Mamaguy

If any of those guys was really his nephew was not revealed, but my imagination took flight and went through all sorts of twists and turns until I wrote a play which I called Mamaguy. Here’s the story in a nutshell.

Lennox decided to leave his mother’s home and live “batche” so he could get “more woman.” He had to share the same rooms with an old “hard up” friend, Rupert, who was out of a job. To make matters worse, Lennox had also lost his job.

Just when Rupert was thinking of getting another job, Lennox’s younger sister Virgie arrived on the scene to tell Lennox that Uncle Gavin from the States, had arrived in Trinidad and would visit him shortly.

“He gave Ma a big raise and I sure he’ll give you money like peas,” Virgie related excitedly. Lennox was overjoyed but only for a moment for he remembered he had written the Uncle telling him how he was married, had a baby boy, lost his job and was “catching his nennen.” The uncle then started to send him a monthly allowance which was barely enough to pay the rent and keep them going.

“Now when he come, he won’t see no wife and child,” Virgie exclaimed. Rupert suggested that Lennox should ask the neighbour’s daughter, Myrtle to pretend to be his wife. Lennox returned stating that Myrtle wanted to come but her mother did not want her to get involved. Rupert and Virgie gave up all hope.

Suddenly, Lennox shouted, “I have a great idea! We go mamaguy he skin! You Rupert, you go pose as my wife. You and Virgie bout the same size. Put on her dress and she could put on some of my clothes and hide in the bedroom.”

Rupert was infuriated. “What about my hard face, my hard calves, the hair on my head and my voice. The man is not a fool. He bound to find out,” he objected forcefully. When Lennox promised him half of the money, Rupert eventually agreed half-heartedly.

Uncle Gavin arrived. Lennox started to flatter him saying how he looked “real super” but Gavin asked to see the wife. Lennox quickly explained that “Debbie” had the flu and her voice was husky. Dressed in Virgie’s clothes, with her colourful headtie, “Debbie” entered but was unprepared for Gavin’s kisses and kept evading him.

When Gavin was told the baby was sleeping, to their surprise, he replied “I love to see a baby asleep. It is the prettiest thing in the world,” and headed for the bedroom. “Debbie” had to say, “Uncle, you just come from the dew.”

“Okay, as you say. You know the good old Trini custom. I just wanted to leave a ten spot with the kid,” Uncle Gavin said. Immediately, “Debbie” took the money and left. Finding her behaviour unusually strange for a woman, Gavin asked Lennox if she was alright. Lennox replied that it was really “hard work and worry that had her looking so beaten up and ugly.”

As Gavin was about to write out a cheque for Lennox, Myrtle came in pretending to be his wife, saying that she had just come from the grocery. Thinking quickly, Lennox managed to get her to leave much to the Uncle’s bewilderment. Lennox gave the Uncle a cock-and-bull explanation. Gavin wrote out a cheque, placed it in Lennox’s breast pocked and departed.

Now Rupert, Virgie and later Myrtle converged on Lennox, demanding their share of the money as he promised each one half of whatever he received. It was then discovered that Gavin had written a crossed cheque stating, “Pay to the order of Mrs Debbie Roach, the sum of one thousand dollars.” Everyone was flabbergasted as “Debbie Roach” did not exist. Lennox cried out, “We ent get no money. He mamaguy we!”