proper for a young man to be ignorant of an honourable craft. Is there anything you can make? Can you make a simple table, a chair, a plain dish, a rug, a coffee pot? Is there anything you can do?

And my grandmother looked at me with anger.

I know, she said, you are supposed to be a writer, and I suppose you are.

You certainly smoke enough cigarettes to be anything, and the whole house full of smoke, but you must learn to make solid things, things that can be seen and touched….

(William Saroyan’s “The Shepherd’s Daughter”) THE SECOND PASSAGE The Man at the Door He was leaning on a heavy cane,

staring at the door with dark vacant eyes. His long white hair crept over his forehead and merged into his shagA place for everything, and gy brows. His face was everything in its place. partly hidden by the collar of a shabby coat turned up SAMUEL SMILES (1812-1904) against his ears and cheeks.

Thrift (1875), ch. 5 A red nose pushed its way forward into the unknown. letter of resignation. Such letters are not Nervous hands moved quickly as if they were cold. Long fingers supposed to be long. If your letter is crisp tightened and then loosened their hold on and to the point, a good score could easily the head of the cane. But the great body be obtained.

Dear Mr Mackintosh, of the man did not stir at all. Nor did the This letter is to let you know how eyes turn as they stared intently at the door. Only the fingers moved; only the much I have enjoyed my last two years at the Woodbine Tool Company. I have hands trembled.

His feet were the feet of a giant. Great learned a great deal here and have made rough shoes covered them and protected many permanent friends as well.

Because I would like to make greater them from the cold. They looked tired as they waited motionless on the concrete use of my sales background, I have acceptstep. The shoes pointed aimlessly outward ed a position at the Slingerland Investment as if to give the large man some balance Company. I would therefore appreciate it as he waited there. The feet were those of if you would accept my resignation effeca man who had walked far and long and tive December 31.

Thank you for all that you have done whose walking had come to an end. to make my work here both interesting The man waited patiently at the door.

He looked neither to the right nor to the and enjoyable.

Sincerely yours, left. There was nothing for him to see.

The sturdy cane in his nervous hand was SKILLS OF STUDY white. The man at the door was blind.

Note-making for personal use When you make notes, remember VOCABULARY and SPELLING A.. These words are often confused: they are primarily for your own benefit. decent, descent, dissent; imitate, intimate. Another person who reads them does not Use these words in a sentence that illus- need to know your short cuts, abbreviated forms, patterns of presentation because trates its meaning.

B.. From each pair of words within it is essentially your way of looking at brackets, select the one that correctly each matter in hand. You may prefer to use several approaches, but the importcompletes the sentence.

1. A city (ordnance, ordinance) prohib- ant thing is for you to be consistent and not confuse yourself. Incidentally, one its parking in this area.

2. I have no (illusions, allusions) about great problem in note-making involves handwriting. When you are writing your her capabilities.

3. The (aisles, isles) in this hall must matter, you know what you are about, you have full power of recall then. But, within be kept clear at all times.

4. The marketing people will (canvas, a few days you will have forgotten 70% of canvass) the food stores for customer the material, and the words that looked so meaningful often take on a mysterious appreferences.

5. Its expense is the (loan, lone) reason pearance. In the long run it pays to write more clearly even if it takes a longer time. for rejecting your plan.

LETTER WRITING A letter of Resignation Occasionally you can be asked in the examination to write a letter of resignation from a given position. You now have the opportunity to view a recommended example.

When you are on the job, of course, you should discuss your resignation with your supervisor before writing your letter.

And regardless of your reason for resigning, your letter should be friendly in tone and tactful. Someday you may want this employer to give you a reference, and you want the employer to remember you favourably.

The following letter, which follows the bad-news plan, is a good example of a

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTIONS VOCABULARY and SPELLING: A. Words people often confuse used in sentences: Detract, to take something desirable away from. “Jack’s unpressed suit detracted from his appearance.”

Distract, to bewilder, confuse. “The passing parade distracted the attention of the language class. Carton, a pasteboard packing box. “Each carton holds two hundred small soft toys.”

Cartoon, a sketch showing a caricature.

“The number of cartoons of our candidate will increase as the campaign progresses.” B. Showing a or an preceding given words: An opposite; a half; an appetite; an egg; an ulcer; a cancer; a harvest:

Chronicle Pepperpot November 25, 2018

Dumplings

INGREDIENTS 4 oz flour or 3 oz flour and 1 oz cornflour 1 tsp baking powder 1 oz margarine 1 tsp salt 1 oz sugar grated nutmeg 3-4 tbsp milk or water INSTRUCTIONS Sift flour and baking powder, rub in margarine, add salt, sugar, and nutmeg.

Mix with enough milk or water to make a stiff dough.

Knead lightly and form into balls.

Place on top of vegetables and cook for about 7 minutes.

Don’t allow to overcook.

Makes 8 Note: Chopped eshalot or chopped herbs may also be used.

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