Mussulo, early morning
It is early morning.
A moment before yellow, yes.
I am staring at the sea, my father and me.
We wait for the rain to stop.
In silence.
When it stops we will go fishing.
Auralgraph: Mussulo Island, Angola, 2023. © Ondjaki.
***
Mussulo, almost midnight
Mussulo, near Luanda.
Almost midnight.
Slow rain.
Low, almost invisible clouds.
The birds are telling secrets to other birds.
I am eavesdropping.
Auralgraph: Mussulo Island, 2023. © Ondjaki.
Ondjaki is an Angolan author, poet, and occasional screenwriter. His novels include Good Morning Comrades (2001); Grandma Nineteen and the Soviet’s Secret (2008); and Transparent City (2013) which was listed by Vanity Fair, Vulture, the Globe and Mail, and Lithub as a notable and favourite book of the year, and won the 2013 José Saramago Prize for Literature. Hope The Pitanga Cherries Grow: Tales of Luanda, his documentary about his hometown, was released in 2006. He is a member of União Dos Escritores Angolanos (Angolan Writers Union). His work has been translated into French, Spanish, Italian, German, English, and Mandarin. Ondjaki is the co-founder of Kiela, a Luanda-based bookshop, and Kacimbo, an Angolan publisher.