Dochfour

Story and photos by Frances Abraham

At 81, ‘Cousin Mavis’ rears chickens, plants a garden, produces coconut oil, pepper sauce, achar, pointer brooms and other items which she sells while she walks. She is also well known for her participation in singing and dance competitions, and even earned the title of ‘Ms Bruck it down.’

Everyone smiles when they speak of the recently held dance competition. “Me can do all kind, all kind thing meh can do,” Mavis Alleyne, better known as ‘Granny’ or ‘Cousin Mavis’ said, adding,  “I bring first in the bruck it down competition. Meh well-known in the village.”

Taking the goats home

In Dochfour, a small community nestled in the Hope Estate on the East Coast of Demerara, “everybody is family.” The name of the village, comprising about 100 households, is identical to the name of a loch (lake) and estate near the city of Inverness in Scotland.
When Sunday Stabroek visited the community, the sun was scorching and the strains of Indian music could be heard carried on the breeze. The strong aroma of thyme and other seasoning also could not be ignored as ladies worked in their gardens under the shade of caps.

The residents seemed eager to speak both of the village’s glory and its troubles.

Granny said she was born and raised in Dochfour and over the years, she has witnessed a little development, with the streets being upgraded from mud and villagers managing to enhance their homes and surrounding with small improvements. However, there are a few rice farmers who she said live better than the “little man.”

Two small children fishing in the trench at the front of their home

A bubbly Alleyne said despite her age, she earns a living doing simple tasks, and does not have the need to depend on any of her 23 children for assistance. “I do coconut oil, pepper sauce, achar, broom, flower garden. Me nah depend pon children,” she said.
Some residents pointed out that many of the youths refuse to attend school and prefer to ‘lime’ on the corners or enjoy sports in the community’s playfield. One woman said it is not so much a case of preference, but that in the case of many families, the children are taken out of school to assist their parents by earning an income, mainly on the farmlands.

“There are two schools out front, the Ann’s Grove Primary School and the Ann’s Grove Secondary… by time the children reach time for secondary they working… they don’t have time for school,” Granny said. “Me born and grow here. The youths nah like long time children. Long ago when the youths do something wrong and you ask them they gon talk, but now they do something wrong you would get cuss and all kind thing. Me as a grandmother, I got 46 great-grandchildren, I think is very bad,” she said.

Leila Doodnauth sitting in the cool under her house

Leila Doodnauth, a 70-year-old resident, also born and raised in Dochfour made similar remarks: “If yuh got mango bearing and you only left to go garden they does gone with ya mango, and when you ask them they is say ‘Don’t stress me out.’” When asked about whether the youths indulge in drinking and smoking, the woman became reluctant to speak.

She highlighted that the health centre can be found in neighbouring Clonbrook, a short distance away. There, she said, a medic is available 24/7 while a doctor visits once a month. All facilities, such as the post office and established shops among others, are located outside the village, she noted.

Asked about the residents’ day-to-day activities, Doodnauth said the men go out to farm while the women stay home and do chores and tend to their kitchen gardens most days. She recalled growing up in Dochfour, describing those as simpler but better times.
“Me born and grow here and when me been 15 years, me marry and get seven children. When me been small, the place been nice. My father used to mine cow, grow sheep and plant farm and everybody used to live nice… now them living like dog and cat,” she said. However, she pointed out that though there may be small feuds, the villagers remain close-knit since they are all related either through blood or kinship.

Cousin Mavis explains how she makes the
coconut oil which she sells in the village.

According to Doodnauth, the men sometimes enjoy a few drinks after a hard day’s work but there are no rum shops at Dochfour As a result, she explained, most of them would purchase their alcohol at Ann’s Grove and return home where they would imbibe. Women on the other hand, she added, enjoy religious functions and taking care of the home.

The boards across the canal that lead to the main access road of Dochfour
A Dochfour resident washes dishes in her outdoor kitchen.