Niyonga's Journey

Chapter 7

It feels like ive been hit with the hottest of heat. All I feel is a crippling burning sensation across my back. The man that whipped me seems pleased with himself, it looks as though hes... laughing at me? Then, before I know it, I was being put in more chains and was stood infront of the crowd. Its happening again. The man starts yelling to the audience and pointing and proding at my body. And then the crowd starts yelling back and holding up their signs. But one man had yelled louder than any other. The man who was yelling into the croud pointed at the loud man and said one word. 'SOLD.' What does that mean? The language of these people confuses me. But before I can say a word I am unchained from the post and then shakled to more of my people. I know none of them but I feel somewhat more comfortable with them. As we are screamed at and poked at with the white peoples weapons, were thrown in the back of a horse drawn wagon with the loud man seated at the front, watching our every move. Im terrified and I scream for my mother. One of the people im chained to tells me in my language  'Dont scream. Youll only make things worse for yourself. '

'Whats going to happen to all of us? Why are these people chaining us together and hurting us?' I ask the man who told me to stop.

'I dont really know, but its not good. Not at all.' He responds.

There is a young boy with the man in the front, he looks to be about my age. I was about to ask him what was going on when the older man turned to him and started to speak so I listened. Even though I didn't understand either of them, they both kept turning and pointing to us in the bank of the wagon. All of this is so confusing. As i try to turn to look out of the wagon,  the pain in my back comes back and I scream. One of the woman that i was shakled to touched my shoulder and asked what was wrong.

"I was whipped back there and it really hurts. I cannot move without feeling such pain." I say, trying to hold back the tears from the pain. The woman frowns and says 'Im so sorry, baby. I know how much it hurts. See?' She replies, uncovering  her shoulder to reveal several large scars from being whipped. I cringe and look away.

'Yeah.' She says. 'It hurt a lot like yours does. Itll start to heal soon, i hope.'

'I hope so, ow!, too.' I say.

No less then two minutes later,  the wagon stops in front of a huge house. The man and the boy step off of the wagon and are greeted by two woman. One older and one younger. The woman kisses the man and then takes the boy and the girl into the big house. The man then turns around and shouts to two black men standing by a shed near the side of the house. The men quickly run to the man and then they run to all of us in the wagon. As the men start to push and pull everyone off of the wagon, they start to separate us. Men with men, women with women, mothers with children, and kids with kids. Im unshakled from the other people on the wagon and then shakled to some other woman. I try to fight it and the man smaked me across my face. I start to cry and wish my mama was here. Finally the last woman was shakled to the rest of us and the white man cracks his whip and i wince in fear as we are forced foward towards the back of the

big house.

'Good god.' I gasp. What is all of this?