Lloyd G. Francis's Blog

Jamaican Herbal Remedies.

The following is a guest post that I wrote for Plain Talk Bad Manners Book Blog about Jamaican folk healing. You can see the original post here:

http://www.plaintalkbm.com/folk-remedies/

Interesting story

Smoke from mosquito coils curled up from the four corners of the room, creating a pall of smoke that hung over Maude Rainford, laying in bed, covered with sweat and surrounded by people. She was in labor with her fifth child. She was muttering about this being her last child. “I had my first in 1918 an’ now is 1929 an is done me ahhh––” The pain would take her breath away, stopping her in mid-syllable. The contractions came quickly as the sun was setting. Robert was born as the darkness descended upon Beeston Street in Kingston where they lived. There was joy in the house, but it was short lived. Something was seriously wrong.

Robert could not open his eyes. They seemed glued shut. Maude immediately wanted to use a country remedy, but her older sister talked her into taking the boy to the doctor. Maude was skeptical. What did they have at Kingston Public Hospital that she didn’t have? She did not trust their medicine. It took hours of persuasion until she relented. Two days later she took Robert to the hospital.

Fifteen minutes later, Maude Rainford was headed home with fire in her eyes, cradling her precious cargo. While at the hospital a nurse nearly dropped the infant, causing Maude to lose what little faith she had in her decision to bring her infant son to the hospital. She walked home, knowing just what she was going to do.

Maude went out to the Castor Bush growing outside and picked some beans and made castor oil by cooking it. You really have to know what you are doing because ricin is found in the castor bean and you have to know how to draw it off. She added the oil to a quarter pound of green marijuana with water in a pot and slow simmered the concoction for hours. Then after straining it, she let it cool off. Each morning she washed the baby’s eyes with this green tinted wash. In one week, Robert’s eyes had opened up. He could see. Everyone rejoiced.

Maude Rainford did not trust western medicine. In general, Jamaicans look upon the medical establishment with suspicion. They prefer folk remedies. For my grandmother, who was Maude Rainford, her suspicions were confirmed when just five years later, her eldest daughter, Alma, was killed by an accidental overdose at Kingston Public Hospital because they gave Alma an injection meant for the patient in the bed next to hers.

Whenever anyone got ill, or felt under the weather, my grandmother, known as DearMa had a remedy. In Kingston she was a well known healer. Her knowledge came from the town of Scotts Hall in central Jamaica. This is an area where Maroons live. Maroons are descendants of Africans who fought plantation owners and escaped the British sugar plantation system. Many of their traditions go directly back to Africa. Scotts Hall was a farming community in 1899 and it still is today. One of the traditions that are extremely strong is the knowledge of so-called folk medicine.

Jamaican folk medicine consists of baths, salves, and teas.

The bush bath is perhaps the most interesting. Seated above a tub filled with very hot water you are covered with blankets. Slowly the rising steam causes perspiration and the breathing in of the steam produces very good results for asthma, pollen and dust allergies. More aromatic plants are used for baths: Fever Grass, Jack-in-the-Bush, Mint, Sage, and Soursop leaves among others. There are also baths for skin maladies as well.

Strangest of all are the folk names for the various plants that are used. For example let’s take Dandelion. You say that word Dandelion and many people understand what you’re talking about. But in Jamaica one name for such a useful plant is not enough. No, in Jamaica, it’s know by three names: Piss-a-Bed, Wild Coffee, and Stinking Weed. The Castor Oil Shrub that grew in Maude’s back yard was her source of castor oil. It’s also known as Oil Nut. There is a song that lists many of the well known herbs used medicinally in Jamaica:

“She had Man Piaba, Woman Piaba

Tom Tom Fall Back and Lemon Grass,

Minnie Root, Gully Root, Granny Backbone,

Dead Man Git Up and Live On turro,

Coolie Bitter and Gorina Bush and old

Compellance Weed, Sweet Broom,

Cow Tongue, Granny Scratch Scratch,

Belly Pusherm and Guzu Weed.”

