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Faces

When Idi finally made it to the beach, chained to two older women, she thoroughly
looked around. She looked around so much, she paid no attention to the men yelling at her and
pushing her to move along. The women chained to her spoke to her frustratingly. Although she
understood some of their words, she could not quite put together what they were saying. One of
the women pulled at Idi to walk towards the strange men. The other, whom looked a bit older,
pulled towards the trees. But Idi walked in no particular direction. Eventually, the women were
hit with long sticks and forced to walk towards a fort where there were horses and many other
dark-skinned people with chains working without looking up. They appeared to have already
been there for some time. They wore old attire similar to those the captors wore.
Men with blood on their shoulders and arms lifter boulders and logs, building what
appeared to be the beginnings of what is to become a pier. Scabs were scattered all over the
mens feet as legs with what appeared to be maggots pushing out from them. The sight made
some of the people vomit. To see these strong men put to work under such conditions was
discouraging and heartrending. The people continued walking ahead.
In the distance, Idi saw strange buildings of different colors lined up along a road where
men in chains began to lay large stones. Coming from these buildings were women very different
from Idi. They were dressed with full body-covering outfits with ruffles and different designs;
some white, others metallic, bright-colored or shiny. The dresses widened as they went down the
legs. On the womens heads were garment of all sorts. Some wide, others were wider. Some
women wore veils. Some wore metallic hair chains that draped around bun styled hair. On their
feet were shoes of many colors, with jewels. They had high heels made of what appeared to be
leather. They also carried what Idi would come to learn was called a sombrilla, a stick with a
canopy like fabric to block the islands hot sun.
As she walked, towards a large concrete building, Idi noticed a group of people different
from the people from where she comes and different from those who have captured her. These
people were shorter in stature, with very straight black hair, and light brown skin. Their eyes
were very different as well. These people that Idi would later know as Tainos were not only
different in appearance; they were also different, Idi felt, in spirit. She did not know why at the
moment she first saw them. She did not feel that the difference was better or worse though. The
feeling that Idi got was that their spirit was empty. Not in the sense that they had no spirit; but in
the sense that their spirit was silenced or stolen. As Idi looked into their eyes, as they worked on
the small gardens, she noticed an emptiness; a numbness that can only be described as tragic. In
her mind, Idi compared it to the what she felt- a child being taken from her mother, father and
home, then raped and made to feel alone and abused, but countless of times. After knowing a
world all of ones life, and suddenly it is not only taken away, but ravaged, one is made to feel
powerless. It leaves one empty. That is what Idi saw in their eyes. That was what she saw, but
countless of times over.
The people walked past the workers and stared. A long line of brown people in chains
walked up a stone road towards a large concrete edifice built into a rock wall, where they were
going to be placed until the next morning.
By this point, the people were quiet as the realization that they were never to go home began to
set in. They were in a new world now.
As they approached the concrete building, they were taken to two large wooden doors
along the side. The door was opened. When it opened, a horrid stench was let loose from the
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inside. Flies flew out by the hundreds. The people were then pushed into a dark, narrow space.
Although the building was large, the space where the people were placed was not. The narrow
hallway was long and stretched to the other side of the building, but the ceiling was short. When
the people went in, they needed to duck their heads. As they entered, they were forced to slide
the cuffs on their wrists and ankles through a long chain that stretched along the walls.
Idi and the women she was chained with waited as the long line of people were forced in.
They were surrounded by men with weapons, so there was no place to run. When it was their
turn to enter the room, Idi watched as the men groped one of the women she was chained to. The
woman did nothing. The man then looked at Idi, and Idi stared back. For some reason the man
did not touch her. Still, it did not matter to Idi. She knows that she had already been touched in
the worst way. She placed her cuffs into the long chain and went into the room.
When one side of the room had been filled, the people were then chained to the other
side. Idi watched as the people filed in, staring at each person coming in. She looked at their
faces, hoping to see some familiarity. One by one she watched and she saw nothing but sadness,
anger and stress. She then looked towards the light at the entrance of the hall and saw that the
hall had been filled to capacity.
