A SUPERIOR RACE

The shooting incident in a church at Charleston in the USA has more than ever highlighted to the World the on goings of what seems to be the persecution of the black race in America. Though I hardly follow the news especially from mainstream networks and channels, the few times that I have turned on my television to catch a glimpse of, ‘the evils going on in the world’, have met me with very horrifying images of blacks being brutalized in America - young, old, children and mothers alike. Some concerned friends of mine and sympathizers have on one or two occassions schooled me through a countless series of gut wrenching videos on YouTube of what I call a disgraceful disregard and humiliation of another human life and potential, especially by use of state instruments like the police. What do I have to say to a people going through such trying times? Well first of all let’s not forget the examples taught us by Nelson Mandela; What Rev. Martin Luther King Jnr. taught us, and ultimately what Jesus Christ taught, that we should love those who hate us. If there’s one thing I have learnt from Mandela and Rev.  King, it is, that trials and persecutions are not meant to destroy anyone, they are actually meant for promotion! People who hate are weak and full of fear! The persecution of the black race in America is a call on all black people therefore to hone their spirituality, if slavery and all the persecution black people have faced in history could ever be perceived by them rather as an unparalleled opportunity to be promoted, to become the superior race - the race full of love and compassion and forgiveness, the race that does not hate; because the magnitude of one's trials determine the level of their greatness. For this to happen however, black people would have to stop being too predictable by looking at themselves always in the context of racial prejudices. I think if there is one thing Martin Luther king’s generation did not pass on clearly to that of today, it would be the way one viewed his own history. We see it in every black movie; everything that has to pass as black must make reference to black people in the context of their distasteful past, as underdogs and descendants of slaves. I always wondered when that was going to end; And to those who thought it wise that the more you said it the more people become aware, I say to them to fast forward to now and tell me if racial prejudices against black people in America are not even worse off, that is the result of over-trumpeting the aspects of one’s past that portrays them as bound to servitude. I am tempted to believe it’s exciting for some black people to go on about this identity of a victimized black person, perhaps because it’s a band wagon that gets corporate sponsorship, Hip-Hop and Hollywood as cases in point. As a matter of fact it is believed that things have become worse off than before, but life is not only lived for excitement, success is the application of tried and tested principles. Black teachers and scholars are also over-intellectualizing the black identity that the system also sponsors. As long as you will keep seeing yourself as a victim of circumstances you can never rise above your environment. The last time I checked from the good books about a race, it identified just three races on earth – Jews, gentiles and the newly born in Christ. There was no mention of skin color. In fact when will black people rise above racial identity and history? Even in the face of stark persecution. God did not create anyone black, he created man in his image and likeness – now would that instead be the vision of the black nation, because you see, what you talk is what you become; the gospel of Matthew teaches us that by a man’s words he is justified and by a man’s words he is condemned, to win this war against hatred black people must begin to talk about their God identity and take it very seriously than their black identity. Yes it’s brilliant and thrilling and also cool but many years of preaching black identity has not created a superior race.

THE KPG STATE OF MIND

As I strolled down the list, – most dangerous gangs in the world, on the whole was the Cossa Nostra that stood out for me,  – they were well dressed, draped in dapper looking suits and set apart particularly by their Borsalino hats. I peered very deeply into the black and white photo and examined their faces, trying to catch a glimpse of their thought – All men, likely in their middle ages. The only one who looked older, the Godfather I suppose, was encircled as he inclined heliocentrically in his seat. What inspires these guys? I asked. What makes them come out with some of the most intricate communication systems that even national security cannot unravel? My mind automatically began to imagine some of the primary activities of these gangs such as drug trafficking, highway robbery, prison breaks, oversight of illegal agreements, racketeering, extortion, illegal gambling, heist, murder, – then a scene played, –  how members who perform the most successful operations might have boasted about carrying out for example, the best robbery, or heist or the best murder – celebrating with bottles of champagne emptied into fragile-looking wine glasses which their bloody hands clutched in the sky. I tried to understand the mindset of these guys – ‘Don’t get them wrong,’ I whispered to myself. They didn’t have a life and Cossa Nostra gave them one; if it were you, what would you do? Won’t you serve?

