By
John Moono
Chapter One
A long time ago, in a small town of Tanganyika in Senga Hill District in Northern Zambia. In a remote corner of the vast African continent lies a small village nestled among the rolling hills and sweeping savannahs. This is Tanganyika, a village located in the heart of Senga Hill – a land of untamed wilderness and ancient traditions.
As the sun rises over the horizon, the first rays of light illuminate the tall grasses that sway in the gentle breeze. The air is filled with the sounds of birds chirping, monkeys chattering, and the occasional roar of a lion in the distance. This is the soundtrack of Tanganyika, a place where nature reigns supreme with might powers.
The village is a collection of mud huts, connected by winding paths that meander through the thick vegetation. The huts are simple but sturdy, with thatched roofs and walls made of hardened mud. Each one is adorned with intricate patterns, passed down from generation to generation, telling the story of the village and its people.
At the center of Tanganyika village stands a large baobab tree, its gnarled roots spreading out in all directions. This is the meeting place for the villagers, where they gather to share news, stories, and laughter. It is also a place of great importance, for beneath the baobab’s shade lies the entrance to the village’s most sacred site – the ancestral burial ground.
The people of Senga Hill are a proud and resilient community. For many years , they have lived off the land, relying on hunting, fishing, and farming for their survival. The road to the town of Mpulungu also was a source of livelihood and it was hive of activity each passing day. They have a deep respect for nature and believe in living in harmony with the environment. This is evident in their way of life, as they only take what they need and give back to Mother Earth in return.
One of the most striking things about Tanganyika is the sense of community that permeates every aspect of village life. Everyone knows each other, and there is a sense of kinship that goes beyond blood relations. The villagers work together, celebrate together, and support each other through the good times and the bad.
But life in Tanganyika is not without its challenges. The village is often plagued by droughts, floods, and other natural disasters. In times of hardship, the villagers turn to their tribal chief Kavumbo for guidance. He is a wise and respected leader, known for his compassion and fairness. Under his leadership, the villagers have learned to adapt and survive in the face of adversity.
As the day wears on, the villagers go about their daily tasks. The women gather herbs and roots, which they use to make medicines and traditional remedies. They also tend to their small vegetable gardens, growing everything from tomatoes and beans to sweet potatoes and cassava. The men, on the other hand, spend their days hunting and fishing – skills that have been passed down from their ancestors.
As the sun starts to set, the villagers make their way back to their huts. The children play games and tell stories while the elders sit around a fire, sharing ancient legends and wisdom. The air is filled with the aroma of cooking fires and the distant sound of drums.
But life in Tanganyika is not all about survival. The villagers also know how to celebrate and have fun. They hold colourful festivals to mark special occasions, such as the harvest season or the start of the rainy season. These festivals are a riot of color, music, and dance – a true celebration of life and community.
In Tanganyika time moves slowly, and the villagers live in tune with the rhythm of nature. Their traditions, customs, and way of life have remained unchanged for centuries. As night falls and the stars come out, the villagers retire to their huts, feeling grateful for another day in this Tanganyika paradise of Senga Hill.
There lived a young beautiful and angelic faced girl named Sarah. In this small countryside town, is where rumours whispered through the wind like secrets, Sarah found herself caught in a web of uncertainty. A lot seemed amiss about her life and she had more questions than answers about her life and the uncertainty that had beseeched her. She felt neglected as the sense of togetherness which went beyond kinship and blood relations was no where to be seen when life threw tantrums at her.
At a young age she had lost both her parents and she lived in abject poverty. Her parents were government workers and were the envy of the town. Life seemed all rosy for the parents to Sarah, because they had everything that they desired as they could afford almost everything people in the countryside dreamed about. Sarah was born in this blissful life that her parents lived but in a twinkling of an eye, life turned for the worse for a young Sarah. Her parents Mr and Mrs Singoyi were involved in a road traffic accident on the Mpika-Kasama Road as they journeyed from Mpika to Senga Hill. The accident was so fatal that it claimed the lives of five people including the parents to Sarah. When the news of their accident reached Senga Hill, people were really shocked at the turn of events. Some people believed a hand of witchcraft was involved and others believed that it was a natural consequence of life. Many community members felt sorry for the young Sarah who was Orphaned at a very tender age. She sobbed uncontrollably despite the comforters by her side. It was a turning point the almost perfect life of Sarah under the care of her parents.
