Becoming a Parent
Four pregnancy tests administered in rapid succession confirmed that I was about to have an experience that would change my life forever.
I was pregnant! When I found out that I was going to become a mother I was overcome with emotion. I experienced a combination of fear, sadness, happiness and excitement.
Fear, because let’s face it, who is ever fully prepared to become a parent? You’re now officially an adult with adult responsibilities.
Sadness, because I had just started a new job and thought to myself, “way to impress the boss in your first month!” Thankfully her understanding made my professional life stress free.
* To read more pick up your copy at the nearest bookstore
Fostering A Child
Celebrities like Brangelina and Madonna have made headlines recently with their adoption of babies from remote regions of the world. They have glamourized and brought attention to this arduous process that takes place in some way, shape or form in countries all across the globe. For children who find themselves victims of unfortunate circumstances, foster care may serve as a beacon of hope and provide them with a loving home and better opportunities. For adults who genuinely want a child or more children, foster care allows them the chance to experience parenthood and the joy of having a child.
Adoption grants a safe haven and secure and nurturing environment to children, who may have been orphaned or abandoned by their biological parents, and it also awards those who want to be parents with the love of child and the promise of a family. In many cases throughout Jamaica and the Caribbean, children are raised by relatives and friends when their parents or family are unable to care for them. This informal type of child-rearing is quite common, but the more formal legal process of adoption is what is considered to be Foster Care.
* To read more pick up your copy at the nearest bookstore
Ode to my Mothers…
Nothing could have prepared me for this. When I found out that I was pregnant with my son, I thought, okay, I can handle this. Boy was I wrong! Do you know when I found out I was wrong? In birthing and child care classes. Oh, I knew how to put on a diaper and hold a baby, that’s the easy part. I had no clue how to wash a newborn’s hair, much less give it a bath. How do you clean the umbilical cord, clip finger and toenails, clean ears? Simple right? Ha! For all of you who have children and are reading this article, you are probably thinking that the things I am mentioning are only the tip of the iceberg. Well, you are right!
There is colic, spit-up, teething, constipation, and yellow, runny poo; rashes (praise God for diaper cream), fussy babies, sickly babies and greedy babies who don’t give sore breasts a break. There are those angels who won’t sleep at night, those who need to be entertained, and some that are angels sent from above (those lucky parents who have them, I hear you should be very afraid, be very afraid when puberty rears its head). There are times that for a brief moment, very brief, you feel like giving away those blessed bundles of joy, but you are quickly brought back to earth by an endearing smile or a drooly kiss.
With the birth of my son something happened that I never expected… I fell in love with my mother.
* To read more pick up your copy at the nearest bookstore
Stirring the Pot
–
Local Chefs Heat Up the Kitchen!
We all wished we had ‘mad’ culinary skills to throw down in the kitchen – dishes to make the eyes boggle, the nostril flare and the palate dance. Most of us are fairly competent, while some of us still burn hot water. But there is a uniquely gifted sect, blessed with creative minds and nimble fingers that can turn simple food into delicious masterpieces, that makes even the most discerning and picky eater salivate just by sight.
Buzzz Magazine caught up with four local chefs who are masters of the kitchen and creators of their own cuisine. Damian Coburn out of Sandals Montego Bay, Christopher Channer from Courtleigh Hotel in Kingston, Oji Jaja – caterer extraordinaire and veteran chef, author and ‘foodie’ Virginia Burke, who regards cooking as her edible canvas.
Christopher Channer
Inspired by his grandmother to enter the culinary arts, Christopher Channer is an award wining chef who has made a name for himself serving dishes designed to delight the taste buds on every single occasion. A thirteen year veteran of the culinary arts, Channer is the Senior Sous Chef at the Courtleigh Hotel and Suites in New Kingston where he creates magic in the kitchen daily. A past student of Papine Secondary, Boys’ Town Vocational Centre and the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), he has over the years worked alongside an impressive number of renowned chefs such as Norma Shirley, where he gleaned ideas and converted them into creations to which he always adds his own finishing touches.
Virginia Burke
The lone female in our line-up is the Managing Director of Walkerswood Marketing Limited, a division of Walkerswood Caribbean Foods. A lover of robust flavours of the Caribbean, Virginia Burke is on a mission to take Caribbean foods to the four corners of the world. A featured guest cook on the Food Network’s ‘Sara’s Secrets’ as well as the day time ABC programme ‘Live with Regis & Kelly’, Burke is a contributor to Bon Appetit and Chile Pepper Magazines as well as a founder of ‘Bamboula’, a Caribbean restaurant in Brixton, London where she shares her passion for everything Caribbean with anyone willing to experiment outside of their normal everyday dishes.