These guys are obviously very gifted and might have been making a certain kind of headway in their lives when eventually they found themselves on the wrong side of things, and then realized there were overarching principles in life that they weren’t aware of and so fell victims – then the Godfather showed up, re-engineered them and now they owed their lives to him. Like any classic case of a redeemed soul. What are these principles: Talent is not enough, there must be a purpose that talent is used to fulfill to which your whole life conforms, even the woman you end up with. Be mentored to discover your purpose, join the nation or family or army of your mentor and serve with your all by giving your all, for the greatest gift a man could give to his God is himself. 1 Timothy 4:15 says, ‘Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them that thy profiting may appear to all.’ It made me think about the family that I am a part of BLW. Sometimes I laugh when people say, ‘Awww…I am so happy for you, that you found something to believe in.’ – Haha, and what do they mean? – Christianity! Lol, if you are counting religions please count Christianity out! I thought about the gangs again – who do they work for? What if they all united? – cossa nostra, crips, blood, united bamboo, yakuza, latin kings, barrio azteca, solntsevskaya bratva, 18th street, aryan brotherhood, sinaloa cartel, mungiki, mara salvatrucha, los zetas, hells angels, mongols, texas syndicate, wah ching, bloods, area boys, almighty black p stone nation, nuestra family, mexican mafia, black guerrilla family etc. – What if they all united today? And who do they really work for? In my teens I read a story in the TIME magazine about the Godfather of the Gambinos, that if you shot him in his face he would spit out the bullets and ricochet it back to harm his adversaries, spooky right? Lol. What many do not know is that these gangs fellowship with demons and that’s how they come by these powers. And whenever they fellowship with Satan and his demons, he gives them what I refer to as the, ‘Empire State of Mind’ – you feel you can own the whole world as long as you keep earning the favor of demons by following in their lead. But you would have to be filled with the knowledge of God’s Word to know that Satan was stripped off his Adamic authority and ended up with nothing – all power belong to Jesus. Hallelujah! When you fellowship with God through Jesus Christ, He gives you a Kingdom, Power and Glory state-of-mind. Matthew 6:13, ‘…for thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.’ Empires have come and gone most of which were ruled by men filled with demons, but the Kingdom and Power of God is forever, and full of everlasting Glory. Romans 10:14, ‘How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard?’ It makes me wonder how many people know this. Especially the members of these gangs, and if nobody tells them how will they know? It’s cool to have an empire state of mind, but until you discover the perfect will of God for your life and begin to walk in it, you have yet to have the Kingdom state of mind. The Bible says in Ephesians 2:10 that we have been created in Christ Jesus unto good works so get up and let’s make cells leaders of these Godfathers and a congregation of these Gangbangers – because we have the KPG state of mind.

FOR A LIVING DOG IS BETTER THAN A DEAD LION: MEDITATIONS ON ECCLESIASTES NINE

It shows how precious life is albeit short, yet must still be lived fully because in the grave, the dead, even the memory of them will be forgotten and forgotten forever (...for a living dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun). He even hints that when you wake up the next day it means God has accepted you (Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works. Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment. Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun. Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest). But he brings to our minds the rude awakening of accountability, that we are going to account for our time here. That both the dead and the living, however much fuller or lesser they enjoyed life or made the best of it, will not elude judgement, and even worse is that no one knows when calamity will hit ( For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare; so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them). Therefore he admonishes, be swift if you are a runner, be skilled if you are an artisan but you still would not elude judgment, what is the difference therefore between you and others - living or dead? And then being a prophet, the writer, he reveals Christ to be the remedy or the way out of this dichotomy. Time and chance means being at the right place at the right time and that spiritual location is in Christ (I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all). 

NB:Please read the whole chapter.

'LIFE OF A BILLIONAIRE IN THE MAKING - IN THE LAST MONTHS OF BEING DETERMINED; IN THE LAST MONTHS OF REIGNING'

'LIFE OF A BILLIONAIRE IN THE MAKING - IN THE LAST MONTHS OF BEING DETERMINED; IN THE LAST MONTHS OF REIGNING'

Prelude:

Welcome to this collection of 10, of my new poems that I have titled, 'LIFE OF A BILLIONAIRE IN THE MAKING - IN THE LAST MONTHS OF BEING DETERMINED; IN THE LAST MONTHS OF REIGNING'

These poems shall encourage you to look at life in many different possibilities, such that the intensity of how these poems rearrange reality would be so grueling to you.

