Come to me, unlike any other thought,
Surprise me, like an after-thought,
Come to me, like a spice,
Paprika, Cayenne Pepper, Tumeric, Cummin, Cardamom, Ginger…
Come to me in a way that leaves not just a mark, not just a taste,
But an after-taste…so take your time,
Love yourself
Learn and unlearn yourself…and then…come to me!
Stardust,
I come to you in words, a whisper in the evening when the clouds hover to usher in the dusk.
The sun has not beheld your countenance for two days, and she knows even that is a century…so she shines upon me, summons me out of my hiding to reach out to you.
You once said, “I hate flowers, they’re beautiful one second and dry up the next. If I could find whoever invented vases I would slap some sense into him…they never keep the flowers fresh!”
“How sure are you that it’s a man?” I asked.
“Most of the stupid things we see are invented by men…trust me.”
So, I pretended to do just that and watched you cloud your pain with anger. Your friends thought you were being a jerk and they called you out on it, until you simply shook your head and said “The old man is dying, prostrate cancer, stage four or something…he wants to see me.”
It was then that they knew.
I am a choice you made Stardust, but the men around you- Mark, Matto, Jim, George and Stano…are your family, the ones who know how much is too much for you, the ones who looked at you and told you to secure the bag when they met me. Yes, I know they pushed you to apologize…Stano can’t keep a secret where chapatis are involved!
It’s been two days Stardust and you are doing what you do best. You are walking into the dark void that’s your pain and no one’s invited, not even me.
There are some trips I can never make for you…and had I something akin to Ariadne’s thread I’d give it to you so you could find your way back to me…and even that would take a while.
You’ve got to want to come back.
You’ve got to want it all…the pain and the pleasure…until then Stardust, I hope my words reach you.
She looked up and saw a man fighting with his spirit to remain upright. In his hand was a small gourd, no doubt whatever was in it was responsible for his swaying and not the wind. She shook her head and smiled.
“Why are you following me?” she asked.
“Me? Follow you? Enhe, stretch out your feet and place them against mine, do they fit? Does it look like I can step where you have stepped with those tiny feet?”
“Well, then, it was nice meeting you, do not follow me if you want to keep your throat!”
“Enhe! Wait…just wait daughter of the most beautiful one, you should not go back right now.”
“I see, so you are following me and where do you think I am going back to?”
“You are as stubborn as the donkeys that we whip! Look, I don’t care what you think of me, but I find it easier to be dismissed by fools not by wise ones. So I will tell you again, you should not go back right now, if you like, you can ask me why.”
“Why?”
“Because it is not yet time and why would you leave the one you love in the hands of the one who wants to sway his heart towards her?”
“That, like the rising and setting of the sun is none of your concern, what worries me is why you hide behind the drink when you do not worship it.”
“Ah, I always knew you were a smart thing, but Enzi is the kingdom of fools and do you know what happens to anyone who thinks otherwise? We bind them, pour ash on them and strike them until they go mad and then we summon the entire kingdom to prove we were right.”
“Shoka, son of Imara…it is a pleasure to finally meet you.”
“Naima, daughter of the most beautiful one, Queen of Enzi, ruler of the four kingdoms, daughter of the sun, friend of the moon and fearer of none…the pleasure is all mine.”
“Just call me Naima and would you keep that gourd away? You are neither a drunk nor a mad man, now tell me why I should not go back to Enzi and do not remind me of the plot between Zuriand the Queen of Yajayo to keep Zola in custody until I return. I know all too well when a girl yearns for a man, or have you forgotten that the wicked witch of Enzi has four daughters?”
“Princess, you sell yourself short…sometimes we have to fight ourselves to get what we deserve.”
“Zola can decide for himself.”
“Have you made yourself an option my Princess?”
“Do I have to?”
“Oh, beautiful one…many men may fall at your feet, but the one you want to look into your eyes should know that you choose to lift them off the ground. The one who so yearns to be with you needs to know that you’ll fight for him just as much as you are fighting for yourself, the memory of your mother and the women of Enzi…didn’t anyone ever teach you that?”
In the kingdom of Kale, long before the gods came to dwell among men, and the waters of the beautiful lake graced every home, there were those who knew what an abomination was. These were the men and women who could look into your eyes and behold the lives of your great grandchildren. No one was allowed to visit these men and women. If your farm was dying and your children wandering even then you could not visit them. They only answered the call of the gods and it is because of one of these gods that I am here today.
Her name, Lando, meaning the fair skinned one. She was the sun and the moon, an ever present beauty at dawn and dusk. Those who beheld her say that she had the eyes that could sink nations, drown fishermen and uproot trees. My people are known to pepper their words. No one has ever held up a picture to my face to prove these things and until then I will agree that she was simply a woman and to any man, a woman is a thing of beauty if he’s not lain beside her.
