THE BOXING DUPPY/GHOST

My mother was a Spiritualist.  She knew Things.  Lots of things, she worked for the University Of The West Indies, as a theatre room technician, but whenever we were ill and that was not very often, she took care of us, no running us to the hospital to see the Doctor. My mother had a co-worker, I never knew her name, I just remember that she was very dark-skinned, with sad-looking eyes and she would visit my mother ever Saturday and sit on the verandah while my mother prepared medicines for her to drink, I was about six or seven years old at the times. Mama (that’s what we called her) would put some green liquid out of a small vial on the womans forehead and the back of her neck, while praying for her, the woman would cry when my mother prayed softly and I remember feeling sad for her. Miss Ruth, one of my mothers friends, a short light-skinned woman who didn’t like children, (we knew, even though my mother didn’t), asked my mother what was wrong with her, (Miss Ruth lived around the road, but would come every evening to sit on our verandah every night until late with my mother), and I remember Mama telling her that  “duppy inna har” (a malevolent spirit possessed her), and that it was placed on her by a fellow co-worker, mama also said that the woman did not have long to live. I felt sad for her and use to suck my thumb and watch on Saturdays when my mother treated her.

One particular Saturday while my mother treated the lady, our neighbor who shared the house with us (it was a tenement yard), Miss Will (remember this name as you will hear a lot about this evil woman in future blogs), brother, who was known as drunka-ready Freddie, ( in Jamaica you are nicknamed according to your occupation, looks or habits), who came into our yard drunk as usual, staggered onto our verandah, when he saw the lady who my mother treated, he in his drunken state pointed at her and screamed  “Sass crise, si de duppy deh!!!”  (Jesus Christ, look at that ghost!!), as soon as he said that he fell to the ground with an attack of fits, writhing on the ground and foaming at the mouth, my mother and all the adults attended to him. The woman died a couple of weeks after that, but I never forgot the story, people said that because drunka-ready Freddie saw the duppy/ghost, it got mad and boxed (slapped) him.   I was sad for the woman, it was from that memory, that I realized the power of witchcraft. Drunkaready Freddie did not know the woman, nor did Miss (evil) Will his sister know what afflicted her, so he must have seen something, and remember what my mother told Miss Ruth?……..what do you all think?? please tell me. Jamaica full ah dem story yah!!