The Long Journey to Mali; A Story Not For the Faint of Heart

Finally my date for departure has arrived. I should have been writting about the remarkable journey to get ready to leave but it might horrify children and grown folks alike. In brief retrospect I'm not sure what it was that took 7 months of planning to get here. However, just a bit of thinking recalls a time when I knew no one in, from and nothing about Mali. While I sit in Tampa's airport waiting for my flight to New York maybe I'll tell you the tale...

Once upon a time a young man name Clarence thought about traveling the world. He wanted to go to Africa but where? He desired to achieve the award of awards, the fulbright. The Fulbright was a magic power, as well as a prestigous grant which funded great hero's to live in foriegn countries, to study, learn, research etc. It had the power to grant the person who recieved it a brightness. The brightness would shine through all the worlds, draw good things to them, and help people to see the already present, but often overlooked worth of a person and their dreams. Clarence wanted to go to Sierra Leone and to recieve the fulbright to study there. It was said that in Sierra Leone great horror and atrocities had occured. Some nameless madness first cousin to greed and granchild to colonisation had gripped an entire country. Regular people turned to villans who hacked off the arms and legs of their family members. There was so much killing everywhere, nonmilitary, but civilian killing, that all hope seemed lost. When hope had gone from Sierra Leone an interesting thing was done by some of her people. An ancient tradition of magical hunters began to intiate anyone into their ranks who would fight for the people. Thus the Kamajor were born, and thus was Sierra Leone brought back from chaos. These were the people Clarence wanted to learn from. He would learn the truth of their story from their own mouths, document and by inspired by their heroism and learn something of their magic. Yet the order of heros who granted the fulbright power would not support such a venture. They said even they could not support it due to the effects of the war, but maybe one day.

Clarence had spent quite a bit of time studying Sierra Leone and the Kamajor in hopes of achieving the fulbright. Upon learning his quest could not be undertaken he was forces to change directions. When he found a new direction it was toward Mali. He heard rumors of great men and women there and this time he set out on the road without hopes of achieving the fulbright, but brighteness through his own endeavors, and work.

Clarence new little of Mali and so began the serious study. Reading books, articles and whatever he could he learned of societies of men called Komo, Numu and Donso. He was reminded of the ancient history of Mali and of it's empires Wagadou, Mali, Songhay, Segou and more. All of this took months of study to simply learn what was in the area. Clarence was himself a blacksmith and upon learning about the Numu, the local name for blacksmiths, whose families stretched thousand years back, he was drawn to them.

After researching the region he next had to find blacksmiths to study with if he was to go to Mali. Mali being an ocean away, it's residents speaking a completely different language, and having a totally different culture, was shall we say, remote. Clarence wrote letters (emails, letter sounds better though) to hundreds of scholars around the world on Mali and the people there. Some expressed interest in helping him, but the language barrier was too great. Some could only communicate once in several weeks, and so the quest to make contacts in Mali dragged on. Out of hundreds about 3 names emerged, two of which could not help, one scholar Clarence already knew. Eventually a scholar cited in an article Clarence discovered digging through an obscure library in the countryside (BBC article from 2004) would become Clarence's primary link to Mali. This took almost half a year to come to fruition.

Then their was the raising money. As he raised money offered by his comunity in their support of his quest he had to spend too much to simply live. He was forced to abandon his own house when aa an evil landlord tried to steal huge amounts of money. Secretly hidding with his heroic friend the same landlord began to destory her house. The Evil magic of the landlord forced the temperature to incredible heats, making it almost impossible to work or think. holes emerged in the roof dripping frightening brown water into the house, while water flooded in through the walls and windows. Sewage spilled in from the wall onto the bed of Clarence's friend Kehinde. When it seemed they might go crazy, Kehinde found another place to live, and in one weekend, and recently having moved Clarence the same way, they moved Kehinde and Clarence to a new house. The endless work of lifting and moving was strained by the old evil lanlords magic making every box heavy as boulders, and without rest from move after move, working ceaselessy to get to Mali, Clarence lost a great deal of power. It's was as if his spirit was drifting and becoming lost.

Other personal conflicts began to destroy Clarence's spirit and he ceased to be productive in his work. Clarence could not reach Mali for months even after he had contacts there. When finally finding a secret magical spell to make his letters go through (can't call with a cell, only skype seems efficient, especially now that no one has landlines anymore) Clarence was still ineffective because no one spoke his language. And once again all felt lost. But Clarence never gave up hope. There would be quite a few more trials, but through the powerful magic and blessings of his Mother, Kehinde the good the tireless and constant, and Nzinga the enthusiastic he was able to regain his spirit. Now nothing happens without the blessing of God. No magic moves without God, no prayer is answered either, because God is the pressence that magic, prayer and blessing move on, in and are made of. Also no great action happens thorugh the efforts of one person. Clarence's community, friends, gave and gave. Some people supported him with their hearts, some gave what they had even if only a few dollars, and others with their enthusiam.

Now I sit looking out of the window. Ready to fly accross the seas to Mali and study with her heros to learn about the brilliance in man. I can tell you... it's brighter, and it will continue to grow so, until I and the world are truly full of brightness.