Why Sankofa's Children?

My mum was very much like Kunta Kinte fom Alex Haley's classic series 'Roots". Kunta was a proud Mandinkan man from Gambia.  His second marriage to wife Belle Waller, for she could not understand why he wouldn't just let this identity go and be whatever was asked of him, enabling them to experience the joys of a relationship with less friction and interference from their slave master.  Belle soon became pregnant, not with just her child but a Mandinka child named Keisa (Kizzy in English) .  There's a difference!  This child had a parent with a purpose; to know thyself, connect and remain true to one's cultural identity.  In the movie we watched Kunta Kinte as a father demonstrate his culture and traditions of his people in attempt to ensure that his daughter would not be 'lost' as time went on.

From experience I know this to be a difficult path of struggles and inner conflicts despite the counsel of my mother.  The good thing is that her wisdom is timeless and as the proverb states its a case of "When the student is ready then the teacher appears".

Sankofa can mean either the word in the Akan language of Ghana that translates in English to "go back and take" (Sanko- go back, fa- take) or the Asante Adinkra symbol.
It symbolizes one taking from the past what is good and bringing it into the present in order to make positive progress through the benevolent use of knowledge.

Did you know that?....
The film by Ethiopian-American filmmaker Haile Gerima Sankofa (1993) popularized the term.
Janet Jackson has a Sankofa symbol tattooed on her right wrist.
Hip-Hop artist Talib Kweli also references the term Sankofa on his album Reflection Eternal.
British filmmaker Isaac Julien co-founded the Sankofa Film and Video Collective, a collective of black British filmmakers.
In the Toni Morrison novel Song of Solomon the reoccurring motif of flight as a way to escape is indicative of sankofa (Webster's Dictionary).

Interesting huh?  Now it has become my mission to carry this forward into my family.  Life takes us down many trails but this one I am grateful for.... the past offering direction and understanding.....Wow!   such truth can only bring a sense of pride to build a memorable legacy.

So there you have it my mum's, (Antie Felicia's) dream in a nutshell.  What's your parents dream for you? Is it in line for what you desire for yourself or is it clashing like wearing pinstripe and polka dots?