Sokah2Soca

I have heard my favorite radio personality, Mr. Damion Melville of WACK radio, ask in everyday 'Triniglish' (Trinidad English), "I could ever leave here?  I eh leaving Trinidad for nothing!"  One can even extend the idea by bringing up the cascadura theory that once you eat the cascadura you must return to your place or birth   -   homeland Trinidad and Tobago.

So how did we come to this point? Is it  loyalty to the place of our birth or is it simply a birthright?  We have a habit of saying Trini 2D Bone or Trini 2DMarrow and it rolls of our tongues with ease without ever giving a thought to its significance. Is this really important and can we ever get to the bottom of this feeling of national pride? Now talking about getting to the bottom of it, listen to Papa Neeza eh because the truth is once yuh mother bury yuh nabel string in Trinidad dats it, your faith is sealed.

Now you see how easy that was to explain.  OK, so what do Trinbagonians mean when they use the phrase, "Meh Nabel String Bury Dey?"  All Trinis know the answer but for the benefit of the international readers if they were able to get past the Triniglish in this story, I will explain the phrase. "It is an expression used when someone shows a highly unusual attachment to a certain place".

Here is the origin of the phrase: "The practice of burying the "Navel String" or umbilical cord under a fruit laden mango tree to ensure the child's eventual 'fruitfulness' or prolificacy".

Yes Trinidadians are superstitious and believe in jumbies and douens and the burying of the navel string to give one a feeling of belonging.  In a nutshell that is the gist of the conversation; it really comes down to feeling wanted and giving one a sense of belonging. If you want to add to this please use the comment feature beneath the post.