"Then my mother was taken ill and died and my father took me to St. Mary's"
About this Quote
As a musician whose work helped carry Jamaican street life into global pop consciousness, Dekker understood the power of plain speech. The phrasing feels conversational, even casual, and that tone creates a kind of emotional double exposure. The surface is simple; underneath is the shock of being re-rooted. “Taken ill and died” lands with the cold efficiency of paperwork, suggesting a child’s perspective or an adult trying to keep control by narrating with minimal ornament. The second half pivots immediately to the father’s decision: “took me to St. Mary’s.” The grammar makes the child an object moved through institutions, hinting at how quickly personal loss gets translated into logistics.
St. Mary’s likely signals more than a place name; it carries the weight of church, school, home, authority. In a Caribbean context shaped by colonial structures and tight community networks, that move can imply discipline, hardship, or simply survival. The subtext is a familiar working-class reality: when a mother is gone, sentiment can’t be afforded for long. You go where you can be kept, and life keeps going, whether you’re ready or not.
Quote Details
| Topic | Mother |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Dekker, Desmond. (2026, January 17). Then my mother was taken ill and died and my father took me to St. Mary's. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/then-my-mother-was-taken-ill-and-died-and-my-48770/
Chicago Style
Dekker, Desmond. "Then my mother was taken ill and died and my father took me to St. Mary's." FixQuotes. January 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/then-my-mother-was-taken-ill-and-died-and-my-48770/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Then my mother was taken ill and died and my father took me to St. Mary's." FixQuotes, 17 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/then-my-mother-was-taken-ill-and-died-and-my-48770/. Accessed 10 Feb. 2026.
