Maroc - NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 13/Sep 08:03

The pursuit of a better quality of life

DARA HEALY “I want to rent a bungalow I want a guitar, banjo A cuatro, piano To practice calyso Yes and I want a pretty Jane The only thing, she must not make me shame.” – Calypsonian Growler, 1938 I took a slow step forward. An unsmiling female immigration officer shouted "next!" I wondered how costly it would be to install lights that indicate when the officer is ready to review your documents. A simple fix that would certainly be more dignified. On the way to the city, I saw lines of unmoving traffic starting around the university in St Augustine. Lines that stretched past the lighthouse in Port of Spain. I thought about the seniors I observed earlier that morning in Barbados, swimming, exercising and enjoying a morning at the beach. Many relaxed in the perfectly still blue-green waters, rinsed off the salt and sand, after which, some of them simply walked home. What would our experience as citizens be like if our leaders prioritised a better quality of life? As calypsonians started to benefit from recordings of their music and global fascination with calypso, they articulated their own vision of success. Misogyny aside, Gordon Rohlehr notes that Growler’s calypso inspired other "bungalow" compositions, reflecting a wider societal desire for a better life. Caresser mocked those who might have been jealous of him, singing “...I got my Bungalow up in St Clair/Am Lord Caresser, the king of hearts/Living among the aristocrats.” But as the elderly people by the beach demonstrated, quality of life is not about material possessions. For instance, we have been asking for flexible work arrangements and decentralisation of government offices for decades. The daily horror of citizens sitting for hours in traffic is intolerable and unnecessary. Connected to this is the failure of the public transport system. In other, less wealthy Caribbean countries, buses provide a safe and steady community service. Instead, in TT we are held hostage by private transport service providers, some of whom pick and choose which passengers to allow into their vehicles, especially during heavy downpours. Thus quality of life is an attitude, a philosophy of living. My own family came from humble economic circumstances, but because they were culturally and spiritually strong, their sense-of-self remained intact. This is not to idealise the past, but to point out the significance of extended family and the sharing of food and possessions. This loss of community is fundamental to the trauma being experienced by so many families today. Western approaches mocked our ancient practices of communal living. They decided that a family was nuclear, that something was wrong if children lived with their parents past a certain age and that an empty nest was normal. As our organisation engages with communities, it is obvious that the separation of families has placed more pressure on parents and guardians when it comes to proper supervision for children, it has forced many young people to move out before they are ready and ultimately, fostered more loneliness amongst seniors. Good governance is critical to this conversation. It is painful to think about all the wealth that was stolen and squandered, “the oil money pass through like a dose ah salts” as they say. From a capital city ignored by successive mayors and abused by the businesses that occupy its real estate, to jail-like schools whose students continue to suffer injustices, we have been plagued by poor leadership for a long time. The WHO aligns quality of life to the culture and value systems in which people live. Older generations describe the importance of community-based culture and for me, our traditional culture is a vibrant representation of the quality of life to which we should aspire. From Warao masquerade, to Gatka, Soumaree and stick-fighting traditions, indigenous forms of cultural expression are an essential aspect of keeping communities grounded. They exemplify values of hard work, attention to detail and preservation of community stories. It is therefore critical that Best Village and Tobago Heritage activities become central to reclaiming our loss of communal life. Our pan is another source of hope, inspiring young people and building community around panyards. As artists create and document our rich cultural legacy through film and other creative forms, we continue to make the best of this space. We all do not need a bungalow in St Clair; a decent quality of life will suffice. Dara E. Healy is a performing artist and founder of the Idakeda Group, a cultural organisation dedicated to empowering communities through the arts. The post The pursuit of a better quality of life appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.