Damian Coburn
Damian Coburn began his love affair with cooking at a fairly young age. For this Level One Chef at Sandals Montego Bay, his journey involved working his way up the ladder with hard work and determination. “I love cooking but I actually did not start out as a chef as I worked first as a bus boy, a waiter and a bartender and so I gained a variety of knowledge along the way which I feel makes me even more well-rounded for my passion.”
Oji Jaja
Though his formal entry in the world of culinary arts began at the Ritz Carlton Rose Hall Hotel as a level 3 cook, it was Oji Jaja’s early days in his family kitchen with his father at the tender age of six where his passion actually blossomed. From Ritz Carlton Montego Bay he was transferred to the Ritz Carlton in Naples, Florida where his creativity and leadership skills were rewarded with several promotions culminating in the post of Food and Beverage supervisor.
* To read more pick up your copy at the nearest bookstore
Wassi Art
Another source quotes, the word “wassi” as old Jamaican patois, meaning that something is especially first rate, which would probably explain how Wassi Art got its name. The company is definitely an “unexpected treasure chest” for art collectors and visitors alike. The studio which produces some of the most unusual and intricately designed pottery rests just outside of Fern Gully, nearby the peaceful resort town of Ocho Rios, Jamaica.
In 1990, Wassi Art was borne, beginning with three intuitive artisans. Now fifteen years later, Wassi Art Designs adorn homes worldwide.
Founded by Robert and Terri Lee, Wassi Art’s reputation now precedes them, as the designs are now renowned across the globe for their creativity as well as their world class quality. What once began as a hobby business of founder Terri Lee has now evolved into a mega cultural enterprise. Terri who hails from a family rich in art heritage and creativity partnered with her husband Robert, a graphic artist and entrepreneur, to build the company which emerged in 1990.
* To read more pick up your copy at the nearest bookstore
Making Peace with the In-laws
Fathers-in-law are generally perceived as being more easy-going; long as you take care of his little angel, he’s fine. But, push father’s button and you might find yourself staring down the barrel of a shotgun wedding, or running for your life with a machete flying through the air behind you. But, some fathers find it hard to let go. The wedding ceremony may symbolize his handing over of his precious daughter, but it’s not easy to accept that he’s no longer the boss.
Which woman alive can live up to the scrutiny of her spouse’s mother? Is this house clean enough? Are the children well-mannered enough? We have a strong history of meddling in-laws. But as bad as they may seem, perhaps at the heart of things in-laws are just trying to look out for the good of their loved one. Indeed, many in-laws have been saving graces, whisking away their daughter or sister in the nick of time before she perishes from abuse; some in-laws have actually even rescued relationships that were on the brink of falling apart, by being impartial advisors and referees.
Thirty-two year old Stephney had a good relationship with her fiancé’s mother, until a couple months ago. Stephney’s mother-in-law invited her to Cayman to help out in her business, but as she found out later, Stephney ended up bending backwards for this lady.
* To read more pick up your copy at the nearest bookstore
Abortion
–
Life’s Irresolvable Issue
The abortion debate rages in Jamaica, where an appointed Abortion Policy Advisory Group (APAG) tabled a report in Parliament that calls for a rethinking of the Termination of Pregnancy Acts (Abortion law), to permit legal abortions. The APAG can be separated from the unabashed pro-abortionists lobby that advocates for the woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy given whatever circumstances. But, the loudest and unanimous voice is trumpeted from the pulpits.
The Termination of Pregnancy Act prohibits abortion other than for medical reasons, and the APAG recommendations consider the high and alarming incidences of botched abortions taking place across the island, and its cost to the health sector.
In Parliament, Father Richard HoLung, head of Brothers of the Poor, described abortion as a “barbaric and evil act” while calling on the government to resist the temptation of “blood money” from European Union and US agencies in exchange for legalizing abortion. Other church leaders have added their support to pro-life, but in a departure from most of Christendom the United Church of Jamaica and The Cayman Island, through its minister Rev. Dr. Marjorie Lewis, says it supports conditional abortion.
* To read more pick up your copy at the nearest bookstore
