DIVERSITY FOR EDUCATORSOJAY TIMOT

The People that make my Family

GEOLOGY

I Never met any members of my fathers family other than my siblings. My Mother on the other hand is the oldest of ten children. She has seven siblings still alive.

My father is one of seven children. He was born in Africa and was raised in Haiti.

My Family is not like other families. Its unique in many ways. I am the product of Frantz and Annmarie Timot. I am One of two children of them and one of four children from my father. I have an older sister, brother and a younger sister. My mother is married to Reuben Butler. My Grandma Evelyn Brown also lives with us.

FAMILY HISTORY My family is Jamaican. I have so many family

members, I don’t know where to start. I have cousins and aunts and uncles that live in England, Canada, The United States, and Jamaica. My mother was the first of her siblings to leave Jamaica. She moved to the United States in 1990. Moved to Florida to live with one of her uncles. She and my father got married and then had me in 1992. My sister followed.

My father hasn’t told me anything on his arrival to the united states from Africa. So I have not much to say on his behalf.

FAMILY HISTORY My father moved here after he sent his

children with their mother to Miami. My mother first came to Florida on vacation. This is when she met my father. She then went home, and moved here to stay. That’s when they got married. When they got married, they got a place together. My parents had things rough. My father worked two jobs everyday. My mother worked a part time job until she had me. They didn’t have a car until I was born. They lived paycheck to paycheck.

CULTURAL NORMS AND VALUES During the time of funerals, the family has

somewhat of a “cookout” for about a week, or everyday until the funeral. The house is filled with family and friends, and friends of friends. The house is packed with children, outside is surrounded by adults playing dominos or just talking (sometimes about the person that dies or just to talk).

Fried dumplings with saltfish is the main breakfast dish cooked in the Jamaican culture.

No matter how mad a person in the family may be, whenever there is a family get together, all problems are tossed and nothing matters but the time that are spent together.

FAMILY TRADITIONS AND VALUES

Our Family Truly values Christianity. That value is above all other values.

A tradition of ours is for all of my mothers siblings to bring their family to Jamaica and we spend Christmas together.

We value family very much so. We make sure that any rifts and objections we have with each other is brought out and discussed. It may hurt, but by the time we leave each other, we are stronger than before.

TRADITIONS AND CUSTOMS

Our family also values Education. My grandmother was a teacher, some of my aunts and uncles either taught or are still teachers. My mother teaches early childhood. And I soon will be a teacher.

We value the respect of elders. When an elder speaks to you or asks you to do anything you respect them. We stress the use of “sir,” “ma’am,” “please,” and “thank you.”

We also value honesty. The last thing we want to know is that we were lied to. Nothing is too bad to be told or shared. “Honesty is best of policy” is one of our motto.

“Do to others as you would have them do to you”