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restitutiion · 5 years ago

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left him with nothing but ruined pride, something new inside; a voice saying, “alex, you gotta fend for yourself.’ || a comprehensive headcanon deep dive, mostly for future reference.

alexander was born to a one rachel faucette, and told his father was one james hamilton. despite alex’s later insistence that his parents were wed, this actually never did happen; the trio moved from the island of nevis to the USVI of st. croix by the time he was about eight, and his father abandoned the family by the time he was ten. then, left only in his mother’s care, he began to truly shine; she listened intently to his ramblings, battled wits with him even despite his young age. with no one there to ridicule them for it, they shone brighter than they ever had before.

his mother owned and operated a little shop on the corner of the main town square in christiansted, st. croix, where she sold an assortment of things (mainly books and souvenirs). she and her son lived upstairs, up above the shop, where their belongings were scarce. his mother, due to a previous (unhappy and abusive) marriage, often tried to hide her belongings/savings, in case her previous husband/family (the laviens) (or hamilton) ever came for them. of her most cherished belongings were a bible she received from her late mother, and a handful of pictures of her and her family (specifically, photographs of her and her only surviving sister, ann).

ann lytton, who is considerably older than her younger sister, rachel faucette, falls ill the same year the hamiltons move to st. croix, this eventually leading to her passing. alexander and his mother attend the funeral (although only a brief service), and then spend the rest of the day with ann’s husband (james) and their son (peter). alexander is only ten years old at the time, and he doesn’t fully understand death (though he knew his aunt well, the loss didn’t considerably affect him at the time); he wishes his father were around, if only to have some company in this disinterest.

when alexander is twelve years old, his mother falls gravely ill. he, with his own weak immune system, ends up doing the same shortly thereafter. she insists on not contacting a doctor (they could barely afford rent, much less unnecessary doctors visits or medicine). then, in the early morning of february 19th, she expires in bed right next to him. alexander contacts the police and paramedics, who arrive to the scene and promptly export him to the hospital (thus separating him from his mother for the last time).

he is in the hospital for just under two weeks. he recovers enough to attend his mother’s funeral, which is also attended by a man named thomas stevens, his son (ned), and the ever-infamous lavien family (michael, and the son he had with rachel faucette, peter). it is also attended by the surviving lytton family, who supported him and his mother throughout their misfortunes; one of the hamiltons’ most prized possessions, before rachel passed, was a dining furniture set gifted to them by the lyttons; this set is taken back by the lyttons upon her passing, and everything else the hamiltons owned falls into the hands of the lavien family. the lyttons purchase alexander’s books from them, along with a few of rachel’s belongings, returning them to the boy (these becoming his only possessions at the time).

soon after the funeral, alexander is whisked off to spend a bit of time with james lytton, and a bit of time with the stevens family, before ultimately landing in the custody of one peter lytton, his cousin considerably older than him. unbeknownst to alexander, his cousin was dealing with many mental illnesses that continued to go undiagnosed and untreated. peter commits suicide only a year later, in july. alexander discovers peter’s body, attends the funeral at the side of james lytton, only to lose that man as well only a few weeks later. he is then whisked off to be (legally) adopted by the stevens family, though they rarely claimed him to be a “part of the family”; alex chooses, instead, to bounce between homes, rotating between the stevens home, his friends’ places, and homeless shelters. this continues until he hits about sixteen.

by age sixteen, he is working for local businesses, writing for local papers, and trying to prepare for college; he writes a few very beautiful pieces, and many people decide to pitch in to pay his way to New York City (where he’d already received a full ride scholarship to Columbia University). there, he studies economics and english, graduating from his undergrad studies in only three years; he also meets friends that, for the first time, support his dreams for revolution and actually want to hear what he has to say. this is a turning point for him. he ends up (very quickly) marrying his roommate, john laurens, who not only exposes him to the good and healthy part of the world, but also (unfortunately) unearths a great deal of since-internalized trauma.

he maintains very loose correspondence with his father (james hamilton), though refuses to tell anyone of this. he also maintains very loose correspondence with ned stevens, who many back home insisted held a stark resemblance to him (this is a fact many, alexander included, have come to hold as truth: the stevens’ bloodline is his true paternal lineage, making ned his half-brother). he still, to this day, maintains very scarce communication with these two, though still adamantly refuses to tell anyone of this (not even his husband, whom he entrusts with far more than he does with anyone else).

during his undergraduate studies, his adoptive mother passes away, prompting alexander to return to st. croix for the first time since his departure so many years prior. laurens accompanied him; they reunited with the stevens family (thomas, ned) and (albeit briefly) toured the town of christiansted. they walked past alexander’s childhood home (and rachel’s corner store), though he didn’t clarify to laurens why; they mostly visited a few restaurants, a coffee shop alexander frequented as a child and teen (where most of the employees didn’t recognize the name --- the older employees knew him as soon as he opened his mouth).

