Cherise Francis
Posted Jul 31, 2020
at 11:25am
Paying Homage To My Friend And Sister, Desiree…
Try As I Might, I Can't Quite Recall Exactly, When And How, I Met Miss Dessy...But I Proudly Say, Ours Have Been A Friendship, Spanning Over Six Decades…
That Is Over 60 Years Of Helping And Watching Each Other’s Children Grow; Over 60 Years Of Sharing Our Joys And Our Sorrows; Over 60 Years Of Loving And Caring For Each Other, As Friends And Over 60 Years Of Really Getting To Know Each Other And Supporting Each Other…
Over That 60 Year, That I Have Had The Pleasure Of Getting To Know Desiree Chue, And The Distinct Honour Of Calling Her My Friend, I Have Come To Realize That Indeed, She Has Been A Blessing In My Life And A Guardian-Angel To Myself And My Children In So Many Ways, But All Positive….
That We Became Friends, Speaks To Her Generosity Of Spirit And The Kindness Of Her Soul, As Indeed When We Met, She Was ‘A Lady’, Happily Married To Her Beloved Desmond, And Were Thought Of As Pillars Of The Linstead Business Community, Whilst I Was A Single-Mother, Struggling To Survive And Do The Best For My Children, While Serving As The Office Attendant, At Barclays Bank, On King Street, In Linstead.
Whilst My Lowly Job, Caused Others To Pull Social Rank, Ms Dessie And her Husband, Mr Desmond, Had No Such Airs, And We Became Friends, With Both Ms Dessie And Mr Desmond Not Only Being My Mentors But Mentored My Children As Well, As We Were Both Neighbours On King Street.
Our Journey On Life’s Path Saw Mr Desmond And Ms Dessie Moving To Rosemount And I Moving To Treadways, And As Time Passed And We Changed Addresses, We Never Lost Touch With Each Other And Always Found Ways To Maintain Our Friendship.
This Was A Great Friendship, One That A Hollywood Writer Would Or Could Make Into A Blockbuster, As Indeed, Spanning Nearly 70 Years, It Spoke To Our Determination And Commitment To Each Other. But Above All Else, I Stood In Awe Of Desiree Chue, As Through It All, She Shone Like A Diamond, Whether It Was The Death Of Her Son, Humphrey, Who Died Of Leukemia, As A Very Young Boy; Or Later, The Death Of Her Beloved Desmond, Decades Later.
Here Was My Friend, Small In Stature, But A Giantess, That Handled The Death Of Her Son With Such Grace And Dignity, That It Inspired Me And Impressed Upon Me The Importance Of Not Allowing Personal Grief To Rob You Of Your Will To Continue And To Press On, To Serve Those, Still Depending On You…
And This She Did Again, With The Passing Of Her Husband, As She Became The Working Head Of The Household Having To Take Over The Operations Of The Family Bakery, Manage It And Make It Profitable While Mothering Her Four Daughters And Her Stepsons, At Same Time Being A Pioneering Seamstress And ‘Master Of The Fine Art Of Crocheting...And Over Time, Made Me Many A Dress, The Last Such Gift, Being A Quilt, For My Granddaughter Victoria...
If Ever There Are An Unsung Heroines, Desiree Chue Is One. A Woman Fiercely Loyal And Dedicated To Her Children, Whilst Taking Time To Appreciate And Offer Service To The Children Of Others, Desiree Chue Was The Embodiment Of All That Was Right With The Jamaica We Both Grew Up And Lived In Then, And Highlights What Is Missing From Jamaica Today!
I Have Always Told Miss Dessy, How Much I Admired Her, But I Don't Think She Knew, What An Inspiration She Was For Me…I Was Guided By Her Determination To Do Right By Her Daughters, Even At The Cost Of Her Own Wellbeing And Happiness, As For Her Their Wellbeing Was Her Motivational Force.
She Was Determined That They Should Be Equipped With The Best Education; Be Ladies To Their Core; And Live Their Lives As Exemplars. Today When I Think Of Her Efforts, And I Look At Her Children And Grand-Children, I Tear-up As I Wonder If She Knew How Well, She Succeeded At Educating And Empowering Her Children...And Their Children.
On A Personal Note, I Shall Miss You Miss Dessy, I Already Do. It Was Always Our Plan To Retire Together And Share A Home Where We Could Reminisce And Welcome Our Children And Grand-Children For Holidays And Family Special Occasions, And Even Though, We Did Not Get To Realize That, I Would Like To Share With Your Children And Relatives, That For Me, You Were That Sister, I Never Had, That Mother I Never Knew, And Above All, You Were A Loyal, Trusted Friend And Confidante, That Stood By Me And Helped Make My Path And That Of My Children, An Easier One.
I Recall, When We Were Both Young Mothers, My Son Howard And Your Son Humphrey Were Out In Her Gardens Playing, For Some Strange Reason They Were Using A Shovel, Somehow, And In An Instant, Howard Swung The Shovel, Catching Humphrey Across His Mouth Opening Up A Huge Gash...Whilst I Stood In Horror Of The Blood And Wound And All Set To ‘Beat’ Howard For His Part In The Misadventure, You, Miss Dessy Saw It For What It Clearly Was, An Accident And Instead Of Berating Me And Or Howard, Simply Said “Come Frances, We Have To Get Him To The Hospital”...
I Have Never Forgotten That Practical Response, As It Did Save Howard A Beating (Chuckle) ...But Such Was The Warmth Of Your Soul And Character, That You, Miss Dessy, Never Rushed To Judgement And Always Ready To Exercise Your Wisdom, To Appeal To Our Better Selves.
Forgive Me, If I Am Not Overly Morose And Consumed By Grief With Your Passing, Indeed, While I Am Overcome With Grief, I Chose To Celebrate You, Your Life, Your Contribution And Your Legacy In Your Children, As You Were Truly A Pioneer; A Community And Nation Builder, A Charitable Soul, And You Yourself An Exemplar…
Walk Good, Dear Friend, Until We Meet...Again, Your Friend ‘Frances’..
