Chapter 7: Zumba Mami
All that I am, or hope to be I owe to my angel
mother.” -Abraham Lincoln
Jamarcus
Demont threw Lucy a peace sign as he entered the energetic room full of Zumba
dancers. Lucy thought he was running
late for his observation but what she didn’t know was that he had been watching
her from the exterior window the whole time.
Apparently he liked what he saw. Jamarcus
wasn’t the type of guy to join in on dancing so he just sat on the floor at the
back of the room watching Lucy instruct the remainder of her class. Next song on the playlist was Zumba Mami…
“Chica
rica que te pasa
Chica hermosa, quien tu llamas
Voy pal party come on mami”
Chica hermosa, quien tu llamas
Voy pal party come on mami”
Jamarcus had no
idea what the Spanish lyrics meant but he loved the choreography. Ironically, had he known the translation, he
would have been listening to his own theme song from several years ago. Loosely translated it meant hey
rich/delicious girl…whats up? Beautiful
girl, who do you call? I’m going to
party, come on hot girl. Jamarcus had
learned from a young age to appreciate both the mystique and physique of
women. He had grown up on the beautiful
beaches of Montego Bay, Jamaica until an opportunity to study business in
Miami, Florida was presented to him. Little
did he know that the University of Miami was a notorious party school. Jamarcus’ college conquests made Danielle’s
look like child’s play. Jamarcus did
well in school but only because of his one- on-one smokin’ hot Cuban tutor
Maria. Jamarcus wasn’t just in the party
scene…he was the party scene. But all of
that had changed, and the only words he could make out in the song were “Zumba
Mami” which made him think of his mother.
He thought back to several years ago…
His
robust Jamaican chuckle made the girls go crazy. Or was it his extremely ripped abs and crazy,
larger than life biceps that got the chicks to fall all around him? Jamarcus was flattered by the bikini clad
women running around Miami. He couldn’t
figure out why so many women flocked to him but he really didn’t care
either. He became addicted to the night
club scene so much that his grades started slipping. He was boozing it up more than he intended
and it was affecting his grades. Back
home on the island, his parents had become frustrated with his behavior and
begged him to please come home. Jamarcus
continued distancing himself from his family by participating in all sorts of
frivolous and idle fraternity-like activities.
He had started illegal gambling and found out he was much better at it
than he thought he would be. Jamarcus
always had money to spare and his parents knew that he could afford to fly home
at anytime. They also knew it would take
a miracle for him to come home any time soon.
Fortunately,
tragic circumstances often have a way of turning into miracles. One night as Jamarcus was drinking it up at
the night club with his Cuban tutor, his cell phone vibrated and he saw the
caller ID of his dad. He ignored the
call but soon his phone was literally vibrating off the bar. His brother was texting him to please call
home, his uncle was calling and leaving tons of messages, all of which Jamarcus
was ignoring, and his nephew was trying to facetime him. The bar was too loud to have taken the calls
but as soon as he got home he decided to call home and see what was going
on.
His dad answered on the
first ring and in his thick Jamaican accent said, “Boy, ya need to come home right
now! It’s yo mami…she be dying”.
“Dad, that’s not funny”
replied Jamarcus.
“Duz it sound like I am
jokin’?” his dad said sternly.
“Nah…I be home on de
next flight papa.”
Jamarcus
flew home the next morning to find his mom languishing in her bed. She had contracted Dengue Fever from a
mosquito bite. Many family members had
contracted Dengue Fever throughout his lifetime but Jamarcus had never seen a
case like this. His mom’s gums and nose
had been bleeding and her entire face had purple bruises like she had just been
beat up by a baseball bat. Jamarcus
loved his mami and it pained him to see her lying there like that. The doctor came in and explained to the
family that a life-threatening complication called dengue hemorrhagic fever had
overtaken this sweet woman. Tashina
Demont lay dying right in front of their eyes.
“Jamarcus, is at you my
boy?”
“Yes mami, I done come
for ya. Please don’t ya die on me,
mami. I need ya somethin’ fierce right
now.”
“Ya done messed up yo
life boy? The partying and women? Hows that workin’ for ya Jamarcus?”
“I know mami… I don’t
know how it got so out of control. My
grades are atrocious.”
“Never mind that right
now. Come closer to me son. I need to tell ya somethi’ before I go.”
“Where are ya going
mami?”
“Ah boy, tis time for
me to leave this mortal existence. The
pain is excruciatin’…I don’t know how much more I can handle.”
“Don’t leave me mami!”
