Obroni

REVIEWING The Hope You Can Have: A boy’s Journey from ghana BY Fifi baiden

I’ll put some words out there: hunger, poverty, homeless, orphaned, abandoned, death. Contrary to the opening paragraphs in the 6th Chapter of this book, these words are not the first words that pop into my mind when I think about what Ghana, Africa might look like. An understandable shortcoming; after all, I’ve never before been. “Read & learn” as my father would say.

These are also not the first words that would come to anyone’s mind if they were in my shoes in the summer of 2017 in the mountains of Carpentaria, California sitting at a table full of newly acquainted colleagues, and suddenly, in walked Kingsley Baiden – the gentleman commonly known by his community as “Fifi”. In fact, I do so pleasantly enjoy the lucid memory of this stranger approaching the group of us in the dining hall for the first time. A true grand entrance was taking place. The gentleman sauntered down the walkway with a cool smile on his face from ear to ear; the nonchalance left in his footprints immediately began to radiate throughout the dining hall.

Jubilation. Those who knew this individual prior to this silent movie of a grand entrance were elated to see him again. “Look who’s here!” “Masta!” “My bro!” All of the warm reactions to the arrival of Mr. Baiden were revealing clues to the full story. But, for the time being, I was one of the few who had no idea who this person was. The gentle-hearted Ghanaian, whose aura transported rhapsody to others, who could make a grieving widow smile, who could make a starving man set down his fork and knife, I soon found out, would be my roommate for the next two weeks.

We had an amazing time getting to know one another.  In these two weeks, Fifi Baiden proved more than a colleague. He not only allowed me to get to know him as the Ghanaian-born survivor, hero, foreign-exchange student, college-standout turned professional athlete who transcended the limiting circumstances into which he was born; ascending to soaring heights of renown in Africa and the United States likewise. In these two weeks, Fifi Baiden became my friend.

Despite having felt like I had already learned so many things about my humble friend, there was definitely so much more to the story. With every fiber in my muscular skeleton, I’m thankful that Fifi had the courage to share that story. By cohesively writing it through chapters of accounts, explanations, and anecdotes, Fifi delivers to us his book so fittingly entitled ‘The Hope You Can Have: A Boy’s Journey from Ghana’. In doing so, he definitively solidifies his legacy as a master of homing in on ambition and overcoming the odds life relentlessly presents.

This book opens up detailing Baiden’s origins. Through the accounts offered in this story, readers experience the lifestyle of abject poverty many Ghanaians meet at birth. This cycle seemingly perpetual for most of the citizen’s in Ghana, it’s a wonder that Baiden not only survived so many tribulations as a young boy but managed to sustain the will and motivation to contribute to his suffering household in destitution. He calls this “hope”.

Chapter after chapter, he intently walks his readers through the most significant parts of his enthralling journey, diving deep into the lowest realities of his experience. As readers, our ability to connect with the particular pains and misfortunes that we learn about is made easy by the enthusiasm that Fifi maintains in storytelling through and through.

The resounding encouragement that Fifi drives throughout this book is to “never lose hope!” From peddling kerosene in the bustling marketplace streets as a seven year old boy (his families main source of income), to assisting his uncle as a carpenter, to the birth of his love for the sport of soccer, it was something as simple as the blue sky that served as a reminder for Fifi to keep his hope alive. This same hope that he harnessed through so many trials propelled him to places that he only ever dreamed of. He tells us about it transparently, and with the same smile on his face that I saw in the dining hall in the Carpentaria Mountains in 2017. This is the story of A Boy’s Journey from Ghana.