Shanyah Saunders was 8 years old when she moved from Trinidad to the United States. Even though she has lived in the country for more than a decade, she continues to miss her homeland and the relationships she left behind.

The summer before beginning college, Saunders, a junior information management and technology major at Syracuse University, got a tattoo on her shoulder that reads “Trini to the bone” to represent her roots.

The phrase is a lyric from a popular, patriotic Trinidadian song called “Trini To De Bone.” The song by David Rudder explains that Trinidad is the best island due to the happy, fun people that it is home to.

Saunders and her family moved to the U.S. due to Trinidad’s dying sugarcane industry. Her father had several acres, but the business was declining. Although Saunders said she thinks they would’ve been fine to stay in Trinidad, her parents thought they should come to the U.S. to give her better opportunities.

Prior to moving, Saunders would come to the U.S. to visit her maternal grandparents, so she said she wasn’t too upset when she learned she was leaving Trinidad.

“I was excited,” Saunders said. “I actually wasn’t nervous about moving or even leaving my friends.”

But she decided to give her friends some of her belongings so they would always remember her. Saunders remembers giving away cassettes and DVDs.

Although she doesn’t keep in frequent contact with her friends from Trinidad, she remains very close to her cousins.

“My cousins are my favorite part of home,” Saunders said. “They’re around my age, and there’s just so many of us.”

Although Saunders likes living in the U.S., she admits that the hardest part is being away from her family.

“Here, I don’t really have any family except for the immediate family that I live with, and that’s one of the most difficult parts because we miss all the big things,” Saunders said. “All my aunts and uncles got to go to my grandpa’s 80th birthday party, and we didn’t.”

Saunders and her family continue to incorporate their culture into everyday life by listening to Trinidadian music and cooking special dishes. “Pelau” and “Buss up Shut roti” are two of Saunders’ favorite Trinidadian meals.

Saunders has only been back to Trinidad once since moving. She said she plans on visiting in May after studying abroad and added that she’s most excited about being reunited with her cousins and visiting her paternal grandparents.

When she is older and established, Saunders said she wants to live in Trinidad for a short period of time, even though she thinks she will primarily live in the U.S., especially because she wants to find a job.

Saunders said she misses Trinidad but is thankful to have two places to call home.

Published on October 30, 2017 at 9:30 pm

Contact Raven: rarentas@syr.edu