The Dragons, the Giant, the Women: A Memoir

It is December 1990. Many people try to convince Mam not to leave. Facia advises her on how to blend in with other African women. If people know she’s from the US, Facia warns, they may try to steal from her. Before leaving her apartment, Mam cradles her son, nurses him, and sings to him. She has the sponsorship letter from the embassy. She tried to get letters for her mother and sisters, but only her immediate family members could go with her back to the US.

Before her flight, Mam meets with Yasuka, who asks if she’s afraid to go and if Mam has any other options. Mam asserts that she’s not afraid. She also feels like herself again, relieved of guilt, after making her decision. Yasuka tells Mam that she can’t wait to meet her family.

When Mam arrives in Freetown and leaves the plane, she smells all the aromas that she’d longed for in the past year. She goes to the line for foreigners and waits with British military personnel and members of non-governmental organizations. A man wearing a customs vest approaches her. Thinking he might be one of the rogues in disguise that Facia warned her about, she assures him that she doesn’t need help with her bag. He relents and welcomes her to the country.

Outside, another man approaches Mam and says her name. He announces himself as the driver for Marta, Facia’s friend. A small woman steps out of the car and waves to Mam. All she knows about Marta is that she and Facia attended university together in France. Marta tells her that she had her house girl prepare jollof rice for Mam.

Marta talks about how shocking the news is out of Liberia. She recalls a time when Sierra Leoneans were trying to go to the country for jobs. Now, it’s the reverse. She also tells Mam that she hears that Guinea, Ghana, and Nigeria have many refugee camps. Mam reports that there are settlement programs in New York, particularly Staten Island. Marta talks about how Taylor’s rebels have entered Sierra Leone to try to overthrow Momoh. To escape trouble, Marta plans to return to France. Mam says that she’ll go to Bo Waterside in the morning. There, she’ll rent a room and figure out what to do next. Marta says that Mam is as brave as Facia had said but that it’s nearly impossible to cross the border into Liberia. Still, Mam stays hopeful. Bo Waterside is close to Junde, which is only a canoe ride away from Lai.

That night, Marta’s cook prepares boiled pork, chicken, and seafood with white rice, onions, and peppers. She adds palm oil and boiled greens. She doles out the meal on two plates for Mam and Marta. Mam thinks of a time during her childhood when she became sick and lost her appetite. Ol’ Ma prepared her “checked rice with okra and gravy” and fried two chickens (213). Ol’ Ma said that she had to eat so that she’d have the energy to fight off the dragons when they came for her. That got Mam’s attention. She opened her mouth to eat. Now, at Marta’s, she eats just as heartily to get up her strength.

The next morning, she gets on a bus in Freetown that’s bound for the Liberian border town of Bo Waterside. On the bus, she places her suitcase on a seat near the window and sits in the aisle. She tries to occupy her own row to avoid pickpockets and to have an easy escape in case of an emergency. She notices two holes in the back windows from bullets.

Most of the passengers on the bus are traders. Before the bus pulls off, a loud knock prompts the driver to open the door, cursing. A man boards and asks to sit next to Mam. She lets him have the window seat and places her suitcase under the seat in front of her. He introduces himself as Jallah.

Mam falls asleep on the bus, having been unable to sleep the night before. The sound of the Atlantic Ocean in the distance causes her to doze off. When she awakens, she worries about her belongings. Jallah laughs beside her, assuring her that he’s been watching her luggage for her. He jokes that everyone is too nervous to steal anyway. Mam decides to be friendly. She introduces herself and says that she’s Vai. Jallah is too. He tells her that he has rooms in his home, but he wouldn’t want to make his wives jealous by having her as a guest. He then asks how many women Mam’s father married. He’s shocked when she tells Jallah only one. He’s also surprised when she says that her grandfather was a monogamist too. She then tells him that she and Gus have been married for eight years. When she tells Jallah that Gus is still alive, he reports meeting a woman in Freetown who sold goods at a market to feed her daughters because both her brother and son were killed and her son was missing. When Jallah asks if Gus is in Bo Waterside, she tells him that he’s in a village on the other side. She has arrived to help him escape. Jallah asks how she’ll do that. She admits that she doesn’t know but will figure it out when she reaches the border.

Jallah then announces that he wants to help Mam. He speaks quietly in Vai. He tells her that he knows of a woman rebel—a Vai woman. He talks about how some fighters look bad but aren’t really. Mam wonders if Jallah is a rebel. He continues, telling her that the army conscripts these rebels after promising to make them rich and protect their families. Those who refuse are beaten or raped. Satta is one of the good ones in Taylor’s army who, for a fee, will ferry Mam’s family to her. She’s made a business out of passing people across the border into Bo Waterside. Mam asks if the scheme is safe. So far, it has been, Jallah says. Mam agrees to meet Satta.

Late in the afternoon, they arrive in Bo Waterside. The town is twice as crowded and bustling as Freetown. Jallah leads Mam to a rooming house. He assures her that it’s a good one; even NGO people stay there. In the foyer, they greet a woman who calls Jallah by name. She offers Mam a room. The bed has a straw mattress. She tells Mam that running water and a bathroom are down the hall. Mam takes it. Tired and hungry, she follows Jallah back outside. He gives her his number. There is a phone at the hotel, he says, and security. He tells Mam that he plans to call Satta and bring her to the hotel.

Mam goes to a market table and buys a steak knife. She then buys two bags of kala bread, or black-eyed pea fritters. Back in her room, Mam grips the steak knife and sleeps with it. That night, she dozes in and out of sleep. 

It takes two days for Jallah to arrive. Mam worries and calls the number he gave her. The hotel’s proprietor assures her that he’ll return. She decides that if Jallah doesn’t return by the end of the week, she’ll cross the border on her own. Then, the proprietor calls for Mam. Jallah is on the phone. He tells Mam that it took him some time to find Satta but that he’ll come to the hotel in the morning with Satta in tow.

The two meet Mam in her room the next day. Satta wears “camouflage pants and a stained shirt” (226). Mam notices how stocky her shoulders are, despite her tiny frame. She also notices the young woman’s red, sunken eyes. Mam asks Satta in Vai if she is Vai. Satta responds in affirmatively in English and then asks where Mam’s family is. She tells them that they’re in a village near Junde. Satta knows the area. On the journey, Satta will wear her full suit and carry her rifle. The army, she says, will simply think she’s transporting. She’s never had to use her gun for trips like this, she says.

Mam asks how long it will take her to get to Lai. Satta assures her that it’ll only take a day. Mam is nearly overwhelmed with emotion, thinking of how soon she’ll be reunited with her family. She tells Satta that she’ll be retrieving four people—her husband and three daughters. In exchange, Mam must give Satta $600 in American money. Satta then says that she’ll travel overnight and arrive in the village by tomorrow morning. That will get the family back to Bo Waterside by tomorrow evening. Jallah says that Satta will bring Mam’s family to his house. After Mam pays her, Satta prepares to leave. Mam stops her and hands her a photo, saying that Gus won’t leave with Satta unless she shows it to him.