A LEAP INTO THE UNKNOWN By Doreen Abanema Abayaa No one ever knows what lies ahead of them while trying new adventures on foreign soils. Yearning for adventure and a new appreciation of life, I leapt back to my Northern roots to see for myself the things I had heard and read. The unraveling of my Northern voyage and experiences left me psychologically and emotionally distressed. The butterflies one feels when they have achieved their desire but least expected the worst could happen, is what I experienced when I lost over 40 articles and a father, the person who made writing worthwhile. The unknown started when: Pain, poverty, suffering and the abuse of drugs by the youth living in the northern part of Ghana were being documented. Being the curious soul I am, I decided to take a trip to my ancestral land to see for myself. Dad, mum and I decided to take a trip to the north for my grandaunt's funeral. This of course was unexpected. I made it a point to explore different parts in the north and learn about the people from my land. After the funeral was over, this signalled the beginning of my journey, a feeling of benign excitement that was pronounced after my mum and dad had left. This rendered me the happiest gal ever in that moment. Learning about extreme poverty and of malnourished people of the north, I carried along with me clothes and other goodies to share to some people in the remote villages. I managed this with the help of some kids from an orphanage I had donated to. I had no car, neither did I have with me enough money to convey the bags of clothes I wanted to donate. Living within budget, I rented a tricycle that transported the bags and humans to a village called Bongo Soi in the Upper East Region. It took less than an hour to get to the village. Everyone seemed busy but upon our arrival, we were surrounded and welcomed by an orphan boy Anyoka whom I later came to learn that due to poverty, could not treat himself or get medication for Hepatitis, a disease he had carried for more than 12 years. His story moved me and I asked to be taken along to the hospital so I could stay with him and monitor his progress until he was discharged. This young man helped us offload the bags in the tricycle. The villagers knew for sure those bags had something for them. Among them were children, old men and women dressed in filthy rags and half-naked people who stood waiting to know what we had for them. The harsh reality that unfolded before me was eye watering and stark. I was frozen as though in a time loop and in that moment I thought to myself “I AM BLESSED EVEN THOUGH I DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH”. We shared to the people what we brought them, but this little kid melted my heart when a shirt and a hat that belonged to my brother was handed to him. In my observation, his face lit with a smile as he held tight to his chest the shirt as though it was all he could hold on to save his life. This time, I could not control my emotions anymore and I wept. I was there to make a difference and not to cry but after spending time with these people, I learnt so much from them and would want to share their story with the world. After that donation, I was back againin the north to visit the children in the orphanage and plan the way forward for more donations to come in for other villages. I discovered a lot and had over 40 articles written from my visit which lasted a month, but the unfortunate happened. I got a call from my friend who had found out my sister was robbed and along the things taken was my laptop. I had no backup whatsoever because I was still working on more articles. My emotions, my mental health and life was shattered upon hearing of this news. Even though I got a new laptop from my dad and an external hard drive to back up my work, it could not replace what I had spent sleepless nights working on. Yet to recover from this mishap, I lost my dad about 5 months after. The unknown made me feel I had time, this adventure I experienced took a twist but taught me so much. I am searching for the right motivation to start and get myself back into the writing game. I love to tell the stories I experienced. ................................................................................................. .................................................................................................