I Write, Therefore I am

Summary

The author, born to African parents in Moscow during the Cold War, reflects on their multicultural upbringing and the profound impact writing has on their life, considering it an essential part of their identity.

Abstract

The author, a writer on Illumination, shares their personal history, beginning with their birth in Moscow to parents who were scholarship students from Africa. They recount their early years in Russia, learning Russian as their first language, followed by a move to England where they quickly became fluent in English. The family then relocated to Sierra Leone, where the author experienced a rich and formative period of their life. The author's deep connection to writing is a central theme, as they describe it as a vital, life-sustaining force that allows them to express themselves, influence others, and address injustices. Writing is portrayed as both a profession and a calling, deeply intertwined with the author's sense of being.

Opinions

Writing is an intrinsic part of the author's identity, as suggested by the phrase "I write, therefore I am."
The author believes writing has the power to inspire, excite, and change people's lives.
They consider writing a gift that provides them with joy and purpose.
Writing is seen as a means of delivering justice and defending the vulnerable and the poor.
The author feels that writing can convey understanding and connection better than other forms of communication.
They have found writing to be a source of salvation in challenging situations.

I Write, Therefore I am

Like most of the writers here on Illumination, I wanted to tell readers a little bit more about me. I was born in Moscow, Russia in 1971 at the height of the Cold War. My parents — both from Africa and from modest backgrounds at the time, received full scholarships to pursue a university education at the University of Leningrad. This was one of the best institutions in the country.

They met by chance — both had mistakenly picked up the wrong suitcase at the baggage carousel when they landed in Moscow. About a year later, they were married and expecting their first child: Siaka. I came next.

I spent my first years in Russia. My first words were actually Russian, but a move to Oxford, London in the mid 70s’ for my mother to pursue her post-graduate degree in electrical engineering, erased all my Russian. Within months, I spoke English fluently.

From England, we moved back to my parents’ home country Sierra Leone. We lived there for 6 years — amongst the best in my life. My sensory memories — the deep, tantalising smell of African lilies, majestic trees abundant with ripe, sweet mangoes, the fine white sand under my feet, the hearty contagious laughter of children — all these things are forever engraved in my being.

I am often asked why I write. The fact is, I write to live and I live to write. There is nothing I love more than writing. The art of composing, creating, and tranforming words into sentences and into stories that inspire, excite and change people’s lives is the most exhilirating thing in the world.

Being endowed with this talent to write is an extraordinary gift. I feel that people tend to understand you better when you write to them.

Whenever I have found myself in delicate situations, writing has always saved me. Writing has the power to change the world, to correct wrongs, to defend the vulnerable and the poor, to deliver justice. I write because writing makes me breathe, it makes me thrive, it makes me happiest, and this is why I say, I write therefore I am.