The year was 1992.
In the ever-busy, bustling surroundings of the Kotoka International Airport, the departure gate was abuzz with travelers and emotions. Emotions of joy, sadness and excitement.
Not too far from the gate stood a thirty-something year old man by name Daniel Logan, a rather giddy and excited look on his face, as he was surrounded by the warmth of his family. Xorlali, his wife, faced him, excitement and a tint of sadness etched on her face as she clutched their two children, four-year-old Selorm and two-year-old Worlanyo, close to her.
Daniel, dressed up in anticipation of his journey, took a deep breath as the moment to say goodbye drew nearer and nearer. He had known this moment would come the day he had officially been informed he won the Green Card Lottery, but he had not prepared for its impact. The air was filled with a mixture of excitement and sorrow, knowing he would be starting a new life in another man’s land, but would be far from his wife and precious little ones.
He looked into the eyes of his wife, his expression a blend of determination and love.
“Xorlali,” Daniel began, his voice slightly trembling, “I know it’s not going to be easy, but this is for all of us. As I’m going to America, remember this: it’s to build a better life for us, and to prepare a new home for you and the kids. It’s a big sacrifice that’s going to change our tomorrow for the better.”
Xorlali, her eyes glistening with tears, nodded in understanding, holding their children a little tighter to her. Sweet little Selorm gazed curiously at her father, sadness in her eyes, while Worlanyo, in his childlike innocence, simply enjoyed the warmth of standing close to his mother.
“As I leave for the USA,” Daniel continued, “stay strong for the kids, and keep praying for me. Our life is about to change, my dear. There will be a lot of challenges I will face when I get there, but I know that with your prayers, I’ll overcome them… in fact, we’ll overcome them together. This is a journey we’re taking as a family. You won’t be there with me physically, but in spirit, I know you will.”
Tears streamed down Xorlali’s face as she nodded, a mix of sadness and pride in her eyes. She looked at Daniel and bravely stated, “I’ll do all of that and more, my husband. I’ll pray that all will be well with you in the white man’s land. And that you will come back for us when it’s time.”
A passionate determination crossed Daniel’s face as he clasped Xorlali’s hands tightly. “Amen! Amen and amen! Believe me, once everything is in place, I will come back for you and the kids. We’ll be reunited, and our family will go and enjoy life proper. No more hand-to-mouth living.”
Her gaze still on him, she sobbed, “I’ll miss you, my husband.”
He hugged her tightly, letting out a tear himself. “I’ll miss you too, my dear wife,” he whispered. “I’ll miss you and the children. Just pray for me, and soon we’ll be together again.”
He held on to her, cherishing the warmth of his wife for a moment longer before letting her go. He then knelt down to kiss Selorm and Worlanyo on their foreheads. “Goodbye, my sweet little ones,” he whispered. “I’ll see you in America soon, alright?”
Selorm and Worlanyo began to cry, sad that they wouldn’t be seeing their father again. He shushed them, however, with promises that he would be calling all the time, and that it wouldn’t be long.
As he rose to his feet, with a final, lingering gaze, Daniel waved to his family one more time, then turned and walked towards the entrance of the terminal.
The departure gate slowly closed behind him.
*
“We were sad to see him go, that’s for sure. I think my brother was inconsolable, crying all the way in the taxi we took back home. We loved our daddy, we really did. But, with time, there was this… this feeling of excitement in the house. My mother in particular, she was so excited. I mean, who wouldn’t? To move from the hand-to-mouth hustle of Abeka-Lapaz begin a new life in the United States of America? Chale, it was a big deal!”
Selorm looked around the hall. Everyone’s attention was focused on every word she spoke.
“So, he got to America safely by God’s grace, went to Maryland, and called us on the regular. He kept my mother up to date on every single thing that was going on: his job, the place he was staying at, the house he wanted to buy for us… everything. So now, my mother was always excited. Bragging that we’d soon leave the difficulties of Ghana behind and live a prosperous life in America. Sometimes, she’d even force an accent, like, ‘Ya know what I’m sayin’?”
The audience laughed at Selorm’s imitation of her mother’s forced American accent.
“So a year turned to two. Two turned to three. And with each year, things started to change…”
*
The year was 1995.
The living room of the modest Logan home was bathed in a warm afternoon sun glow as seven-year-old Selorm played with her toys, relieved to have time to play after another day in school.
Holding her Barbie dolls, however, she could not help but cast occasional glances toward her mother, who was sitting by the phone with a look that reeked of both anticipation and concern.
Not for the first time in a while.
An international calling card in her hands, Xorlali’s fingers dialled a familiar number with a mix of hope and worry. Selorm, having witnessed this a number of times, knew the gravity of the moment and watched silently from a distance, her inner self praying for something different from what she had been witnessing a couple of times already.
As the phone rang, a hushed tension filled the air. You could literally hear both hearts beat as the dial tone purred on, the anticipation as tangible as could be. Selorm could see the anxiety in her mother’s eyes as she silently prayed for the voice of Daniel to break the silence.
But the only response was the persistent ringtone. As it purred on, and the hope on Xorlali’s face began to wane, she shook her head. She uttered a soft, “Hello? Daniel?” into the receiver.