“Jamarcus, ever since
you were a young boy I knew you were destined for great things. Ya got off track this year but it is never
too late to come back. You were always
taught to follow your dreams. Yes, you
are in college but you are not getting educated my boy. Don’t waste your time with the booze and the
girls. You need to buckle down and get
your degree so you can make something of yourself. Ya can’t do it alone though. Ya need God in your life to succeed. When is the last time you gone to church?”
“Oh mami, tis been
ages.” Tashina started to cough. “I will stay right here by your side as long
as you need. I will go to church, I will
find God, I will make something of myself.
I promise.”
At this point, both his
papa and older brother Darrius had entered the room. All assembled by mami Demont’s bedside, felt
a sacredness in the room. Jamarcus had
huge alligator tears rolling down his face.
His lips quivered as his mom spoke one last time.
“I am in too much agony
wit this fever. Tis time for me to be
goin’. Never forget how important family
is. Help each other, stay close to each other. Jamarcus, do not forget, let God decide your
destiny. Everythin’ happens for a
reason. You are meant for great things!”
Papa Demont gently
caressed his wife’s hand. She looked
longingly into his eyes, kissed the hand gently caressing her own, and she was
gone. The moment was permanently etched
in Jamarcus’ soul. How one person could
show so much love without words amazed him.
None of the girls he was partying with had ever looked at him that
way. He never knew what he was missing
until he saw that last look from his mami to his papa. Jamarcus could not handle the emotions of the
day and so he ran on his strong swift legs to his favorite cove at the beach
next to the gazebo by the shore. His
mami and papi had taken him to this gazebo for picnics on many occasions when
he was younger. Those were such happy
days. He wondered if there would ever be
any happy days ahead of him. His soul
felt racked with guilt for all the foolish decisions he had made after leaving
the comfort and security of his loving home.
He wasn’t sure how his life had gotten so out of control. He reached into his pocket for his little
brown bottle of liquor. He kept it in
there just in case. He held the bottle
and slowly opened the lid. He closed his
eyes and inhaled the alcohol for the last time.
Yes, he was tempted to take one last sip before trying to be sober but
all he could think of was his mom’s last dying words. Rather than empty the contents into his
mouth, Jamarcus emptied the contents in the sand. As he watched the last puddle be sucked up by
the sand mound, he cried out and fell to his knees.
Jamarcus knelt down behind
the gazebo feeling entirely alone. He
let out in anguished cry as he felt the weight of all his sins upon him. He felt the sludge of immorality in his soul,
he felt the darkness of addiction in his spirit, and he felt the covetous greed
of gambling in his heart. He had let his
mom down in a very big way. His soul
cried out in anguish to the God his mother had taught him about as a
child. He had grown up in a Christian
home yet somehow missed out on the fundamental doctrinal truths that would lead
him to happiness. His mami had been one
of the most cheerful and service oriented people he had ever met. His dad too was full of honesty and
integrity. What had happened to
him? Jamarcus wanted to change. He wanted a fresh start. But how?
“Oh God, help me
please! Forgive me God. I have brought dishonor to my family for the
last time. Help me be sober, help me be
clean, help me to glory in thee instead of money. I want to change!” He bowed his head and
sobbed. “Are you listening God? I am so sorry! Please take this from me!” Jamarcus cried himself to sleep in the
sand. When he awoke, the sun was setting
and he felt a sweeping feeling of calm come over him. He stood up and brushed the sand off his
clothes. As he looked at the pink and
purple hues brush across the sky he had an overwhelming feeling that he would
somehow be alright. God did hear him and
as he looked at his footprints below him, he knew he would never walk
alone.
The funeral services were
modest yet beautiful. Jamarcus had
always known his mami was well respected in the community but he and his family
were not prepared for the outpouring of love and well wishes that spilled into
their home for the next week. Jamarcus
hesitatingly boarded his flight back to Miami after saying a sad farewell to
his mourning father. He had enjoyed
spending a few days with his family but the time had come for Jamarcus to head
back to college. As his papa was
dropping him off at the airport, he said, “Jamarcus, please remember your
mami’s dyin’ words. Find God and he will
do a miracle in your life. Wherever life
takes you, remember how much you are loved.
Now go after your dreams boy.
Don’t let anythin’ stop ya!”
Jamarcus hugged his
papa one last time and said, “Papa, don’t worry about a thing. I promise I will clean up my act. I promised mami on her deathbed to find God…I
intend to keep my promise. I don’t know
how to begin to clean up the mess I have made but I intend to start right away.” And with that, Jamarcus left his beloved
Jamaica back to the land of opportunity.
…Lucy ended the song with an energetic cumbia and
push circles and smiled over at the new owner of the club who looked very lost
in his own thoughts.
Vibe Tribe. Zumba Mami. Rec. 16 Oct. 2009. Zumba Fitness, 2009.
No comments:
Post a Comment