I am aware that the word grueling means, 'to be physically and mentally demanding to the point of exhaustion'

But hey don't get me wrong. At this stage of our craft we don't think it - it comes naturally.

And, 'Grueling', was the word I received - That's what came out!

When Mbroba asked me at that instance when the word was given, I told her I didn't quite remember what it meant.

'It's a word I just used' I wrote, 'Lol'

'But I believe it expresses what I want to say' I added.

Consider the word, 'Embarrassing'

It's just like saying, 'I am so embarrassed with Blessings'

To mean that you have too much of it;

Therefore no fears here, just love, power and a sound mind.

Ok so there are 10 poems in all, I know there's one in here just for you. But I'll encourage you to go through them one by one, and I guarantee they'll all inspire you and you'll wake up in the morning wanting to SHINE!

Enjoy, thanks

DK Osei-Yaw

God Bless You!

                                               

1

I sculpt with words what Angelo wrote with stones

High is not bad when existence is the drug

And vision is cannabis

And doing is how you overdose

I sculpt with words what Angelo wrote with stones

What do you see?

                is the question

Step on a man's shoes

And you step on his face

In order for words not to go waste

We abbreviate

I sculpt with words what Angelo wrote with stones

People want you to stay with them, behind - in Life

Or they'll rather that you are, the late

I sculpt with words what Angelo wrote with stones

                                               

2

Art is great,

But the Gospel is better

Poetry is life,

But life is not poetry

Everybody wants to fulfill something good in their lives

God's gift for you is to bring out the best in them all

Go where you will be told:

That you don't need to win souls

To go to heaven - not here!

3

Breaking the ring of his chain aloud on a page -

That he held up

Two things part ways that could not be held

But as a yoke lifted, it is heard in the eyes

Slipping-out and falling down on your own weight

Almost didn't let go - flickering lights that cannot go off:

Mbroba, keep your head up

There's a plane above

           

4

What is us?

I know who I am

And you are my neighbour

But what is us?

Are we who

Should’ve been you

Or who

Should’ve been me?

5

Excited in text -

Frowning in face

She threw her eyes at me

From the backseat of a car

Everybody is hoping to find that one partner -

That life partner

The devil is like a taxi driver roaming

                with empty seats

for a passenger

6

I told her she talked too much when she was broke

And I stopped seeing the food on the table

Then I learnt,

That the things we need in life

is what we normally take for granted

Then her money got finished,

Then she learnt.

7

Don't love God because of your dreams

Love your dreams because of God

Everybody is getting it without a reason

So how poor is the have-not?

Blessed are the poor in the Spirit

8

Yeah Peace is always around

So is anxiety

But look how pretty

this landscape is

Who tries to interfere?

Think...

9

We needed you when the world was boring

But guess what now; we have no need for you:

Three street lights have been installed on one street alone

And the radio does not broadcast just one channel anymore

Now we hear the voice that you're opposing

How does it feel to know

That we will now see three times brighter

on Chapel Street?

10

And this -

is for all the names

Wrongfully mentioned:

Tweaa...

In the end only speakers make history

The rest make memory

Tweaa...

In the end only speakers make memory

The rest make history

(Emmanuel Dickson Osei-Yaw © 2014, Accra Ghana)

PAN AFRICAN AND DISPORA CO-OPERATIONS IN THE LAND WHERE THE PURPLE RAINS

I have just arrived at the airport in Harare – a day behind the time scheduled for me to be in Zimbabwe on the Moving Africa Project organized by Goethe Institut South Africa that sponsors African artists to attend art and cultural festivals going on anywhere on the African continent. I have come for SHOKO 2013 an extravaganza of a series of remarkable celebrations of art and culture in the city ‘Where the Purple Rains’ in the Southern Hemisphere, where all traffic is heading for the next five days. I am really looking forward to touching bumpers with some of the travelers this convoy brings, especially my other fellows on the project from Uganda, Mozambique, Malawi, Tanzania and Angola.  

