Severally people have asked, ‘Who is the gentleman?’ But the more they ask, the less they know who the gentleman is. He wasn’t born in Freetown, a fact hardly anyone knows. He has no parents: he has no beginning, and most people are certain, he has no ending. ‘The gentleman,’ I hear one old man … Continue reading The Gentleman of Freetown
Thoughts at 6AM
Rays of dawn break through the darkThe symphony of crickets whistlingTransitions to birds chirpingExuberant poda poda "apprentice"Ad-libbing "tɔŋ PZ, toŋ PZ?" I lay still, thoughts floatingFrom near to yonderAs my mind pendulumsIndulging the sane and randoms I want to speak to youAbout everything and nothingThe Taj Mahal and parallel universesMy fears and victories I lay … Continue reading Thoughts at 6AM
Respect
DISCLAIMER: the topic discussed in this piece may not be unique to Africa, but my perspective is African. If you are African one word you have probably heard the most is “respect”. In many African cultures the phenomenon of respect is emphasised, be it respect for one’s self or for others. In a big way … Continue reading Respect
The Gentleman of Freetown_2
I remember the expression on the old man’s face. It was dense. He told his story in the most serious of manners I have ever seen, with the gravest voice I have ever heard. He said that there were many legends as to how the gentleman of Freetown came to being, but only one he felt could have been true. He said, it was an October of 1808, and the rains were at their wildest. The acting governor of the crown colony of Sierra Leone, Thomas Perronet Thompson sat on his bed in his room wanking. He spilt his sperm on the floor, and slept off immediately, not wiping off the thick substance from his already messy room floor. In the governor’s room, as the old man’s story went, were empty bottles and bottles of whiskey and gin and brandy and all manner of liquor, and crumpled up papers, and cigarette juts and ashes. House flies made berth in the room all day long. And so as Governor Thompson’s sperm thickened and began to dry up, with the flies ice skating on the starchy substance, a miracle happened. A foetus was formed.
Jay Six Through My Childhood Eyes
Author: John Akewomu Lovel Terry Kalaw! Kalaw!! Dthin, Dthin. Dɛm de kam. Dɛm de kam. E Gɔd! Dɛm dɔn kam bak. Dɛm rebɛl dɛm dɔn kam bak o, fambul dɛm una grap. Kalaw! Kalaw! echoed the sound of gunshots in the darkness of the morning. Lajilaaaa. Us kayn nambara dis? It’s Wednesday, 6th January 1999, and … Continue reading Jay Six Through My Childhood Eyes
A CHARGE TO LAY
Author: Sade Clef If I lay the charge that we Sierra Leoneans are sadistic, would I be right? Would I offend our collective sensitivity? How does a thing like this work? I mean what qualifies a person or a group of persons as sadist? I don’t very much like my tone, the tone with which … Continue reading A CHARGE TO LAY
THE REASON WE TELL OUR STORY: MAKING A CASE FOR TRAUMA LITERATURE (EXCERPT FROM: AN ANALYSIS OF THE TREATMENT OF TRAUMA IN SELECTED SIERRA LEONEAN NOVELS- THE MEMORY OF LOVE, THE PALM OIL STAIN AND REDEMPTION SONG)
Author: Andrea Strasser-Nicol Literature tells human stories. In telling these stories it transcends the physical, into the inner psyche of characters. In these inner realms, readers encounter the joys, secrets and traumas of the characters through the deployment of flashbacks, introspects, retrospects, and other literary devices. Also, literature has proven to be a productive and … Continue reading THE REASON WE TELL OUR STORY: MAKING A CASE FOR TRAUMA LITERATURE (EXCERPT FROM: AN ANALYSIS OF THE TREATMENT OF TRAUMA IN SELECTED SIERRA LEONEAN NOVELS- THE MEMORY OF LOVE, THE PALM OIL STAIN AND REDEMPTION SONG)
Embrace: Black and What it Should be
—Author: Sylvanus Gooding (SADE Clef) I was a stable Christian chap for most of my life until I met, in my final year of University as an undergrad, Ngugi Wa’ Thiongo on the pages of Petals of Blood, particularly in the chapter that bears the story of the black man. I haven’t so far broken … Continue reading Embrace: Black and What it Should be
African and Woke
Are you woke? Are you sure you are (not)? In 1962 American writer, Melvin William Kelley, titled an article published by the New York Times “If You’re Woke You Dig It”, boom, that was the introduction of the woke phenomenon to the mainstream media. Since making its mainstream début, the woke phenomenon, which connotes a … Continue reading African and Woke
Virgo
This Virgo born has been a vagabond Labelled a hoodlum by some, A Prince to the Others. A being picked apart by those who pick a part Imperfectly pricked some hearts While learning to cherish hearts. Walking the borders Of love and hate Doubt and faith Free will and fate Balanced … Continue reading Virgo
Afrikan Dude 
