In December, the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports awarded Jemima Chottu for her poem “Guyana the Fighter”, a spoken-word piece that she penned following the arrival of the pandemic last year.
That, coupled with the effects of Guyana’s general elections, made last year far from normal and Guyanese putting in more than double the effort to find stability in their lives. This motivated Jemima to pen the piece on the events and of a Guyana that never gives up. The poem was featured on the National Communications Network for World Poetry Day, celebrated on March 21.
Jemima was sexually abused when she was only seven years old, and her abuser was a woman. Instead of letting that tragic experience take her on a downward spiral like many other abused women or letting it remain a secret, Jemima channelled the pain into writing poetry. She was 12 years old when she found this way of expressing herself and poured her heart out through her pen.
“When I was sexually abused, there was a fear in me that told me I was not good enough or fit to do anything in this world. But that didn’t make me give up… My parents and my sisters have [also] been my motivation to write poems…,” Jemima said.
Another of her biggest supporters was her former English teacher Jamin Hatton, who had always encouraged Jemima to write. He always referred to her as his best student, she shared.
The eldest of five girls, Jemima did lots of fun things with her sisters and parents while growing up. Many of her greatest adventures came through the books she read. She was 11 years old when she first read Shakespeare and she continually returns to his writings when in need of inspiration. Shakespeare is one of her two inspirations; the second is English poet John Milton, whose book she found tucked away in her late grandfather, Rev Chandradat Chottu’s huge library. It was one of her favourite places to be, being a bookworm. One of her favourite books, she said is the novel Pyramids.
Her late grandfather, she said, was a very literate man, who grew up in a plantation village and was from a Hindu background. He was said to have been a great mentor in literature and a great spokesperson. “[He] was an inspiration, a walking legend when it came to literature, he was a masterpiece by himself,” Jemima fondly recalled.
A patriot, the 22-year-old poet loves writing poems on politics, Guyana, women’s rights, love and social issues.
Jemima said she admires Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, who is her role model and an inspiration. Sometime ago, she wrote a poem about him titled “Son of the Horizon” in which she dubs the former president a “warrior of peace and integrity” and “champion of the earth” as well as her hero. Usually one of her poems takes her an hour to complete but this particular piece took her several days.
“It’s the beauty of the mind, expression of the heart and the words of wisdom to the ears,” she said of poetry.
Jemima is also a social media personality who uses online platforms to educate the public on Guyana’s history as well as trending social topics. A theology student, Jemima sometimes shares the word of God through videos.
Writing, she said, is not difficult for her, adding that her best writing comes through her emotional pieces. Every so often, like any other writer, Jemima is challenged by writer’s block and her best way of fixing this is by sleeping on it before she is all set to go again.
As a social media personality and poet, the internet plays a pivotal role in her life as it relates to choosing a topic to speak or write about. It is also resourceful for researching the topics she chooses to speak on.
Jemima hopes that her pieces help someone escape the burdens of their life or be motivated to want a better life for themselves. Whether by way of entertainment or information, Jemima hopes to touch peoples’ lives and bring them hope.
Currently, she is writing a piece on women’s rights. Aside from wishing to become more advanced in her writing, Jemima hopes to one day become a great leader and role model for other young girls.
In her free time, the former Hope Secondary School student enjoys acting, dabbling in freelance journalism and spending time with her family. She also likes listening to music, singing, going on adventures and helping other women.
The poet can be followed on Facebook at Jemima Chottu (Nadia theboss)
Guyana the Fighter
Guyana the fighter,
This be my motherland,
The land of the free,
The land of six ethnic groups,
The land of democracy.
Guyana the fighter,
Be it the fight against
The monster COVID 19,
Or be it the fight for Independence,
This be the land of Patriots,
The land that is called El Dorado.
Even though COVID 19 tried to
Overcome the world,
Guyana will fight this monster
With her strength and people
The land of colours,
The land of unity,
The land of love,
The breadbasket,
This be the land of the free.
Guyana the fighter,
In the ring with COVID
Or war,
She never backs down to a fight,
To these two undertakers,
Guyana land of gold,
Land of many waters,
Land of the Golden Arrowhead,
Will always be the survivor,
I love you Oh Guyana El Dorado
Guyana the fighter.
Son of the Horizon (excerpt)
From the grass fields of plantation,
Arises the son of the horizon,
Unity, Unity, Oh beautiful place
You have grown a young warrior
Of this beautiful El Dorado.
This brave warrior at innocent thirteen,
Joins the freedom fighters of red,
Little do they know the lion within,
Arising from the grass fields to the
Red capital ‘P’ the son of the horizon,
Positions once more with the pack,
But yet a cub with a lion’s heart within,
The horizon of time…