The strange, evil men prepared to close the giant doors.
Idi then looked across from her as noticed a woman staring at her, sobbing. It was Filije, her
mother.
Idi gasped loudly and began to cry hysterically from the surprise. Filije dropped to her
knees and reached her hands out as far as the chains would allow her. Her mouth was wide open,
wanting to say something; but the overwhelming feeling of bittersweet joy muted her. Her child
was alive.
Idi cried hysterically and tried to reach out as well, calling for her mother.
The love of the two women caught the attention of everyone in the hall. They all stared
crying, realizing that a miracle had occurred. They realized that although they were in a new
world of despair and suffering, hope was still existent. With tears in every eye, the people
watched as a mother and her child were reunited.
Suddenly, the lightness was taken away as the doors were slammed shut. Despair filled
the room.
The next morning, the giant doors were reopened. Idi and her mother, Filije both stood up
immediately and reached out to one another. Though they knew that they could not reach each
other, they stretched towards one another anyway.
They spent the entire night speaking, telling about their pain, but encouraging each other
to stay strong. They cried together. And although they could not hold one another, they tried to
comfort one another the best they could.
When the men began to take everyone out, the people displayed a type of energy that
they had not displayed since they had arrived. Though they knew that they could not fight their
way to freedom due to the white mens weaponry, there did know that they somehow needed to
preserve the one miracle that they had witnessed.
When they were taken out of the hall, the women chained to Filije walked Filije towards
Idi, and the women with Idi did the same. Then, the people surrounded the two as they walked
towards their next destination. Still in an organized line so that they would not bring about
suspicion, the people somehow managed to bring Idi and Filije close to one another. They put
their bodies together and pressed each others cheeks against the other. It was the warmest
feeling either one had had since they were home. And the people made that happen. A people
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who did not understand each others languages; a people, who at one point in history may had
been at war; a people who were now one people brought a mother and her child together for at
least the time being.
The people walked for hours. Some fell from dehydration and pain. But miraculously,
they all survived the journey.
When they had finally reached their destination, the people were terribly exhausted. They
were rounded together against a tall rock, cornered by a building with a tall cross atop. Close to
twenty of the strange men with weapons surrounded the people. Several others walked toward
the crowd of people with keys. They began to unchain the tired, dehydrated people. The people
were allowed to sit and rest. Blood stained the ground beneath from their blistered bare feet.
They were too exhausted to do anything. Once unchained, the people just sat and waited.
When the men unlocked Idi and Filije, they were quickly surrounded by the people near
them. They immediately embraced one another and sat on the ground. Again, tears came from
the peoples eyes as they watched this miracle. The strange men did not notice as the people
made sure that no attention was being drawn to the mother and child.
Then, other strange people began to gather around. And while these new strangers looked
like the strange men, they were much cleaner. Some of these strange people even had children
with them. They stood around the entrapped people and stared, while the strange men began to
line them up side by side. Other strange men walked around with buckets of water and wooden
ladles, hydrating the people. Others walked around with dusty towels wiping the sweat and blood
off of the peoples bodies to make them more presentable to the new strangers, who began to
take people away. These new strangers, who appeared kinder to the people than the strange men,
waved their hands with papers as another stranger in a white hat spoke fast and loud, while
pointing at individual in the group of captives.
As the man called for individuals, another man who looked different from everyone
walked through the crowd of people to retrieve the individuals called. In fact, this man looked
like one of the people Idi saw when they arrived at the island. He had brown skin and long,
straight black air. However, this man dressed and somewhat acted like the strange men. He was
not as filthy or mean as the strange men. However, he did appear to work with them and not for
them. When he would retrieve individuals called by the strange man in the front, he would grip
them carelessly and walk them to the other strangers. Then, a clean strange man, sometimes with
what would appear to be family, would take the individual and walk away.
The people would not fight. They were too exhausted. Plus when they saw how clean the
new strangers were, the people actually felt a false sense of relief and preference to leave with
them as opposed to staying with the dirty, strange savages.