I am DK Osei-Yaw, and I’ve come from Ghana in West Africa. I have just gone through the Zimbabwean airport immigration checks and now emerging out of the arrival hall. I do a scan of the different names or tags held out by people on mostly A4 sheets printed in block solid letters and I don’t see my name – or SHOKO… - or MOVING AFRICA – at least any of these in print. Howbeit I proceed, rather to the embrace of the open terrace just outside the doorway through the arrival hall. I am first spotted by its sunny daylight and bright skies, smiled at by its interesting landscape, cuddled by its climate, and kissed by a distinct blooming plant that stood out from amongst its peers within this noteworthy view from the airport terrace where I stood, and could see taxis parked, next to a lower wall along a beautifully tarred road that slightly curved in front of the doorway at the arrival. I could hear airport trolleys being ridden.

Harmattan is my favorite weather in Ghana, and the climate here at Harare isn’t too far from what I like. It was still humid and hot back in Accra when I left and wasn’t yet time for Harmattan, which begins from November into March the following year, and therefore I felt blessed to be ahead of the occasion and simply enjoyed the season.

A good amount of time has gone by now and I have still not been picked up from the airport. But it’s not been a sad past 40minutes at all, apart from the great climate, and the excitement of devising a plan B, I have been engaged with a Zimbabwean airport staff trying to learn a few expressions in their native language. I kept glued to the airport trolley where I had been offered a seat and took my lessons in Shona.

‘Ma’ngonaani’ he tooted, ‘means good morning’

I thought this wasn’t so different from the South African greeting of ‘Saa’mbonaani....’ that I’d heard many times on my South African Airways flight, which went through the O.A Thambo Airport in Johannesburg from Accra to Harare. This helped a lot in learning greetings in Shona and my teachers were quite impressed that I followed quite well and easily.

‘Ma’ngonaani, then Maamugaase’ my teacher continued, ‘now you’re taking it further and you want to know how they are doing’  

Just out of the blue, it occurred to me that a group of people had just disembarked from a bus while I was engaged with the airport staff, and could possibly be of help with information regarding SHOKO 2013. I quickly approached one of them, a young man with a camera snapping away at the Rastafarian and his entourage that had just arrived outside the airport like I did a while ago. Before long, he and I were discussing the Zimbabwean-German society. It was my thinking that the A4 sized bent-in-2-halves fact-a-zeens (Fact Magazines) of African Image – Baasa Kro printed in Bonne by Robert Sobotta, the Director of Goethe Institut Ghana, would only be useful later at the festival when there were exchanges of some sort of cards, brochures or contacts with other artists. Here is the case however, that it is serving as a point of contact now. Even before I uttered a word about who I was and my mission, the green and white logo of Goethe Institut at the bottom of the back page of the fact-a-zeen that I handed to the young photographer, was what begun our discussion, then I knew I was speaking to the right person. Well over some minutes later, I was in a convoy of vehicles with the Rastafarian and his entourage, whom I discovered later, was the reggae artist Tony Rebel.  The procession drove down the highways of Harare from the airport into the city centre where the beautiful hotel set in a garden called Bronte was situated, a colonial British architecture of brick roofs and pavements, polished wooden balusters and window outlines with cute balconies and stairways.

The checking-in process took quite a little while, but as the automated door knob to room 85 clicked open at the touch of a key card, I could not help but toss myself and my hand luggage into the soft forthcoming beds of Bronte Hotel and scream, ‘Thank you Jesus!’ as a way of welcoming myself to Harare.

From that point on everything was fast and I liked it. Before I could inadvertently be lured to a nap in the 17 degrees weather and inside a room adorned by two stunning impressionist styled framed paintings, - one of them showing two men in a fishing boat whose reflections could be seen in the water, I was hurriedly reminded of a press briefing that was about to start in the conference room upstairs of the hotel. It had been just a little over half past 17 hours when it dawned on me, and later that evening at about 20 hours was going to be the comedy night at the Waterwhirled, the first SHOKO event I would be attending. The press conference was chaired by Comrade Fetso, the creative director of SHOKO 2013, and flanked by a panel of mostly musical artists who have come from all over the world, including the rapper and poet Ian Kamau from Toronto Canada, and the two comedians from neighboring South Africa who were on the bill to perform that evening, Tumi Moriake and Kagiso Lediga. As Clive Chigubu, a Zimbabwean comedian and the host of the press conference as well as host for the comedy night, noticed a hand that had flung up in the rear of the conference room, I could not wait to be an active part of the high spirited discussion and the inspiring atmosphere of fellowship going on amongst young people of a continental, cross cultural and global perspective. As it turned out later on, the rapper Ian Kamau and I had met in Accra 7 years earlier at an open-mic session that he still had not forgotten at all the incident that led him to give me a CD of his. I also learnt from the comedian Tumi Moriake that she was married to a Ghanaian. Later that night at the comedy event, I heard Ghana and Azonto and Church many times in her act. She and I as well as Kagiso, were driven together in the same right hand drive car by Nikita, and the driver to the Waterwhirld. In the car I called her my in-law (she was actually the one who first addressed me by that at the press conference).

