Author pens memoir to preserve love for homeland

Overseas-based Guyanese author, Helena Martin,  wanted to not only preserve her love for her homeland but to share this with the wider world, and this she accomplishes through her memoir, “Walk Wit’ Me… All Ova Guyana”.Martin was born in 1947 in British Guiana. She taught kindergarten until her marriage in 1968. She and her husband migrated to Australia and currently reside there with their four children and seven grandchildren. Some 16 years ago, Martin wrote a poem, “Come Walk Wit Me”, but it was left forgotten in a drawer for many years. When she came across it about 6 years ago, it sparked the beginning of her memoir. In the book, she documents the first 21 years of her upbringing in Guyana, where she was born to a Portuguese immigrant family from the islands. Martin is uncertain about which islands: Madeira or the Azores. In 1835, the first Portuguese arrived here from the Portuguese island of Madeira. Between 1834 and 1882, some 30,645 Portuguese settled in British Guiana, the vast majority from Madeira, but others from the Azores Islands.  She writes in her book, “Bits of information were passed on here and there as I was growing up, but I never thought to ask for meaningful aspects of their lives. Most people never think of doing that until it is too late.”For most of her childhood, her family socialized with other members of the migrant Portuguese community,  where everyone was related. They moved many times from Georgetown to Pomeroon and then to the Rupununi’s open savannah next to the rainforest. They settled there about twelve miles from Lethem in a remote village called Moco-Moco, where there was no school and life proved difficult.The family then decided to move the children to board with relatives in Albouystown,  so that they could attend school. Of her mother’s choice of school she writes, “She wanted us to attend a school where all the Putagee (Portuguese) children went because we were fair skinned.”The book not only speaks of Martin’s experiences growing up Portuguese, discovering the country of her birth, but also of her visits back to her homeland from Australia.“I yearned to preserve the love for my country, family and fellow countrymen,” the author relates in an interview with  Guyana Times Sunday Magazine. “But most importantly, I want to pass on the legacy of my life in Guyana to my children, grandchildren and future generations.” In this compelling, humorous memoir, Martin recalls her years living in Guyana while navigating a labyrinth of family secrets.“My memoir is laced with nostalgia and at the same time it is my sincere intention to portray the true essence of the Guyanese culture without offence,” she explained. “Keep in mind that this is not based on the experience of every Guyanese. This was the way I saw and experienced things back then.”While documenting her own experience of Guyana, Martin also takes care to preserve the traditions she has come to love while conveying the clever humour and witty repartee abundant in Guyanese culture. “Not only is this a personal account of my life, this memoir was intentionally written to preserve the language from that era. I also wanted to enlighten readers on the delightful folklore and cultural aspects of a little unknown country in South America,” she mentioned.Included in the book is a glossary of terms, providing readers with insight and translation of the colloquialisms and vernacular used throughout the book.In addition to documenting Guyanese culture, Martin also aims to bring readers back to simpler times. “The majority of today’s society is totally focused on achieving happiness through material possessions. My book will show the importance of good ol’ family values and friendship.”Email the author at helenjon21@yahoo.com.au for more information on her book.