Sarah remembered how she could eat everything she wanted and had every toy that she wanted from her parents. She cried day and night as she tried to figure out what had really happened for her parents to just disappear from the face of the earth without saying bye to her and explaining why they were leaving her alone.
Despite all this, she always wore a beautiful and captivating smile on her angelic face. She was so determined to find answers to the uncertainty that had engulfed her life and why life would throw such tantrums at her. She was the talk of Senga Hill and everyone suspected that her parents might have offended the gods and that the punishment was being meted out on their offspring, since they were no longer alive to serve the punishment themselves.
Chapter Two
One man in Senga Hill had similar challenges until someone from Mpulungu talked him into seeing Elijah in Mulowo. This now became the talk of many in Senga Hill and Mpulungu. So when the townsfolk spoke of a mysterious figure who had the ability to see into the future. Sceptical but intrigued, Sarah set out to uncover the truth.
As she delved into the enigma, in the only public bookstore at the only secondary school in the small town of Senga Hill, she stumbled upon an old book with an eccentric owner named Elijah. Elijah was a possessed with a peculiar gift which was so rarely in his town of Mulowo in the neighbouring country of Tanzania.
Elijah had help a young man by the name of Amos years back who went on to become a professor. In recognition and appreciation of the way Elijah helped Amos to make decisions based on caution and courage, Amos wrote a book about the peculiar gift that Elijah possessed. The book somehow was able to find itself in the bookstore at a rural secondary school in Senga Hill. It was mentioned that Elijah possessed a peculiar gift, the ability to glimpse alternate realities. Amos’ ascension from a poverty stricken background to one of the best acclaimed professors in the medical field in country and beyond. The news of Elijah’s gift spread so fast like wildfire and was the talk of the towns in both Zambia and Tanzania. Sarah, sceptical yet curious, agreed to an experiment.
Elijah a difficult man to please and had a lot of people from different parts of the two countries seeking to have an insight of their different futures. One had to make prior appointment to meet up with Elijah, without which one would spend months trying to see the man. The townsfolk after agreeing with Sarah to visit the man in Mulowo, made the necessary arrangements for Sarah to have a one on one meeting with Elijah.
When the fateful day came, Sarah was quite sceptical like her initial thought was but she was intrigued at the prospect of navigating the challenges and uncertainty that had beseeched her life. When they arrived at Elijah’s place, Sarah and the townsfolk, it was a very sunny day and a hive of activity around the place. People trying to make the appointments while others waiting for their turn to be attended to. Sarah seemed at sea at the first glance of the man who could have a hand in changing her life forever. When all the pleasantries were done, Sarah and Elijah sat in a secluded place and the man inquired on what Sarah really wanted. Elijah handed her an ancient-looking pendant, instructing her to close her eyes and concentrate. It was a very critical phase of what Elijah’s gift to unpack the future was about.
Growing up, Sarah wanted to be a nurse. She was passionate about helping the sick and taking care of the aged. She believed this was the most noble career and that it had service to humanity at its core. She always pictured herself in that uniform but began to doubt if truly she would be a nurse after the demise of her parents. She only knew her parents as her relatives, she was never introduced to any other relation when her parents were still alive. So she had to navigate the path to being a nurse of by herself in the mostly unforgiving world. So this was an opportunity for her to view for herself what realities and the infinite possibilities that lay ahead of her and what she needed to do to make it in Life and shrugged off the tag of uncertainty that had beseeched her.
Suddenly, Sarah found herself in a world where choices unfolded like a tapestry of possibilities. Each decision led to a divergent path, creating a kaleidoscope of outcomes. She was able to mirror herself in the different spheres and aspects of life based on the choice she would make.
In one reality, she achieved remarkable success but sacrificed personal relationships. She grimed at the prospect of being successful yet without anyone she would really count on as a friend . She really thought personal relationships help one to be a better human being and that humanity is everything to her wellbeing. And that the thought of envisaging the future was to be of service to humanity. This weighed in heavily on her young mind in that moment. She tried to contemplate how that reality would shape her life but the lack of personal relationships hugely discouraged her on this reality.
Another path led to profound love but at the cost of professional fulfilment. She also wanted to have a successful professional career and she desired to have a noble career with service to humanity at the heart of her career choice. Sarah witnessed joy, heartbreak, and everything in between.