Subsequent to the press conference, when we had all exchanged welcomes and anything there was to exchange when people meet the first time, one gentleman and I had only just begun a discussion about freestyle Rap and were just warming up to it. He was Simba, the Moving Africa Representative from Mozambique, a recording rap artist with endorsements in Maputo. He was the one who revealed to me that our Angolan counterpart could not make it. Quite strangely though somehow, Simba and I, after parting ways at the press conference and planning to meet again to catch-up with our discussion, actually narrowly missed each other and failed the entire rest of the day at several attempts to reconnect. There seem to have been some broken link in communication between us and the other Moving Africa reps that were there. For me it was a little challenging to identify one person who could lead me to a Moving Africa rep because it was impossible to phone any of them without a number. Hence I was alone the whole evening at the comedy night, even though I ran once again into the photographer that I’d met at the airport before, and moreover hanged-out for a little while with Mateu, one of the festival organizers - a Kenyan, and two of her friends also from Kenya who were siblings – a brother and a sister. It was not until the next evening at the slam poetry session at the book café, after I’d stopped by Carol’s place and listened to her play the guitar and sing, and after I’d had some Mazoe to drink that Simba and I reconnected. I was on the rebound from the restroom, when we bumped into each other. It was a very delightful moment for both of us as we found ourselves doing straight 15 minutes of talking unbeknownst to us both still standing at the same spot at the book café. After several minutes of conversing, mainly about what had gone on with us so far, Simba said, ‘that’s her’ gesturing the glass of wine in his right hand in the direction of a lady in a green top, ‘The girl from Malawi’ he added. Simba and I both returned to our seats. I returned to the table where I had been offered a seat by Dickson, one of the festival organizers, and two other ladies, one of whom was Ruth Daniel from the UK, that I was to later discover is behind the organization ‘Unconvention’, who are into networking artists from all over the world to discuss creative ideas and helping build the infrastructure for the development of these ideas. At one of the SHOKO panel discussions at the gallery amphitheatre, the very articulate Ruth disclosed several of such creative efforts taking place around the world that ‘Unconvention’ had been part of.  One of those striking examples was a place in Colombia called Medellin, the hometown of Pablo Escoba, where the mayor of the city built escalators in the mountains and saturated the whole place with wi-fi networks in order to facilitate the creative use of the web and interaction through movement. I arrived back at the table to see that we had been joined by Comrade Fetso, and one other gentleman who introduced himself to me as Espen, the Moving Africa Rep for Tanzania. Espen is a professional musician who performs by the name Mzungu Kichaa.

In a while, just before everything were to be rounded up for the night, I saw a lady get up and excuse herself to a more discrete part of the building, detached from the bar and the stage area. I quickly followed suit. Shortly, I was shaking hands with Rina, the Moving Africa Rep from Malawi, who Simba had gestured to me.

Almost immediately, Rina and I were joined by Simba and Mzungu, therefore it was Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania; I was yet to meet the Ugandan. This happened on my second day in Harare, Thursday the 19^th of September, 2013. And for the first time, at the SHOKO Festival ‘Breaking Boundaries Poetry Slam’, Moving Africa was reconnecting. Does that say anything to you? Well for me as a poet, and the one who popularized Spoken Word (Slam) Poetry in Ghana, the occasion surrounding our reunion was significant. And even more considerable was the discovery of Poets such as Afurakan, Ewok and their local counterparts in Zimbabwe with whom they fiercely competed in a Slam. I learnt and discovered a lot about artistic content in this Sothern Hemisphere part of Africa, which turned to be more favorable towards racial issues, politics and religiosity. And whose style of delivery more revolutionary than in Ghana, where there was more optimism going on, of things personal about everyday life, through a delivery that is more classic by nature. I must admit though, that our brothers and sisters in Zimbabwe have a better understanding and use of art as a tool for social change and are  exploiting it. Therefore one can see a lot of commitment, consistency and orderliness in the way that they go about art. This understanding of the art also gives them a much wider perspective, and greater goals that merit their working together as one. This however is the biggest test in Ghana now, where young and old, the old especially have still not understood art as a tool for social change. Even those in the industry have a partial commitment to art, and are divided in their attentiveness in doing things excellently, hence the lack of inspiration to work together.

