Buon Compleanno, Lodo

Ieri, il 22 di aprile la mia amica di Crema, Lodovica Radaelli ha celebrato il suo compleanno. Non ho' potuto chiamarla ma ho pregato per lei.

Conosco Lodo da trent'anni quando era ancora studente a Udine, mi pare. Ci siamo conosciuti all'Instituto Goethe di Staufen in Germania dove avevamo imparato la lingua tedesca. Poi da Roma sono andato parechie volte a casa sua a Crema. L'ultima volta che ci siamo visti era a Fribourg in Svizzera pocho tempo prima del mio ritorno al Congo nel 92. Auguri, carissima Lodo! Dio ti benedica!

Comme le temps passe !

Dimanche, 21 avril 1974. Il y a jour pour jour trente-six ans, je me trouvais pour la première fois à Bandundu; c'était l'ordination sacerdotale de l'abbé Innocent Mwela-Kipoy, premier prêtre de Kenge formé au petit séminaire de Kalonda. Nous sommes arrivés de Kalonda le 20 avril, avions logé au collège Kivuvu. J'étais chargé d'enregistrer les chants de la messe... mais on n'a jamais entendu ces chants. Le jeune homme avait maladroitement manié l'appareil? Ou bien était-ce une panne technique? Allez-y savoir. Les cassettes comme nous les connaissons aujourd'hui n'existaient pas à cette époque. Proficiat abbé curé Mwela! Kisalu ya mbote na dihya ya Mfumu! Je m'en souviens encore comme d'hier. C'était la deuxième ordination à laquelle j'assistais, après celle de l'abbé Kapende deux années auparavant à Kenge.

Where Are You From?

Every African fellow who lives in the Caribbean once comes to be asked this question when talking to Bajans or any other Caribbean. As soon as you open your mouth, your accent discriminates you so that you are automatically taken for a foreigner. To me "Where are you from?" means much more than just a curiosity expression; it is a very tricky question. I might be wrong, it is debatable. Its real meaning depends on the person who asks the question and how the question is put. When one asks me : "Are you from Nigeria?" I always answer: "Not yet" I sometimes add: "maybe in a future life!" People usually laugh everytime I give this kind of answer. That is the way I have found to avoid answering this extremely embarrassing question. But when I am in a bad mood, I simply ignore the question or sometimes express my anger, because it may empower the questioner to go beyond the boarders of courtesy.

"Come on, Man, take it easy, you are in the paradise of Barbados and don't live in your African jungle any more. Life nowadays is much less complicated to cope with, and the world has become a universal village. Don't worry about that, Buddy! It is just a question. Right? "