“Mzee”

2024 Original Artwork by Alice Aida Ayers, Hand-Stitched Fabrics, Embroidery, 26” X 33.5”

During my time in Mangapwani, I walked to the beach every day, past coconut palms and cassava fields, where the entrance to the

freshwater cave lay. The cavern was vast, with stone steps carved two floors down into darkness. A spring ran through it, and bats,

lizards, and spiders filled the space. A passage opened to the beach—the same spot where captives were once forced onto dhows

bound for Bagamoyo and beyond. Near the entrance was an old man with a worn hoe. For months, our greetings remained brief,

until one day he spoke. “The spirits will return again and again if you satisfy them, feed them, and embrace them,” he said,

pointing to a mound beneath a tree, surrounded by gourds and scattered offerings.He explained that the mound honored those

taken from this beach—their bodies gone, but their spirits left behind. He guarded the cave, caring for them, while djinns hovered

nearby. I never learned his name. I simply called him Mzee—the Old One.

“Mashetani watarudi tena na tena ikiwa utawafurahisha, waulishe na uwakumbatie.