Then the brown-skinned, straight-haired man approached the group that surrounded Idi and
Filije.
There was a slight gasp when the man approached. He walked through and saw Idi and
Filije holding each other. He saw the tears in both of their eyes and noticed how Idi looked. He
noticed their similarities and realized that they were related. He stared emotionlessly, as he
realized that Idi and Filije were mother and daughter. Then, the strange man with the white hat
called for the long-haired man to bring a woman up. The man paused for a moment, then began
to walk towards Idi and Filije but turned and took hold of the woman standing next to them.
The day passed and the long-haired man continued to bypass Idi and Filije. When a man
would show interest in one of the two, the long-haired man would say something to the man to
make him look towards someone else. He would talk to the man interested and point out towards
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the distance as if to say that he was waiting for someone- a person who was not yet there, who
had already committed to taking Idi and Filije. One man began argue with the long-haired man.
He insisted that he was going to take one of the two. The long-haired man argued back and
stalled the strange man. Then, just as the strange man appeared to be winning the argument,
another strange man appeared.
He was a short man with very dark hair. He had a black hat and a red, white and black outfit. He
had very dark, tired looking eyes with a very serious look. He walked with a tall horse and
another long-haired, brown- skinned man.
The other men stopped arguing. They seemed to show this short man a lot of respect.
The other strange man then walked away.
The first long-haired man then walked towards Idi and Filije, took them both by their
hands, nodded as a gesture that they would be alright and walked them towards the short man
with the horse. They then left with the man.
As they walked away, Idi and Filije both looked back towards the people who were left.
Both with tears in their eyes looked towards the people with gratitude and endearment.
The short man, the long-haired man who was with him, Idi and Filije all walked on a
sandy road out from the town where the filthy, strange men had taken the people. Once far from
the town, the short man gestured for Idi and Filije to mount the horse.
They looked at the man with long hair, and he nodded and helped them get on. They then
traveled towards a lagoon where another strange man awaited them with a small boat. Idi, Filije,
the long-haired man and the short man boarded the boat, leaving the horse behind with the
strange men. On the boat, the short man offered the mother and daughter water. They drank and
the short man and the long-haired man paddled.
As the boat approached the shore on the other side of the lagoon, they heard noise. There
was screaming and loud blast sounds. The short man and the long-haired man appeared
concerned. The long- haired man pulled a weapon out of his bag and placed it at the floor of the
boat.
The blasts became louder as they approached the shore. Then, strange men approached
the boat. As they approached the boat, dark-skinned men, who looked similar to the people from
where Idi and Filije were and brown skinned, long-haired men chased them.
One of the strange men was struck in the head with a stone weapon. The other pulled out
his weapon and shot at the men giving chase. He then turned and shot at the boat striking the
long-haired man in the head, spattering blood all over Idi and Filije.
Filije and Idi, screamed.
The man with the weapon then went to strike the short man, but was caught by the dark-
skinned men and drowned.
Two other shots came from the foliage- one striking one of the dark-skinned men on the
back and the other striking the short man on his arm.
Idi and Filije jumped from the boat onto the beach and began to run.
Then, the strange light-skinned men with weapons appeared from the foliage being
attacked by dark-skinned men.
Then, when it seemed that the dark-skinned men had the upper hand, more light-skinned
strange men appeared with more weapons.
They began to chase the dark- skinned people and apprehend them with ropes. The
strange men then chased Idi and Filije.
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Idi ran much faster than her mother. She pulled Filije but the strange men were gaining
on them. Then, to Idis surprise, Filije pushed her and screamed for her to run. Idi cried and
argued while running. Filije screamed and told her to go.
Suddenly, hands reached out from the bushes and grabbed Idi pulling her into the forest.
Filije cried as she was captured, watching groups of straight-haired, brown-skinned men
attempt to fight the strange white men with wooden weapons, as a group of straight-haired,
brown-skinned women took Idi deeper into the forest.
Idi cried and yelled for her mother. But then she noticed her mother run into the forest behind
her. She was relieved.
Then, together, the group ran deeper and deeper into the forest where it was safe.