Agostine K Ndungu

Coming to Black Agostine K Ndungu

Until the lion learns to tell its story, the tale of the hunt will always glorify the hunter," - African Proverb. Imagine a small village somewhere in the middle of the African jungle, where hunters and gatherers live their best life: Waking up at sunrise; tilling the land till noon; lunch under a tree followed by hunting expeditions in the afternoon; sumptuous meals for dinner and 10 good hours of good sleep every day for a lifetime! Everyone knows each other. Everyone cares for each other. Everyone trusts each other. Until one day a white man shows up. Henry Morton Stanley meets Senior Chief Waiyaki wa Hinga for a chit chat. He takes a pen and doodles on a handwritten piece of paper. Waiyaki is intrigued: What magic is this! "It's not about the stick, it's about the mind... You too can do it! Here draw your own mark..."And just like that my people lost their land their freedom, their community, their voice, and ultimately, their identity. I believe I am on a mission to regain pride in my identity as an #UprightAfrican, and restore the lost familial bonds between the people of African descent."Coming to Black," is as much a personal memoir as it is a historical narrative, striving to balance between the perilous danger of a single story and the tragedy of an erased memory. It is the story of my awakening as a black man in a colored world.