The afternoon of the day before I left Zimbabwe, after a music workshop at the Waterwhirled, I discussed this with a Zimbabwean guitarist and vocalist by name Tarera, and also with Margaret, one of the festival organizers who also runs an artist management agency. Now Rina, Mzungu, Simba and I are sharing outlook on the same issues. The slam had been delightful and revealing for me, the bus is here now to take us to our hotel.

The next day was to begin yet another very pleasant phase of this whole journey to Harare, – time at breakfast. For me the time at breakfast revealed a lot about all five of us representing our various countries, and the one guy from the Diaspora – Ian Kamau. Breakfast was all about the aspirations and expectations we bore for our diverse careers as artists, and for our nations. We would dream at that table till the sun shed its bright rays on us through the garden foliage. Our desire to be of assistance to one another, irrespective of the border challenges, and to influence the African continent and the world at large with our ideas, through such exclusive platforms as the Moving Africa Project marked our daydream.

Waking up in the morning at Bronte Hotel was what prepared me every day to look forward to a great time with my colleagues. Breakfast was between half after six, and about a quarter to 10am. Some mornings I was up for breakfast early before seven, or quite late after nine. Every morning was fresh in the midst of the garden – birds tweeting, the feel and sound of the cool morning breeze just whirling through the leaves, and just the sight of the whole place and atmosphere made one feel they were part of a work of art.  Walking down the curving cobblestone path from room 85 to the Palms Restaurant, your eyes could not resist the sight of the fish ponds, and the metal sculptures, especially that of the owl placed at the edge of one of the ponds, and also the numerous stone sculptures set in different parts of the garden. Monkey nuts were constantly raining down from tall trees. What’s more, it was such a wonder to observe suddenly whilst on foot, that your feet are walking over an area covered all purple with the flowers of the tropical Jacaranda tree, a sight to behold. For me when that moment occurs, it is as if this plant that had kissed me at the airport upon arrival, had been following me everywhere I went in Harare, and forever shedding its flowers at my feet as if to settle me with the welcome that I dreamt of. I enter another area covered in its flowers and I asked myself, ‘Did it rain purple here too today?’  

Last night after comedy, when we all had arrived back at the hotel, Remy, the Moving Africa Rep for Uganda joined us for a meeting inside Ian Kamau’s room, that was initiated by one of us. We had such a remarkable moment together for the first time. Being the first of its kind, we so wished that we had not been that fatigued from the day’s activities.

‘Coffee or tea Sir?’

‘Coffee please’

It was a brief instance away from the conversation to respond to the waiter. I turned my head back in, only to meet the faces of at least three others glaring back at the waiter. I did not even realize when the conversation had paused for us all to order coffee.

‘I would also like a cup of coffee please’ Rina threw in quickly before the waiter had reached far, ‘with milk’ she added.

‘Ok Madam’ said the waiter politely.

I have lost count of the number of times all the others ordered something because one person ordered it, and vice versa. But this was real co-operation going on at the breakfast table, a heartfelt one, as we got consumed and excited by our conversation about visions, aspirations, goals and change. Although we were five Moving Africa representatives, there were six of us at the table. The kind of co-operation going on was unique in its own right. We were always honored to have the Poet and Rapper Ian Kamau join us for breakfast. In fact he went with us everywhere together.

We were next door neighbors at Bronte Hotel. It was the first time after 7 years that he and I were officially meeting, and this happened nowhere else than in Harare. He even made me play Congas to back him on stage, and that’s the way it was, things just happened – they were unplanned, but they turned out all perfect. As I sat at the table with my colleagues from Uganda, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Canada, it dawned on me how the Moving Africa Project was such an eye opening experience of contemporary or urban Africans learning certain important lessons about themselves and their various societies through the unique environment of festivals.

DK OSEI-YAW,                                                                                                                                Kasoa, Ghana 25/09/13

http://youtu.be/VDjeoyQapj0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSFvVwFleRw&feature=youtu.be