The lies we should ignore
The Pan-African event was, to use two words, totally awesome. Try picture 150 intellectuals in the same place, at the same time, all talking, doing and feeling great things. Africa's new breed leaders plotting, scheming, despairing, rejoicing on issues affecting their countries, their continent and their people. And, boy, was there interaction?
The great leaders interacted at all levels: emotionally, intellectually, personally and physically. The atmosphere was bouncy, powerful and spiritual. At the end of the third day, we shed tears, exchanged kisses and hugs. For me the Pan-African event changed the smouldering little flame that was my passion into a roaring fire. My tentative and whimsical approach to my dream became an all consuming and passionate reality. I saw possibilities and left Livingstone wanting to change the world more than ever before but more importantly actually knowing that I could do it, having now known that the only limitation I had was myself.
My eyes were opened, I saw other Africans as people; I connected with supposedly 'corrupt' Nigerians; hugged the supposedly 'war weary' Sudanese; and had lunch with the supposedly 'violent' South Africans, all the while questioning my faulty impressions about these people. How had we all acquired these negative labels? In Zambia I was not swindled or stabbed violently. The Ethiopians looked pretty well fed and the Zimbabweans got into hearty conversations with the British present. InterAction advises one to hold every assumption lightly, lets you see that indeed there is power in asking questions and that we must inquire with the objective to appreciate. I fell in love with me, with my brothers and sisters continent wide and I fell deeply and irrevocably in love with Africa. What stood out? Everything. Each little thing, whether it was a smile exchanged across a room or meeting the great Kenneth Kaunda, gave me a sense of placement (I was an African) and a sense of completeness. We bonded through the dances, the food, the laughs and the intellectual conversations. We left with renewed zeal, vowing to start a wave of change and to support each other whilst doing so. There are people that stood out for me, people with such wit, intelligence and passion; people that were dynamic and had a certain magnetism that made you want to be around them; people with big hearts and razor-sharp minds; people I know to be the future of Africa. And the best thing is: I am one of those people. Maku chikash |
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"What You did't Know"
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