BEING a “city girl”, it never once occurred to Bobby Persaud that she would be contented with the life of being a farmer’s wife while residing at Friendship, East Bank Demerara. She is originally from Georgetown, but when she got married she relocated to Friendship Village 20 years ago and there she now enjoys a quiet, peaceful life so much, so she is self-sufficient. The mother of four stated that they make their living through farming and they have a plot in the backlands of Garden of Eden, also on the East Bank of Demerara, planting cash crops, selling it right from their home.

At their home on the Friendship Public Road they rear sheep, chickens and ducks and they have cultivated every space in their yard to grow food. Persaud related that they do not have any employees because they do the work themselves and she is very supportive of her husband. With two school-age children, they also assist and every Saturday they will go to the farm and get their produce which they sell to neighbours and other villagers.

She told the Pepperpot Magazine that when the Diamond and La Bonne Intention (LBI) sugar estates were closed, her husband was out of a job. They had a plot and they used to harvest sugar cane and they supplied their sugar cane to the estates to earn. After he was on the breadline, he became a farmer since it was easy to transition, being the son of a farmer and farming has been in their family for generations. Rattan Persaud has been a farmer for more than 40 years and has 25 acres of land, especially for cash crops.

On his farm he has 12 dogs to keep watch for intruders, but a jaguar has killed nine of his cows to date. He has more than 30 years of driving experience and he uses his mini-bus to transport his produce from his farm to his home. Their 19-year-old son is an air-condition technician at Banks DIH, while their 21-year-old son is a mechanic. The girls are still in school and they would visit the farm to go fishing and to get out of the house, since schools have been closed for months now due to the pandemic.

Persaud told the Pepperpot Magazine that even in his yard he plants sweet peppers, peppers, calalloo, pak choi, boulangers, cucumbers and tomatoes, among other vegetables just for the kitchen and they would often share with neighbours. “We try to be self-sufficient. I would cut the branches off the coconut trees and make pointer brooms for the home and we use everything we plant, so we don’t have to buy fruits and vegetables and we rear our own livestock,” Bobby Persaud said. The Persauds are very giving people and whatever they have from their garden and farm, they would share with neighbours so whatever the neighbours have they would get in return. This family is very pleased with their life with challenges and all but being farmers they are simple people, who are making use of what they have to earn.

Fat Man and Sons Shop

The Pepperpot Magazine met Rajnauth James who has a shop in the village, but due to the pandemic, business has slowed a bit. The 63-year-old reported that he is originally from Sister’s Village, West Bank Demerara and relocated when his mother-in-law was ailing. She, however, passed away and he bought a piece of land, constructed a house and has been residing at Friendship Village for the past 20 years. The father of three added that the place has seen some development but drainage and irrigation remains an issue because the place is often inundated when it rains.

The pensioner disclosed that he was a cane-cutter attached to the Diamond Estate and then he moved up to being a security guard, after which he retired and opened up a small business, a shop, at his home. James stated that the street was paved and they are happy for that because it was once a muddy dam. He related that from time to time the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) would visit and clear the canals and trenches which is in an overgrown state presently. “I does do my part in cleaning the parapet and my yard and I had to build up my place due to the flooding and is just me and my wife, Savitri and we have a quiet life as elders,” he said. James is the proprietor of Fat Man and Sons Shop in the Village and one of his three sons has a sound system which he plays at functions and other family gatherings.