Stranger Fruits

Lost at Sea

Her hair was as black as charcoal, curled and kinked like the links she still had to home. An ocean away. Little did she know, her home would only be kept alive as long as her breath tethered her to life, and her home was the last place where her cinnamon brown skin is considered beautiful. Her light brown eyes set her apart from the other black women at the market but back home she was the product of a long pedigree connected to the soil of her people. She was Yoruba, a junior queen holding her people's future in her womb, a seed buried in foreign soil disconnected from the fertile land it was meant to thrive in. The South Carolina market bustled like it was the largest city on earth. She couldn't understand a word being spoken and the loud hum of the crowd terrified her. She was only fourteen and wasn't even ready for the world she knew yet there she was in shackles in what felt like another planet.

"This here is one fine young nigger gal, she's fit an smart an fresh. Won't give ya no trouble an ready ta serve, so we startin her at fifty dollas!" The auctioneer hollered.

She didn't understand a word that was being said at all so she begged her fellow bondwomen for some insight on what he said but no one acknowledged her. She recalled a past conversation she had about white folks with her aunt back home. "Them people bad. I hear they eat our flesh for strength and keep your soul forever." The memory of her aunt's words buckled her knees and made her desperately plead for mercy from everyone watching. But the market swallowed her pleas whole and casually sold her for 78 dollars. She collapsed from the stress of it all but they yelled with threats to beat her if she didn't get up, so the daughter of her new owner helped her. She was as pale as the clouds and was the first white person she had ever looked in the eyes. They were as blue as the ocean she sailed to get here.

"I'm Elizabeth. You're safe with me, I won't let them lay a finger on you. We're going to be real good friends, I like your eyes. Why I've never seen such ember eyes on a nigger before! You must be something rare. Well get on up, lets get you something nice to put on and feed ya."

Even though she didn't know what Elizabeth was saying, she felt that maybe somehow Elizabeth understood her plea for mercy, so she jumped into her arms and expresses great gratitude.

"Thank you for saving my life! Please, take me from here I want to go home! Please ,please, Thank you!" she hoped her expressions with compensate for the language barrier between them. But Elizabeth thought that she merely liked her so she thought to ask her father if she could have her for herself. Having her fawn all over her might help him consider it.

"I don't understand a word you're saying. The auction man was right when he said you're fresh. I hope moma's mammy can teach you right. Anyway, since you can't speak a proper word yet, I'm naming you Sally. Well, Sally follow me." She held on to Elizabeth's arm like if she'd let go she would perish. Elizabeth made way to her mother while her father took care of the business of paying for her.

"Ma, this is Sally. Her name is Sally, she doesn't speak English yet do you think Mammy can teach her?"

"I guess we'll see sweet heart. Don't go getting no ideas now. I see she has a liking for you, but that don't mean that your father is going to let you keep her. Besides, what do you think you gone do with her? You're barely old enough to wear that dress, you ain't even finish your schoolin and you think you know what it takes to train something so fresh? She gotta learn and you ain't spoiling this one. No ma'am."

"But ma she likes me already! I mean look at her! Plus I'm almost old enough to be courted proper, I'll be 16 in a year. You think it'd be right for me to get married and run off without a servant? I'll need one before I come of age."

"Well when you get there I'm sure your suitor, proper as he'll be, will have one for you. Now leave it be."

While Elizabeth pouts, waiting to try her father when he's done, the girl felt as though Elizabeth was talking about her. When she pointed at her, she said Sally and it didn't sit right with her. So she pointed at herself and proclaimed "I am Aanu."

"I think she's trying to tell us her nigger name. No, you're Sally. Sally!" Elizabeth retorted.

The next day on their way home to Georgia, Elizabeth's father tried prying Aanu away from her. He was frustrated at how she only responded to Elizabeth and saw that it would grow into a problem once they made it to Georgia so he made Aanu ride on their cargo wagon in a cage with the other slave. He was a young man who was a problem at a rice plantation back in South Carolina, so he was cheap. He wasn't too quiet so he started on the bad side of his new owners.

"What you crying for? Ain't nothing gone change fa the betta! So yous best wise up and learn how to speak. Don't no body here speak that African. Na I can look out fa ya if'n you look out fa me. How bout this, ME GEORGE. Me George. George Friend, you George friend! Ya understand that?" George held his shackled hands out palms up like he was telling her to rise. Aanu, frightened, took his gesture to mean that he wanted to protect her so she crawled up next to him and eventually feel asleep on him.

The next morning they finally arrive to their new home in Georgia. John, Elizabeth's father, discovered Aanu sleeping under George and goes into a rage.

"Git your filthy hands of my girl, Nigger!" John thrashes him across the face with the heavy buckle of his belt and snatches him out of the cage.

"I'm gone teach you now! I ain't like them boy's in Carolina, you gone heed me and be no trouble or ya dead! I'm gone beat all the black off ya!"

Witnessing John beat George senseless put more fear in Aanu than ever at this point. So as soon as she sees Elizabeth she runs to her for protection. Elizabeth immediately tries to comfort her.

"Oh I'll never let you get beat like this. Paw don't touch her!"

"I'll be damned! Now I bought her, don't you undermine me Elizabeth. Now I'm sure this Jezebel done had her way with George, so I gotta teach her." John snatches Aanu from Elizabeth and has her chained to a post in the barn. Left her there for hours until it was evening time. He came out and personally stripped her and washed her. He then left her naked for another hour and came back with a hot plate of food. He sat it on the ground just out of her reach.

"If you want to eat you gotta heed me." John tries to take advantage of her, but she starts to scream and fight. He stopped, took the plate, fed it to the horses and walked away. He tries the same thing the next day, Aanu tried to put up a fight but she was too weak from hunger to.

"Hey now suh, the misses sent me out here to see where ya went off ta."

"Now Mammy don't you see I'm busy!?"

"Yesuh, I'll goes tell Mrs. Sarah you reeeal busy out here."

"Fine! I'm coming! You take care what you tell my wife or else I'll sell yo old ass to the Richards, ya hear? Now clean her up and feed her. Get her ready to learn house work. Teach her how to speak too." John puts his clothes on and strolls away like he was having second thoughts about going home.

Mammy tried to clean Aanu up but she faints from exhaustion, so she cleans and clothes her while she sleeps then splashes water on her face hoping she'll come to.

"You fine? You alive? Drink this water." Flustered Aanu looks at mammy and demands "Who are you?"

"My name is Akanni little one, I am your friend."

"My Frie-" Aanu weeps having heard her native tongue for the first time since she got to America. She could hardly hold it together as she held Akanni like she was her mother.

"It's fine now child. Mama KiKi is with you. Eat and rest."

As time passed Aanu began to show. Nobody knew it, but she was already pregnant when she got to America. She was betrothed to a prince back home with whom she loved before she was abducted. But John didn't see it that way, he thought it was his child. So Aanu got preferential treatment. His wife was pregnant at the same time, behind her by only four months so he got the idea that he would father two and was excited. Until Aanu gave birth, and the child was dark, too dark to be his son. He believed that George was the father so he killed him, castrated and hung him, then forced Aanu to live in the slave shacks far away from the house. Aanu named the boy Adesanya because he was worth the pain, but his true name had to be kept secret so he was known as Douglas. After five years of raising her son, John decided it was time for Aanu to return to house work because Mama KiKi had become ill. While she was working in the house, Mama KiKi was there to help raise Douglas. But John had a greater purpose for Aanu and Douglas. Something sure to change the lives of everyone.