Then there’s the plants that are good for things other than eating, like the chew stick. Chew stick is made from a vine that grows on trees in the forests of Jamaica. It is also found in Africa. It is well known to treat sores and ulcers in the mouth but it is used primarily as a replacement for the toothbrush. After cutting the vines down, they cut them into hand sized lengths and then soak them in water and fray the end. You use the end to brush your teeth and massage the gums. This vine, used in Africa since ancient times was once a staple in Jamaica. Today most people don’t use chew sticks any more, but some still do in the countryside.

Of course most people associate Jamaica with marijuana, or as Jamaicans call it: ganja. Besides the obvious use, smoking it, the plant is very useful in tinctures and salves. Each time I go to Jamaica the first thing I do is purchase a bottle of white rum. I purchase Jamaican Allspice, known as Pimento, and I get freshly cut ganja. I put it all in the bottle, and bury it for two weeks. Unearthed, the concoction is a dark green color. I decant it into another rum bottle and I bring it home. I only use it when I have the flu or a cold. Upon drinking a tiny capful, maybe a quarter of a shot glass, your nose will clear and the body aches and discomfort disappear. It’s a miraculous analgesic, but caution! Drinking a lot of it is a psychedelic experience. It’s also difficult to take the overpowering allspice. It’s like horseradish, clearing the nose of congestion.

But there is one central herb used for many maladies and it is known as Cerasee or scientifically its known as Momordica charantia. Second only to ganja in its popularity, Cerasee is a weed that grows everywhere in Jamaica. It is incredibly bitter, but for stomach maladies it’s miraculous. My mother used to have Maude send her Cerasee which she used in baths for my eczema when I was young.

The culture of folk medicine in Jamaica is rich. Another of the traditions in folk medicine there is the tradition of making roots tonic. But to learn more about that, I’m going to suggest you read a novel, From Rum To Roots. There is too much detail that I just could never do it justice here…

The #RumToRoots Blog Express!

Lot’s of great things are happening around the story of Daisy and Linton. From Rum To Roots is right now being paraded around cyberspace on a book-blog tour hosted by Ashley LaMar of Closed The Cover Books. Ashley has really helped me top get the word out and right now you can go to her site and see each and every stop on the tour.

Plus I have been guest bloggin for Ashley and, seeing as how most of my creative juice has not been present on the blog for a while, I thought I could make it up to you guys by linking right here to a guest post I did for #CTCBooks here. There are more blog post coming so stay tuned.

On October 24, 2013 I will be reading from the novel at the COPUS artists showcase. Details are coming and I will tweet them and post them on Facebook.

Other than that, I’m just enjoying October sunshine…. #RumToRoots

Autumn’s Arrival

It’s September and spring is not in the air in San Francisco. We’ve been experiencing a heatwave, mountains on fires to the east, and in the Haight-Ashbury the leaves never turn on the trees. It’s been freezing all summer, and soon as it ends, without fail, summer comes. Somethings never change. But there is one thing, From Rum To Roots is on the move.

With the arrival of the autumn reading season I am arranging to have a blog tour all over the internet with the book being reviewed by book bloggers all over the world. This morning I was interviewed by K.C. Finn for Stark Raven Mad Radio http://starkravenmadradio.blogspot.com/ and we had quite a conversation. It will be broadcast on or around November 2, 2013.

Starting on October 12, all through November 14 From Rum To Roots will be reviewed by different book bloggers. So stay tuned. The leaves are turning on the east coast now. It’s time to find a book to keep your company while the shadows grow longer and linger as we head into the wintertime.

Who exactly is African American?

How do we define the African American story?

The BISAC Subject Headings List, also known as the BISAC Subject Codes List, is a standard used by many companies throughout the supply chain to categorize books, making easier to find. My novel From Rum To Roots was given a BISAC code that designated it to be African American Historical Fiction.

From Rum to Roots was released as a physical book on August 6, 2013. The e-book was released to Kindle six days later, on August 12.

Immediately upon its release sales were brisk. Over three days the book went from number 30 on the best seller list for AA Hist. Fiction to 13 on the list.

A screenshot of where From Rum To Roots appeared before it was removed.

