A single mother of Bee Hive, East Coast Demerara, has been making the season merry for others by taking orders for cakes, but for her, Christmas would never be the same again.
Kamanee Singh, 27, always looked forward for the holiday season, especially since her birthday is on Christmas Eve day. But now it means nothing to her.
She bakes to keep herself occupied, “mainly to hide the pain” of losing her husband, Taiknauth ‘Kishan’ Samlall, 33, to a motorcycle accident around 8:35 pm on April 29, 2020.
She takes orders for all types of Christmas cakes – black, fruit and sponge – in large and small quantities.
She is still finding it difficult to cope with her husband not being there to spend the holidays with her and their six-year-old son and 10-month-old baby girl.
Singh, a graduate teacher is grateful though, that she is able to utilise her baking and cake decorating skills, which her husband had supported her to develop.
It all started when she tried baking cakes and decorating them for fun. She then decided to attend a course in Georgetown to improve her talents.
She now does a business, baking and decorating cakes for birthdays and other events.
Singh and her husband also had many dreams together, such as completing the house and making their children’s lives comfortable and happy.
She plans to continue to work hard and to expand her business so she can realise those dreams.
Although she is not in the Christmas spirits, she would try to make it enjoyable for her children “because he [husband] would want the kids to be happy, especially during the holidays.”
“Chris [son] is really excited about Christmas. He knows how jolly Christmas is but he’s so small to process the changes… This year will be jolly for the kids but not for me. We used to have a great time, but now it’s just about the kids.”
On Christmas Day they would “go to his side of the family, then mine and share the holiday. I’ll still take the kids both sides and to see Santa.”
Business
Apart from the holiday season, the business is slow, but Singh is optimistic that it would pick up when the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is over.
“I am taking orders but I hope that one day I would be able to do a weekend business selling cakes. I don’t earn a steady income from this. It has its ups and downs but there is still hope with it,” she said confidently.
She promotes her business through her Facebook page under the name; Angel Anu, where she showcases her creative designs.
Prior to undertaking the cake course, her husband had motivated her to successfully complete her studies at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE).
Singh told Stabroek News (SN) that pursuing her goals was the best decisions she ever made. Her husband had supported her during her studies, by helping to care for their son, who was a baby then, and he was very proud of her when she graduated. “He always wanted me to reach my full potential. He stood by me and he motivated me. I could not have achieved my goals without his support,” she said.
Even though she misses her husband terribly, she is comforted by memories of him always encouraging her in her drive to be a better person.
“When he died and I had to face reality, I knew he wouldn’t want me to give up. So I am taking my weakness and making it my strength….”
She started teaching mathematics and accounts at the Hope Secondary School after graduating from the CPCE. Before that she taught at a private school for about seven years.
She described her time at the CPCE as the “toughest two years in my life,” having to juggle with attending college, caring for her son and waking up at 3 am to cook for her husband who worked at the Enmore Estate at the time, studying and completing assignments.
Singh had to find innovative ways of studying, such as posting her formulas on the wall and learning them while doing chores or eating.
House
Despite doing the cake business along with her job, she is still finding it hard to save towards the completion of the house and to repay her loan.
During her studies at the CPCE, her husband became unemployed when the former APNU+AFC government closed the Guyana Sugar Corporation estates.
They endured a lot of financial struggles and the construction of the house had to be stalled for one year. They were also unable to pay their mortgage.
After reading about Samlall’s death in the media, president of the Humanitarian Mission Guyana, Suresh Sugrim reached out to her and provided a monetary contributions for her expenses.
Singh was grateful for the help and said the organisation also promised to assist the children with clothing and school supplies as they grow.
She was also grateful that Sugrim reached out to other people to assist in obtaining her husband’s death certificate and her baby’s birth certificate. He also helped to get documents submitted for the National Insurance Scheme claims and for public assistance for the children.
After becoming unemployed, Samlall did a number of odd jobs and even tried his hands at farming. He did not earn enough and was becoming frustrated that he could not provide for his family as he used to.
He landed a job with another security company in Georgetown but quit because it was not feasible.
He had also planned to leave his job at Kalibur Security and continue with gardening on a larger scale.
It was ironic, the way he died, because he was always afraid of losing his life while riding late at nights.
Singh recalled that she spoke to him before he left his last worksite after 8 pm and he told her that he would be home in 30 minutes.
When that time passed and he did not show up she “called his phone several times” and was wondering why he was not responding.
After 9 pm she received a call from one of his relatives about his involvement in an accident. She started to panic but was not expecting the worst and packed a bag for his hospital stay.
At the scene, she started to scream when she noticed his body being placed in the back of a police vehicle. She also went into a state of shock and was “emotionless” for a few hours when she returned home.
In 2014, Samlall and a friend were injured when another motorcycle he was riding collided with a car. He sustained minor injuries but his friend, a pillion rider was not wearing a helmet and suffered head injuries. He spent two weeks in hospital and was unconscious for one week.
The young mother is saddened that her baby did not get a chance to know her father and said her son, who was attached to him, is asking for him every day.