he has very rarely discussed his childhood with anyone he’s met in New York; the one who knows the most is likely john laurens, though even then, he knows only the basics: alex’s mother passed, his cousin committed suicide, his father abandoned them, his true lineage likely lies in the stevens bloodline. this is all john laurens is aware of, with alexander sparing the vast majority of the details (likely for his own sake; he has never discussed at length most of this childhood trauma and he would very much like to keep it that way).

he possesses quite a few of pieces from his past, many of which laurens is still unaware of; these include: a photo of rachel soon after she moved to st. croix (this photo is displayed in the laurens-hamilton apartment, on the kitchen counter), a photo of rachel and ann when they were in their teens/early 20s, the bible his mother received from her mother, a handwritten prayer his mother wrote when he was a young boy, and a handwritten bit of poetry his mother wrote while he was in late grade school. he keeps most of this tucked away in a box within a box, hidden with his older journals; he makes no attempts to tell people to stay away from this box, though it is a locked box. the passcode to this lock is the date his mother died (021908). every february 18th, he stays up until about 1:00am, when he lights a candle, remains silent for a few minutes, then blows it out and goes to bed. he makes sure to do this when he knows he is alone (for fear of someone asking for reasoning; he isn’t yet ready to explain that, even after all these years).

he has many lingering fears from his youth: the fear of storms (specifically thunderstorms), the fear of people stealing his belongings (never to return them again; this specifically applies to his books and journals), a fear of getting too close to anyone (for fear of history repeating itself in removing them from this ever-winding narrative). he’s only aware of a few of these, and of those, he is very acutely aware of their origins; he currently visits a therapist every other week, and despite having gone for months now, has made very slow progress in opening up about his trauma. he sees this as a failure; others would likely see it as a huge success.

he will name his first child rachel, after his mother. this fact is irrefutable.

#suicide //#death //#illness //#abuse //#mental illness //#don't forget from whence you came. || character insight.

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multiracialmedia-blog · 8 years ago

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Saint Thomas Vacation: Not What We Were Expecting

For my Letter From the Editor column yesterday, I wrote about my husband’s and my Saint Thomas vacation. In fact, I wrote the column while still on vacation. Today I’d like to share what we did on on our vacation.

Saint Thomas vacation

Paul and I are not your typical vacationers. We don’t seek out the beach and we also don’t cram elevendy million things into our vacations. We take each day as they come and make the best of them. We live less than an hour from the beach (on Puerto Rico) and we have been maybe 5 times since we moved here in 2008.

For this vacation, we had a very specific reason to visit Saint Thomas. Two friends we’d met through our farm website invited us to visit them and see what they were growing and how. Ec0-organic farming, if you haven’t guessed, is a big part of my life.

A Little About Saint Thomas: Vacation and Living There

The largest of the four islands in the USVI (United States Virgin Islands), Saint Thomas boats a population of just under 52,000 people. Shoot! Multiracial Media’s Facebook page has more followers than there are people living on Saint Thomas. First settled in the early 1500s by the Cibony people (who are actually the same tribe of indigenous people who lived on Cuba, Puerto Rico, Trinidad, Jamaica and Hispaniola known as the Taino), once the Europeans discovered it, like all islands in the Caribbean, it has been a colony of some country for eons.

First the Dutch, then the Danish, even the British (for an entire 13 months) occupied / colonized Saint Thomas. It went back to the Danish in 1815 and in 1917 the United States bought Saint Thomas from the Danish. Like Puerto Rico, Saint Thomas (Saint John, Saint Croix and Water Island) are still colonies of the U.S.

According to the United States Census, the demographic breakdown of Saint Thomas is as follows:

Black or African American 76 %

White 15.6%

Asian 1.4%

Other 4.9% (I have no idea what “other” means. My guess is that it’s a combination of Jewish and Cibony people, although I am not sure.)

Mixed 2.1%

Saint Thomas is the size of Manhattan but with far fewer people.

Our Saint Thomas Vacation Was the Bomb Because of Our Hosts

We only stayed a few days but for two people who hadn’t been on vacation in ten years, it was perfect! Our hosts Eron (pronounced Erin) and Mike couldn’t have been better hosts. For one thing, they are amazing in the kitchen, particularly Mike. Mike has the sort of personality that means he never met a stranger. Dynamic, effusive and very outgoing, if you aren’t happy, Mike will take it personally. It’s probably why he is so successfully in his business (more on that in a bit). I thought I was outgoing, but I have nothing on Mike.

Eron is introverted, like my husband and is really happy when Mike is being animated and the center of attention. Her introversion is why she is successful at what she does. (More on her profession in a bit, too.)

The first night of our Saint Thomas vacation was something we couldn’t have predicted but it was definitely memorable.

American social work students (both under grad and graduate) had been visiting Saint Thomas to look at various agencies around the island. They focused a lot on education and the water problem on the island. Part of their goal was to better understand the political implications of Saint Thomas’s colonial status.