No answer from the other end, obviously.
With a heavy sigh, Xorlali hung up the phone, her hands falling to her lap in defeat. Selorm watched on in concern as the weight of disappointment settled in her mother’s eyes. The room was filled with a melancholy silence as Xorlali stared at the phone, lost in thought.
“Why isn’t he answering?” she wonders aloud, a mix of frustration and sorrow tainting her voice.
That was the same question on Selorm’s young mind.
Three years since Daniel left for the USA, and the once-frequent communication had gradually dwindled, leaving the family in a frustrating void. Back in the days, they’d rarely go a week without hearing from him at least four times. Now they were lucky if they heard from him even once every three months.
As Selorm quietly watched her mother delve into another moment of frustration and agony, the question on both minds remained the same.
What in God’s name was going on?
*
“We continued to wait. He would call a few times, very intermittent. He kept saying things had become tight, and work was really stressing him out, all those things. My mother expressed her frustration, and he would calm her down, assure her that he’s working hard to ensure we all come and join him. He’d speak to us and tell us to be good kids and keep our mother company and all.”
“There was something different about the way he spoke, however. It’s like… he was in a hurry to talk to us. Like, like if he stayed too long on the phone with us, he’d get into trouble or something. I think we all assumed it was because of work or something, so we thought nothing of it. So, another two years passed, and still, the communication was someway. You call, he won’t pick. He’ll call when he feels like it. He’ll rush through the convo. Yeah, it was distressing. And at that point, you ask when he’ll make arrangements for us to join, and he’d get impatient and tell us to stop getting so pushy, that he knew what to do, and he’d do it.
“The sixth year came. And for that one, we weren’t hearing from him at all. 31st December 1997 was the last phone call we got from him. And in the new year… yeah, that was when we got the news…”
*
The year was 1998.
Within the Logan household, the living room bore witness to a somber scene.
Ten-year-old Selorm and eight-year-old Worlanyo stood side by side, their expressions a mix of concern and confusion. Xorlali was seated on the couch with a phone pressed to her ear, tears streaming down her face as she absorbed what seemed like shocking information being relayed.
The air was heavy with tension as the children exchange worried glances, wondering what was going on. They watched as Xorlali, overwhelmed by grief, hung up the phone, then immediately slid off the couch, her hands on her head.
“Heiii! This man has finished me! This man has finished me ooo! Ei, Daniel! Daniel! How could you?”
Selorm and Worlanyo approached worriedly, their young faces etched with concern at their mother’s breakdown.
“Ma, what’s wrong?” Selorm asks, her voice filled with worry.
Inconsolable for the next few minutes, Xorlali continued to wail and weep, crushed by the news she had received. The children did their best to try and calm her down, though it was difficult.
After a few moments, Xorlali took a deep breath and wiped her eyes with her cloth, the look on her face indicating the strength she was mustering to share the painful truth.
Her eyes met with those of her children, and with a heavy heart, she uttered those words, her voice choked with emotion.
“Your father… he’s not coming back. He’s abandoned us.”
A heavy silence reigned in the air following the heartbreaking words. Selorm and Worlanyo exchanged glances, stunned by this.
“H-h-he’s not coming back?” Selorm stuttered, tears welling up in her eyes. “B-b-b-but w-why?”
“How?” Worlanyo wondered. “B-b-but he… he always said he… he’ll come back for us. Why?”
The only answer they got was the sound of Xorlali’s loud sobs as the reality of abandonment dropped harshly on her head.
The children moved closer to their mother. Tears ran down their eyes as they embraced their poor heartbroken mother, doing their best to console her, even while they needed consoling themselves.
Selorm, wiping away her tears, bravely spoke up, saying, “We don’t need him, Ma. We can live without him. If he doesn’t want us, we too, we don’t want him. We have each other. We’ll make it together.”
Worlanyo, also wiping away his tears, nodded in agreement, his small hand tightly wrapped around Xorlali’s neck. The devastated trio formed a tight-knit embrace, a family uniting in the face of adversity.
As they shared tears and comforting words, they knew nothing less than resilient spirits would do to rebuild their lives. The man supposed to take care of them had chosen to walk away, and now, they had to start all over again…
*
“Apparently, he had found himself entangled with some sweet-looking white American lady. A ‘whirlwind romance’, so they claimed. They met in the park, they got friendly, she invited him over one evening, and he did the deed with her. They continued fooling around for a while, she got pregnant for him, and she wanted to keep it, and him. He mentioned nothing about us, so he decided to begin life with her. Got married to her and started another family with her.”
Gasps of shock and disgust echoed throughout the hall, with many repulsed at the actions of Selorm’s father.
She nodded sadly. “The worst part of it is, this all happened in the second year he was there.”
Even more gasps emanated.
“Yep, so for four good years, he had another wife and child we knew nothing about. It was a little later on that we discovered all this. And of course, he never spoke to any of us again. I don’t know where he is now, but rumours over there claim that the lady divorced him a while back and left him penniless. Dunno what happened, but I’m not interested, to be honest.
“And that, is just the beginning…”
Mmmm, that’s sad. To have your father abandon you like that. That’s just the beginning, though? Oh boy…