Lando was the first god to arrive in the kingdom of Kale. It was the season of the full moon where the fishermen prayed to the gods to help them catch some fish, if not a net full at least a handful so they could feed their families. They loved the sun and feared the moon. When the moon was in her full glory, all the fish would never come to the surface and the deeper they went into the lake, the less certain they were of making it back to the shore.
It was in one of such seasons, at the break of dawn when Lando appeared on the shore. The people say that they heard beautiful singing and when their ears led their legs they found themselves before this beauty whose skin glowed like the sun.
When she finished singing her song, she rose and her feet led the way to the King’s home. No one followed her that morning. Later in the evening, the King summoned the people and they feasted on the delicacies prepared by Lando as she sang into the night. For many harvests and seasons, the kingdom of Kale prospered until one evening when the skies could not help but lash out in anger and after the storm, walked in Dichol.
Whereas Lando was sunshine, Dichol was darkness. She was as dark as the night and those who picked a lump of soil from the earth claimed that even that was nothing compared to the god, Dichol. Dichol too upon arrival made her way to the King’s home and she was welcomed by the Queen. It is often said that the Queen had the heart of the Lake, wicked and wild, in everything she did. The people whisper their assumptions because rumor has it that wicked Queen’s spirit still roams the earth ready to strike down anyone who speaks ill of her. Now, they say that she was jealous of the attention the people of Kale were giving Lando and as such, she cried to the lake to send forth Lando’s rival to the land. The Lake being the mother of all souls, mortal and immortal, heard her cries and sent Dichol.
No one has ever described Dichol as they did with Lando and it pains me that they only referred to her as “dark night.”
Daughter of Dichol is a short story I submitted for the Afritondo Short Story Prize. So, since it didn’t make the cut, I thought why not share it here 🙂
Download a free copy of the story on:
Hello February!
I loved January…and where it seems like it felt like a century for everyone, it rather breezed by me and now that I think about it, it was simply because I was doing lots of planning, meeting various school communities and prepping for February.
So, now I’m dreading February because everything I had been planning in January has to be actualized in this first week and precisely between the 4th and 7th!
So, looking back at the events of January, some of the things that stand out for me on:
I got and read 8 books in January. These are the 5 titles that got me thinking afresh, so, if you’re into poetry, then Break Your Glass Slippers by Amanda Lovelace is a must-read for that 21st Century spin on Cinderella and self worth!
I struggled with the point of view of my work in progress. Torn between writing in the 1st and 3rd points of views had me re-writing the whole manuscript and if you’ve been following this blog closely- you may have read two chapters of it. [Zuri: The Chronicler of Enzi]
One of my writing goals for 2020 was to join a writing community and also engage with many more writers and so far, I’m learning a lot more through the #WritingCommunity on Twitter…like how to create an animated book cover…so, I tried this:
To celebrate the start of February and get me focused on writing more, I bought some stationery…let’s just say 2 sets of a dozen pencils each, 3 sharpeners, 1 eraser and 2 cute stick notes.
I love how some of the content I post here just comes to mind…and some of my favorites to create and share were:
I listened to a lot of music this past month because of how late into the night I had to work on most of my projects. So, in no apparent order, I’ll just share some that I kinda loved…or had on replay
[From top left- clockwise: Awake by Hillsong, Fine Line by Harry Styles, Songs for You by Tinashe, Sweet Insomnia by Gallant, Always in Between by Jess Glynne, 8 Letters by Why Don’t We]
It feels like there’s a lot more for me to do this month and I cannot help but feel like it’s going to be great, and I am opening up to all the endless opportunities coming my way this month.
How’s your February looking?
I feel like this is my get up, get moving and strike that off your to-do-list month! So, here’s my quote for this month with regards to work:
…a crashing,
No, it’s more of a hush…like a whisper,
A soft breeze against one’s earlobes at dawn.
There is a sound, I know not how profound it is, only that my heart knows it ought to be still, and my spirit ready.
There is a sound, as warm and bright as the rising sun
It is a mellow as spring
My spirit tells me it’s time, time to get up and make magic
Time to dance with the wind, walk with lightning and soar with Eagles.
You are like a garden,
Your potential a mystery, you only give what you get.
So, I work until my heart shatters at dusk,
Listening, expressing, touching…anything I can to awaken you…
And you…
You my love look at me under the moonlight glow and smile,
You say, “I never asked for this,” and right there my soul drifts into the dark.
