Yuh see when me use to live a country, me use to love when rain fall yuh know, man. Me use to love look outa di window an watch how it just wet up di place so and sing ‘rain a fall breeze a blow’. (Me coulda nevah make mama hear me sing dat deh song or she woulda rinse out mi mouth wid Fab). Dat deh time Frankie him wrap up eena bed for if him cyaan run up an dung like a horse a Caymanas Park, him rather be sleeping. An when di rain done everyting just green so an look like new.
Anyway, chile, one time it rain an rain so til we get mudslide an landslide an all dem slide deh. Guinep Hill nevah look di same again. All one lickle district dem call Chigwell was unda water fi one long time an everybody say is river-mumma come tek back what is fi har an di poor peeples dem haffi take raft move out wid all dem belongings. It was a spectacle. Chile, me tell yuh me nevah see anyting like dat. Well chile, after it rain fi a few days di one Frankie him couldn’t take it no more. Is like him haunted. For him a tink bout all di mango an tamarind and guava tree waiting to be stoned. An how him coulda deh run him tire dung Guinep Hill. Worse it was long holiday.
Missis, Frankie get up like dem set fire backa him an him dash out eena di pouring rain. An him kick up an prance. All of a sudden ma, a pieca a lightening an thunder clap yuh see. Frankie stan up stiff. Him eye dem pulge. Massi, ma, him holler out:
“Di Lord is my Shepherd” an di bway make one swish an eena di house an unda di sheet. Hear him:
“Mi heart a beat? Mi heart a beat?”
I was abased. Me tell you ma, when me see how it a rain di odda day me start fi worry an fret. Me nevah know seh dem deh sinting happen eena Foreign, ma. When me see how place a wash way and house a fall dung me memba how one time Miss Gervis did siddung eena har house an all of a sudden she hear buddung-buddung and when she look she find herself outa door widout di four wall round har. A dat deh time we find out seh she was a tief. For all dat was missing from people house eena di district was in Miss Gervis house. Nobody coulda figure out why di walls came tumbling down like Jericho. Granny say:
“Di Lord work in mysterious ways.”
Chile, ah tell yuh, is a whole heapa ting me nevah know happen eena Foreign, ma. A whole heapa ting.
