I Am Rahab…The Village Matriarch
By Silvanie
(Excerpt from book 1)
From the moment Puah Marie Auguste stepped off the plane at New Orleans International airport, she has perfected the role of damsel-in-distress. She waltzed into town as the only mourning child of the deceased and fed on that title. No matter what happened between them, Charlotte “Lotti” Auguste was her mother. Pride kept Puah tending to appearances, and all she offered Rahab was her handshake in an introduction. “I’m Puah,” she said, extending a strong, straight, and slender arm. Her wrist draped in gold. “I’m your mother. You may call me Pu, like everyone else.”
The matriarch of my family was Ms. Iris to most, but to me, she was Mom, Ma, Mommy. She was the glue that held it all together. She was the tether that kept me anchored to the feeling of safety, reassurance, and the understanding that no problem in life was too difficult to overcome, with the right amount of faith and prayer that is.
It came silently one evening. The “New Normal” as I called it, was already gnawing through the fibers of that tether. Several strokes came, each taking a bigger piece of her than the last. First, she lost speech, then mobility, and soon all basic functions of what was now the “old normal”. Even as I tried to steady myself, I realized that I had become the anchor. I was doing everything in my power to hold on to her, to hold her steady, to keep her with me where she belonged. She was the Matriarch of our village. I understand what it means to have that. She was that single source of knowledge, assuredness, wisdom, and ability to find an answer for just about any problem; answers that not even “The Google” could present. Ms. Auguste, Ms. Iris… regardless of the name, the role was the same. The goal was PREPARATION! They injected the life’s blood into a family. The knowledge, the solutions, the history, the plan for a future, the covering of prayer, the discipline, the safety, the encouragement, the confidence, the warmth, and “so much more” it can hardly be quantified. They pour into us all that is needed so when the tether is irreparably broken, our ships can remain steady. We can still navigate through life, still, hold our course for the future. We are prepared to thrive. I know what it means, the value of our matriarchs. I know that woman. I recognize her because… I am Rahab too.