Unknown to you, unknown to me…it lingers only to remind me that not all gardens have to be tilled, some grow wild.
It’s nine days to the end of January and I am already dreading February!
I have loved this month because I’ve seen the projects we envisioned late last year come to fruition. New permanent classrooms and smiles on kids faces because they get to enjoy studying in well ventilated, spacious and solid classes!
I intended to write more so I could have the final draft of my next book done by February but that won’t be happening. I think I killed the villain, and in her place another one sprouted and I don’t know what to do with her! So, this turn of events has thrown me off balance- and being a planner, I am frustrated to the point of not being able to align my thoughts to writing anything else.
What do you do when things go south?
I have had tea, taken a walk along the Lake, had some fresh mango juice, taken a nap, done some push ups (awful ones!), listened to my playlist on shuffle, set aside the draft…all these within a week and I still can’t get myself to calm down and get back to writing!
One of the greatest highlights of my day has been reading “Break your glass slippers” by Amanda Lovelace
My favorite lines…
“create a safe space
for yourself to go to when
it feels like the whole world
has turned against you.”
I am struggling to stay on track, trying my very best to follow this through and maybe going with the flow would help see to the completion of this draft, maybe not.
I guess I’ll not know unless I try…
Have an awesome week!
We walked for two days along a narrow path, never greeting anyone we met or stopping to rest. Naima believed that the warriors from Enzi would catch up with us if we stopped and I did not believe her until we came to the boundary between Enzi and Yajayo.
There we were stopped in our tracks by a warrior, on him were the marks that showed he belonged to the King’s court of Enzi. I stepped back but Naima walked up to him and bowed. It was a simple gesture but before I could follow her she kicked him off his feet with the next thing being her dagger on his throat.
“State your mission.”
“Mercy…your Majesty. I came to warn you, hear me out.”
“Speak and know that you are in presence of a Chronicler, if you spew lies, I am allowed to shed your blood and send you to your ancestors, however if you speak the truth and do not do us any harm, then this act of bravery will be rewarded. I promise you.”
“Thank you Your Majesty. The King has indeed joined his forefathers. All is not well in the kingdom and your people weep for their leader, however, since there is no Chronicler, the Seer cannot recommend the future leader until he receives word from her. The members of the royal court sent the warriors in search of you. We were directed to one man’s home but there was no sign of your presence there and we tracked you following the scent you left in the wind, asking any trader or traveler we met until we got to the stream, and there I did see you cross and take the turn towards Yajayo. I asked the team of warriors to go ahead and wait for you there, but as I was crossing the stream, something held my feet under-water and I could not move. It pulled me into the raging stream and as I struggled to catch my breath, I heard a single voice telling me to warn you and let you go, for your destiny is tied to what Meichi believes is right. I do not know how long you have but you have to go to the kingdom of Oba, stay there for a few moons and when you can, you may travel back to Yajayo, by then the warriors shall have left and you won’t be in danger. I know a Seer in Oba. Go find him, he will host you until it is safe for you to come to Yajayo.”
“Who are you?”
“Your Majesty, don’t you remember me…let me take off my mask, I promise you I will not harm you.” Naima stepped back, withdrew the dagger from the warrior’s throat and we watched as he slowly took off the mask and lifted his face to look into the eyes of the Princess.
“Zola! You!”
“Yes Your Majesty.”
“Why?”
“I made a promise to the wise Chronicler Zubeda, Zuri’s mother that I would protect and live to serve you, my Princess. I am sorry.”
“What is wrong with all of you thinking that I need protection?”
“Your Majesty…”
“I see specks of gold around your wrist Warrior Zola, you who stands when the world wants you to kneel, you with the heart that yearns for what makes your soul sing will be rewarded and in kindness you shall find love, and in love you shall find truth and in that truth, you too shall have to fight the greatest battle of your life…”
When I opened my eyes, the two were staring at me, “what happened?” I asked
“You don’t know?” asked Naima as she shook her head. “Will you utter nonsense like that every so often when your eyes turn white?”
“Nonsense? What do you mean?”
“I am only joking Chronicler I believe you just narrated a vision to us and it means that Zola here will be well rewarded for his courage today. So, can we go to this Oba kingdom and maybe get some place to lay our heads for the night, and what is the name of this Seer?”
“He is not to be sought by name, but here…wear this necklace around your neck and follow where it leads you.”
“You want me to be led by something around my neck? Never,” said Naima and she turned to take the path leading to Oba, but Zola held her hand.
…to be continued
I love African proverbs and sayings. While they often hold quite some truth to them, others inspire, challenge, question and others are down right hilarious.
So, here are eight of some of the African Proverbs that crack me up!
nilichoandika 