Balbirsingh
My mother´s maiden name is Balbirsingh. It is a Sikh name and aside from our family in Trinidad, there is only one other family with the same name. But they are Indian and so don´t mix with us--we are a family of pot hounds, mix-breed. So in Trinidad there are only two groups of Balbirsinghs, my family, the mixed bunch, and then another bunch, with the doctor as the head, who again, wants nothing to do with us. I find this funny. My family finds this funny. My family, much to my chagrin, likes to talk about how mixed we are. In truth, I am just as East Indian as I am African and this comes from my father´s side as my mother´s. My father´s grandmother on his maternal side was a pure East-Indian who married like 7 times, all to creole (black) men. She lived in Sangre Grande and I met her when she was in her 90s. What kind of woman owns her own house, marries not only 7 times, but marries only to Black men when she herself is pure East Indian? I come from this line of women. On my mother...