On Sunday morning I could hardly believe what I was seeing. From Rum To Roots was ranked at number 10 on the best selling list for African American Historical Fiction. Amongst new releases it was number three!

I was thrilled. Everything pointed to a great launch. My wife, Leanne went through the top ten books and read their synopsis. Every story in the top ten were slave stories. Only mine was a story about African Americans that were naturalized citizens starting an African American family, from scratch.

Then at 11:45 am my novel disappeared from sight.

The book was still for sale, but the label of historical fiction had been removed. Along with them taking that away someone or something had stripped my novel of its African American label. It was now simply literary fiction.

I was beyond shocked. I was angry. The book was reaching a critical stage on the list where many people were buying it because it was so high on the list. But there was no one to speak to. I wrote a letter to Amazon. I tweeted, and posted on Facebook.

And then a miracle happened.

A good friend put me in touch with the Director of Kindle Content, Brenda Spoonmore. She has been kind enough to give my problem special attention and is working to resolve the issue. The issue is this: What exactly is historical fiction for African Americans? Does it include the Jamaican waves of immigrants? Does it include people like Marcus Garvey? Colin Powells parents were much like the protagonists in my novel, Jamaicans seeking a better opportunity and finding it in the United States.

This story, of two individuals who come to America with a secret that helps them to succeed is uniquely American. The fact that they are black and are emerging out of the African Diaspora makes the story more attractive, indeed, the story is breaking new literary ground. Books like The Help and movies like The Butler aren’t exactly slave narratives but quite frankly they don’t really describe my experience or my family’s.

I grew up as a child believing that all black Americans spoke patois. I thought they all ate green banana, ackee and saltfish, and oxtail with their turkey on Thanksgiving. I grew up as an African American steeped in the culture of Jamaica. It is this experience I want to bring to light and I am hoping that Amazon will place From Rum To Roots back where it belongs in the African American Historical Fiction category. By taking it’s place in that list it will broaden the discussion about who is African American.

How Sweet It Is…

The way I’m feeling right now, reminds me of a line from the Jackie Gleason show in the 1960′s on CBS. With a big grin he used to exclaim, “Oh, how SWEET IT IS!”

Today the electronic version of my debut novel From Rum To Roots went on sale on Amazon. Last night, our second Goodreads book giveaway concluded and we gave away two books out of a field of 250 entries. This evening, I was informed by John Orr, that the book review on his site Triviana has been generating a lot of hits.

We are overjoyed here at Marway Publishing. When Leanne and I decided in February to publish this novel ourselves we had no idea how much work we were taking on. However after walking down this very long road, we are amazed by the interest that has been shown towards the book.

From Rum To Roots was not written with profit in mind. Writing it was an intense personal experience, I sought to expel deep seated demons that had plagued me for most of my life. The idea crossed my mind four years before I started to write the book. I had to bear witness to my parents passing away in order to prepare myself to tell this tale. Mortality remained a fixture of my imagination until my father died. It was a seminal moment. Where would I go from here?

For twenty years I had defined myself as a photographer, a man of few words, and broad vistas. I had always loved the written word, so long as it was “written” by someone else. I hated to sit down to write. I felt like this due to the extreme demands that were made upon me when I was just a child and my parents would force me to write over and over again, making me learn the basics of grammar, spelling, and essay writing. I hated it.

Yet, I loved to read. Books were my constant companion, history, novels, just about anything I could get my hands on.

Despite working for newspapers for two decades, I worked for union shops, we were not allowed to write and reporters were not allowed to photograph.

After my parents passed away, I went to work in Washington DC where I was sent to Iraq many times. After some time I could not go on. I retired and moved back to California. Nothing was the same. I was different. Photography no longer held my attention as it once did. Something deeper and far more complex wanted to surface. It was hard to believe. I felt called to write.

This calling had actually revealed itself to me earlier when I was living in Arlington Virginia. I decided at that time to take some advice I had read from Stephen King. “The most important writing is reading,” King had said in an interview with some magazine. I took what he said to heart and decided I had to prepare myself to write by reading strategically.