A party was thrown for them on their last night, which was our first night there (Friday) at Shangra La VI: a 3-bedroom, 3-bathroom, 2000-square foot villa that can accommodate up to 8 people, owned by a woman named Catherine. Catherine is also working with the water utility to help provide safe drinking water for all on the island.

Diana (second from left) with a few of her social worker friends on our Saint Thomas vacation.

Each student talked about the impact their week-long trip had on them. I loved the fact that students spanned the ethnic and racial rainbow. Paul and I chatted with Diana (pronounced Deeahna) Mena, whose family is from the Dominican Republic. She is currently in Washington, D.C. doing an internship at an organization that strives to provide comprehensive immigration and family legal services to low-income members of the Spanish-speaking community in various U.S. cities.

Diana is one of many remarkable young people we met that evening.

The next few days we did things we never get to do at home with a menagerie of animals: we slept late, had someone else cook for us (Mike is really amazing! He ought to consider opening a restaurant), and we also went to three beaches (ironically, since we don’t really like the beach). We ate well (lots of greens) and visited a local bar.

Turning a Saint Thomas Vacation Into a Place to Live

It’s one thing to fall in love with Saint Thomas (or anywhere else) while on vacation, but another to figure out how to make a living there. It’s particularly complex when the place you’ve fallen in love with doesn’t have the same economic base you’re accustomed to. I make a living as a writer and a content marketing agency owner. My clients are mostly all in the United States as few people living here can afford my rates.

Paul works the farm and makes sure we’re fed. You definitely have to be clever and either provide services needed by people living off the island or one that nobody else is doing yet or better on the island.

Our hosts, Eron and Mike, are successful at doing both. Eron is the owner of Nerd for Hire VI. From computer freezes, laptop repair and peripheral support to spyware and malware removal to social media management and expertise with search engine optimization (I already implemented one suggested Eron gave me) and server and network support, as well as NAS and RAID backup, Eron is technical and knows her way around the software and hardware of personal computers and companies’ network systems.

Eron diagnoses and troubleshoots over the phone and makes house and office calls. Eron also does remote entry, so she doesn’t need to be in the same room, let alone the same country to manage a company’s servers. She knows Apple and PC, so no matter what your operating system, she’s proficient.

Mike, by contrast, needs to be around people, not computers.

What are some of the happiest moments of your life? Wedding, engagement party, vacation, family portrait, Mitzvah, Quinceañera, birthday, birth of a baby, milestone birthday, anniversary, retirement? Did I cover most of them?

Saint Thomas Vacation, Toes in the Sand Photography.

Now think of those moments caught on film by a professional photographer. Mike owns Toes in the Sand Photography. No matter the occasion, Mike can take your once-in-lifetime moment and turn it into a lifetime of memories. Fewer things evoke emotions like a photograph. A glimpse into the past, a moment frozen in time, an opportunity to revisit the best pieces of your life, nothing does this quite like a photograph does.

Saint Thomas Vacation, Toes in the Sand Photography

Mike’s talent is magical for two reasons: the person taking the shot can make something seemingly ordinary and make it extra special. Not all people behind the camera can do this. As an example, I am not a photogenic person and he made me feel beautiful in this photo of Paul and me.

Saint Thomas Vacation, Toes in the Sand Photography

Saint Thomas Vacation, Toes in the Sand Photography: your destination wedding photographer.

The other thing that makes Mike’s talent a must when shopping for a photographer is that he’s anything but boring. I used to be an event planner and I worked with many photographers. Long on talent and short on personality, the photos some of the photographers I worked with captured something special but there was no soul or depth to the photos. As you can see, there’s warmth and depth to all of these photos.

Saint Thomas Vacation, Toes in the Sand Photography.

Mike’s personality, his direction, his smile and the way he engages people, mean you want to be drawn in and it shows in the photos he takes.

Saint Thomas Vacation, Toes in the Sand Photography (me with Mike and Eron’s dog, Groucho).

And the Initial Reason We Went to Saint Thomas

Together Mike and Eron provide a service nobody else is providing. They grow greens, like lots and lots of greens: Basil, arugula, lettuces, tomatoes (okay, that’s red), herbs, peppers, eggplants, onions and garlic and many more.

Saint Thomas Vacation, Mike and Eron’s organic garden.

They make various types of bread and from their working garden, they can make some incredible sauces. Their pesto was the best I have ever had!

While we were there, two clients stopped in to buy some of their organic greens. All the meals we ate this past weekend were from their garden.

As you can see, it’s more than possible to make a living on an island you’ve decided will be your forever home.

Well, folks, it’s time to wrap this up. I have babbled on long enough about our Saint Thomas vacation. We had an amazing time and it wasn’t at all what we anticipated.

Saint Thomas Vacation: Not What We Were Expecting if you want to check out other voices of the Multiracial Community click here Multiracial Media

#Nerd for Hire VI #Saint Thomas vacation #Toes in the Sand Photography

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