Sarah thought about the two realities that the ancient-looking pendant was able to bring forth before her and realized that life is a journey where choices determine what one is going to end up like. She realized that in every journey and choice one makes, there is joy, and heartbreak but what is important is to be focused and patient for everyone’s turn does really come. She remarked to herself, “She shall become of me if I sacrificed personal relationships just to achieve so much success.” “Or what is the purpose of having a life with profound tender, love and care yet with no professional fulfilment.”
Chapter Three
Overwhelmed, she asked Elijah to return her to the familiar. As reality snapped back, she struggled to comprehend the gravity of what she had experienced. The townsfolk's whispers now held a different weight – the weight of infinite possibilities. But the insights that Elijah had provided to her though difficult to comprehend but her realization was the greatest asset she had acquired from this experience. She now believed that every human being had infinite possibilities in spite of the uncertainty that can beseech one’s life. Elijah encouraged her that it was always difficult for many to comprehend was they had a glimpse of the different realities that life lays before each person.
Elijah after listening to her story and what prompted her to visit him, refused to accept the gifts from Sarah, saying sometimes it is not about the gifts but about helping people try to comprehend their life in spite of the uncertainties that they are grappling with. Elijah said to her, “what message am I sending by accepting gifts from you who has been so unfortunate in your short stay on this Earth?” “Sometimes, service to humanity is more fulfilling than the things that we crave for.” Sarah was very thankful for the gesture from Elijah and she asked the townsfolk to have the gifts for bringing her to such a helpful man. Elijah, said to Sarah, years ago, I am sure before you were born, a young from your country came to me seeking to be helped to make decisions for his future, I was able to perform the same ritual with him, I was amazed at how courageous he was, without a hint of doubt. He chose a path of life that the pendant was able to show him and because of him, the news of my gift was able to travel like a deadly virus. I am sure even the man that recommended you to me must have heard about the young man I helped years ago.
Elijah remarked that Amos was the true epitome of how being grateful was, he had continued to send gifts to me after many years of our interaction. Elijah smiled and said, “he even wrote a book about my peculiar gift and look, this is the copy he sent to me.” Sarah was overjoyed when she saw the book in the hands of Elijah and her mind was cast back to the time was looking for solutions to the problems that had beseeched her following the untimely demise of her parents. She said to Elijah, “I read that book at the bookstore at the only secondary school in our small town.” After I read it and the townsfolk told me about you, I was sure that I would get the exact help I was looking for.
Elijah re-emphasized his point that, service to humanity is more gratifying than the gifts we chase after. Who would have thought that Amos who help me get known in many places. I was only helping the young because of his life story because I was so touched that I rendered help without thinking twice. Here am I now, people are always flocking to my place that I don’t even have time for my family anymore. “Oh! Amos you are surely an angel. A God sent human being to change my entire life.” You see young girl, Elijah remarked, “this gift I have, it is very easy for one to mistake me for medians, witchdoctors, or perhaps soothsayers who extort a lot of many from people.” Sarah came to a realization that indeed service humanity is very important and the heavens use people to help people. She was lost in thought for moment and said to Elijah, “I am beginning to believe that helping is not only about the actions of giving material things but even the smallest of kind words said to someone can also be called help.” “I think the greatest help are the kind words that we say to people.”
Sarah was a reinvigorated human being again after her encounter with Elijah and wished she could stay in Elijah’s homestead a bit longer. She said that her time there was more soothing and soul searching than the poverty ridden life she had endured in Senga Hill. The townsfolk was also of the idea that they spend more time in Elijah’s homestead.
With newfound wisdom, Sarah navigated life with a blend of caution and courage, knowing that every choice shaped a unique destiny. "If I didn't know better," she mused, She was really thankful to the townsfolk who was able to bring her to Elijah and she remarked, "I had say life is a tapestry woven with the threads of our decisions, each strand contributing to the masterpiece of our existence."
My Biography
John Moono
I am a Teacher by profession and currently teaching at Mbala Secondary School in the Northern Province of Zambia. I am a graduate from Kwame Nkrumah University in Kabwe, Zambia. Trained in Diplomatic Practice, Protocol and Public Relations from the Zambia Institute of Diplomacy and International Studies.
I am a firm believer in Prudent Environmental Management and Protection as way of taking responsibility in the fight against Climate Change. The responsibility of taking care our nature should be everyone’s concern and everyone should take the lead in the fight against Climate Change. Leaving a better earth for the generations to come should be our concern. I hold a personal belief that the current pandemic ravaging the world is as a result of the poor physical condition of the environment.
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