We learn something new every day, and every day we prove ourselves wrong on what was learned as if the learning process would require constant vigilance and testing. To learn and to stand corrected, both revelations do please me greatly.
Today I learned, from Dena Ross Jennings about the meaning of the word Sankofa, a term linked to the Ghanaian textile industry, a textile made of handwoven cloth strips of silk and cotton known as Kente. The Kente cloth symbol is often a bird looking look over a precious egg. This symbol is known as Sankofa. Popular believe in Western Africa has it that it is good look back, or to go back and fetch that precious egg you or perhaps someone else left behind. What my friend reminded me is that the spirit of Sankofa is profoundly rooted in the nature of my work as a documentarian. In fact, my entire life has been one in which I search, mostly for someone else’s eggs, but also for mine. Furthermore, I’m now tempted to incorporate that image of the bird looking back to her precious egg as a graphic concept that will rebrand Heritage Film Project. To all, and to Dena Ross Jennings who opened my eyes to this beautiful story, I also say Sankofa!