Caribbean Economic Report, February 2024

Marla Dukharan
1 min readFeb 14, 2024

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THE TIME HAS COME

Trinidad & Tobago Flag
Photo by: kirill_makes_pics

The time has come

my sweet homeland

You nourished me on your abundance

You seduced me with

your power and potential

You captivated me with

your beauty and charm

You hypnotized me with

your music that is the sound of happiness

You comforted me with

your food that is the taste of love

You showered me in

your joy and rain

You embraced me with your warmth and light

You delighted me with

your sweetness and your uniqueness

You taught me what it means to live

And what it means to lose

Alas, you were forged not from the love of liberty

but the lust for and paradox of plenty

in the fires of graft and greed

With boundless despair for our future

we dance in the blood of the murdered

to the melody of their wailing

and the hum of their hearts failing

The commissioner of police is praying

but the ambulance never came

And nobody cares, my beloved people

Nobody cares

I will always love my dystopian paradise

But the time has come

to let you go

My heart is bleeding for you

my fellow Trinbagonians

but nobody can hear the sound of our blood spilling.

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Marla Dukharan

Recognized as a top economist and leading advisor on the Caribbean.