Cocoa Butter and Tonka Beans (standard:travel stories, 931 words)
Author: Juggernaut	Added: May 08 2011	Views/Reads: 3501/1936	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
A short story about an old and wiry woman living along on a small Cocoa Plantation on an island.

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story

though Juggernaut liked ‘ Du Maurier' brand for its light taste. When 
it comes to cricket, she was discriminatory in the sense she loved only 
Indian team though she has a soft spot for Pakistani team; she always 
talked about old time Indian Cricket players like Nari Contractor and 
how he got hurt bad from a fast ball  bowled by famous West Indian 
bowler Charlie Griffith. Among Cricketers' she loved Rohan Kanhai from 
Guyana. “He can bat you know, made big scores in test matches,” “I 
understand he likes to drink, we Indians like to drink rum, nah,” she 
said looking at the ‘Old Oak' rum bottle, half empty.  Juggernaut drank 
more than his share.  Smoking Broadway cigarette and drinking rum went 
hand in hand; smoking was a catalyst for drinking. 

“You listen to calypso all the time,” “for an Indian you are different,”
said Begum watching Juggernaut listening to calypso music on radio. 

“Yeah, I love calypso.” 

“Whom you like?” 

“Sparrow, Kitchener and Shadow,” “once I am done with studies I start
writing calypso.” 

“What you write about?” 

“About everything.” 

“You go write and let me hear when you done writing,” 

“I may write about cocoa butter and tonka beans, and curry chicken.” 

“You are a saga boy now,” “you never go back home, I know that,” said
Begum looking at Juggernaut making dance movements to loud calypso 
music. 

Drinking hot chocolate milk brings back memories of wiry old Begum with
a head scarf, a cigarette dangling from her mouth and a machete in her 
hand ready to work at any time of the day. 


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