bumpenya.com

Sarah's Story,

Bumpenya (Lady of Bumpe)

By Sarah Culberson

It all began in beautiful Morgantown, West Virginia.  I was adopted as an infant into an incredible family, and when I was eighteen I decided I wanted to know where I came from, and who I looked like.  I soon found my biological mother’s family, and learned that she came from West Virginia and had passed away from cancer when I was a child.

Next I wanted to find my biological father but was terrified of rejection, so I avoided looking for him for six years.  Then I participated in a program called Landmark education that enabled me to let go of my fear, and made me aware of what stood in my way of seeking out my biological father.  I took one of the biggest risks of my life.  I contacted a private investigator and found part of my family in Maryland.  I wrote a letter to them and mailed it.  I was nervous and excited.  Four days later on an overcast Sunday afternoon I received the phone call from my Aunt Evelyn Kposowa. 

She said, “Hello Sarah. This is Evelyn. How are you?”  I heard this wonderful accented voice, but had no idea where this woman was from or just who she was.  I was confused.  She said, “I’m your Auntie! We received your letter.”  She informed me that my father had moved back to Sierra Leone 20 years ago.  He came to America to study in West Virginia, at Salem College while my biological mother, a native West Virginian, was attending college at nearby West Virginia University.  This stunning black man and the lovely white lady met in Morgantown, fell in love and eventually I was born.  They were young and realized they weren’t ready to raise a child so they put me up for adoption. 

Aunt Evelyn told me they would contact my father in Sierra Leone.  Two weeks went by before they were able to contact him.  Those two weeks were the longest weeks of my life awaiting his call.  The day he contacted me was the happiest day of my life.  We spoke for about an hour and a half, and he invited me to my families’ village, Bumpe, in Sierra Leone and I couldn’t wait to go. I planned my trip with lots of assistance from my two Uncles, Thomas and Ali, who live in Maryland. Next I surprised my friend and acting coach John by inviting him to travel with me to Africa. He had suggested I should plan to video the trip, and I thought it would be great to have the comfort of a fellow traveler I trust who could videotape my reunion. After the initial shock wore off, he said "yes" and we were off to Africa.

After a day and a half of travel, my heart was pumping when we landed in Lungi airport in Sierra Leone.  This is where I first laid eyes on my father.  I was nervous, I wanted to find my bags and then focus on my father.  The first thought that flashed in my mind when I first saw him was, “He doesn’t look like his picture.”  Then in the next moment we were hugging and the moment I had waited for my whole life was happening.  It was magical.

That night we went to a hotel in Freetown and rested for the night before taking the five hour drive to my family’s village.  That morning my father gave me a beautiful green African print dress.  It was lovely and he wore a shirt made of the same material.  Little did I know that this green dress would be so special.

When I first arrived in the village, I was welcomed by approximately 200-300 people singing my name and dancing.  I felt like I was in a movie.  We drove on these brilliant red dirt roads to my father’s village, now my village as well, and in the distance I could see these dark as night faces coming down the painted red clay road singing and dancing.  But there were not just 30-40 people in this group coming over the hill, there were many more than that, coming from 8-10 different villages, there to welcome me upon my arrival. 

I was in shock.

I said to myself, “What did I do to deserve this?” I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.  As the hundreds of Leonean villagers welcomed me, singing my name in their native songs,  I thought to myself, “God you have truly blessed me.”  I sat in the car in amazement as we approached, and realized now that about 100 people in the crowd were wearing magnificent outfits made from the same material as my green print dress, a cherished gift from my father. 

I learned in the African tradition, when there is a special occasion everyone, men and women, in a family buy the same material and have outfits made.  My father had a dress made for me out of that material, and when I put that dress on that morning, to travel to Bumpe, I had no idea that 100 wonderful men and women would be wearing the same outfit. 

I also had no idea that my family was so large.  I immediately felt a sense of belonging. They had already made me a part of the family and having a dress made that matched everyone else’s made me feel that they were saying, “you are one of us.”  You have no idea how incredible it felt to be so honored and welcomed.  Children were running along side the vehicle yelling. “Sarah, Sarah.”

When the car finally stopped I got out and sang with everyone in Mende, the language of the district, a song I later came to know meant, "We are here and we are preparing for Sarah."  I was overwhelmed by all the attention.  I had never experienced anything like this in my life. I had a moment where I wanted to run the other way but realized I had no time to be scared and I had to jump in and join everyone.  I did and when I did I felt extremely loved and cared for.  I began to tear up because I was finally allowing myself to feel this amazing experience.

Next we sang and danced our way to an amphitheater-like area set among bushy beautiful trees where everyone sat in a huge circle.  I sat with my father, my Uncle the Paramount Chief and other dignitaries from neighboring villages at the head table. Then there was a three hour ceremony to welcome me.

My Uncle the Chief began by announcing that because of my family lineage as part of the Kposowa family, I too could be Chief someday, of this southern part of Sierra Leone.  My father told me this the first time we spoke on the phone, but to have the announcement made in front of hundreds of people was mind blowing.

I said to myself, “This can’t really be happening.  There are children and adults here performing in this magical pastoral setting singing to me, Oh my gosh, Oh my gosh.”  Then I’d pinch myself just to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.  I sat in awe for three hours as the dancing and speeches in my honor continued long into the night.  This was my first day in Bumpe and wow, what a welcome.

The first day was incredible and the days that followed were extraordinary, but as my stay continued I could not help seeing all the destruction from the rebel war. I learned a rebel leader from Liberia named Charles Taylor had decided to join forces with another rebel leader from Sierra Leone to over throw the government.  He provided the rebels with weapons and ammunition in exchange for diamonds. 

The rebels destroyed everything in their path--- houses, schools, anything they could get their hands on. The war lasted for a decade.  It became so savage that the rebels cut off infants’ and adults’ hands, fingers, even whole arms and legs.  I know what it’s like to watch the news and see horrible atrocities, but to be there and talk with them, in a village that is working hard to rebuild itself after ten years of war, is a deeply moving experience.  I spoke with eight men and women who had an arm or hand cut off, and heard their stories about the war and how they survived.  They are some of the strongest people I have ever met.

My father was also directly affected by the war.  He, his wife, my sister and brother were in hiding for four years.  He is the headmaster of the middle and high school in the village, where the rebels went so far as to remove the zinc roofing from school buildings.  The rebels burned and ransacked the once pristine campus, including the library and books and classroom desks. I asked my father to send an accounting of how much it would cost to rebuild the school and the estimate is close to 200,000 USD.  I raised a little money before I left for Africa, but there’s is still much more to go.

This trip to Africa has changed my life and I have learned a great deal from my journey.  The most important things I’ve learned are to be unstoppable, even in the face of fear, that the unknown doesn’t have to be scary, to let go of the expected result, to always resolve unresolved relationships, and to take risks.  I have discovered a whole new family, an extraordinary addition to my life. 

In fact, I have three families now and, I’m not even married!  There are more struggles and obstacles ahead I know, but I will endure, I must.  Because you see, love does conquer.