You’re probably wondering what I meant by strategic. It’s really hard to say, but what I proceeded to do was to check out every book written by Graham Greene and read it. From Brighton Rock To The End of The Affair and finishing with A Burnt out Case. From there I turned my attention to the great trilogy USA by John Dos Passos. I started to read the Paris Review interviews. I must say that the Interviews are better than ANY CREATIVE WRITING COURSE YOU CAN TAKE. Save your money and check out the magazines online. You can read every interview that the Paris Review has ever done. God bless Lorin Stein.

Only after a year of intense daily reading did I decide to begin sketching what became From Rum To Roots. The sketching phase lasted a year until one day on May 7, 2007 I sat down and wrote a simple character sketch involving a young 18 year old girl named Daisy in a train station. It eventually became part of chapter two in From Rum To Roots.

It’s actually been a sweet six years.

Time to Take The Road Less Traveled.

It’s time to trod the path less traveled

They’re Here!

The books arrived at 5:00 PM today, too late to ship, but it was exciting nevertheless.

I’m going to be busy over the next couple days, shipping your orders to you and signing books for those who ordered them.

A lightness of being

Lloyd G Francis reads from his debut novel From Rum To Roots, while the jazz band plays Duke Ellington.

The book release party for my debut novel From Rum To Roots was a smashing success last night. The only technical difficulty was that we could not get a connection for our live stream broadcast, but next time we hope to have the bugs worked out.

NEVERTHELESSeveryone had a great time. I read from two selections and the band led by Top Cat, an institution on the lower Haight, accompanied me as I read a scene from 1945 in Kingston Jamaica in a nightclub known as The Glass Bucket. The Glass Bucket was a well known club during the thirties and forties. It was a place where Jamaicans could go to have a drink, shoot the breeze, or try to meet someone special.

ALLthe locations in From Rum To Roots are real, from Beeston Street and Matthews Lane, (pronounced “matches”) that you can visit, from Kingston Jamaica, to Haight Ashbury in foggy San Francisco.

THERE is two events that are approaching. One, is we will be posting on Goodreads a three and one third chapter excerpt that will be downloadable to your kindle, or your e-reader of choice. The second event is going to be a book giveaway on Goodreads that will coincide with the launch of the e-book. By September 1, 2013 we hope that From Rum To Roots will be available in all formats.

BOOK RELEASE PARTY

On Sunday, August 4, 2013, almost 51 years since Jamaica’s independence from Britain began, we will be hosting a party at the corner of Haight and Fillmore at Cafe International. We are also going to be simulcasting LIVE right here at our blog.

IT ALL BEGINS AT 5:00 PM AND WILL CONTINUE NON-STOP UNTIL 7:30!

Don’t miss it!

Rum To Roots

TODAY we reached a milestone. From Rum to Roots is now available on Amazon for purchase.

We are also in the midst of planning for a release party that will feature live music and even performance art. The festivities will be held at Haight st and Fillmore at the Cafe International. Food and drinks will be available for purchase as well as copies of the novel. But there is a limited supply. Copies will be sold on a first come first serve basis. Best of all we are offering all the novels for a special release party price of $15 which includes an autograph by me, the author. If we do run out of copies we will make arrangements to ship them to you free of charge.

For those who have already ordered a copy through this website, please be patient. We will receive everyone’s books on August 7, 2013 and books will be mailed as soon as possible.

Needless to say we are really excited. A website, run by my good friend John Orr, who wrote a wonderful sci-fi-paranormal thriller called Someone Dark Has Found Me, has just published a review of my novel From Rum To Roots. You can find it here. In the review, John writes of the novel:

His knowledge and understanding of Jamaica and its people runs very deep, and it is a living reality in this fine novel, which first shows us all about Jamaica and its people — the workers, the bums, the business people, the Obeah. And then the book takes us to the United States, where success is possible, but at a very high price.

Pretty heady stuff for me. But it thrills me that he liked the book, and I’m hoping that you will enjoy it too. I look forward to seeing you at Cafe International this Sunday, and if you can’t make it, you can come right here to rumtoroots. com to watch a live broadcast of our event at 5:00 PM PST or 8:00 PM Eastern.