Month: March 2020

It rises from the east
She brought along the beast
With the speed of a lightening
Amongst us, the fear heightened
It pushes through the green zone
It spits and spreads and groans
Along it way turning everything dark
Poisonous to the lungs it attacks
The earth cannot breathe it wears a mask
Quick to snatched the aged and frail
Oh, it covers everything with dust & ashes

The stranger from the east
Came unexpected to destroy, kill and to feast.
To a halt on mankind actions
She swore to reach the four corners and causes extinction
In this race, she is faster
Dynasties crumbling without an heir
Hunger is greeted with chills and aches
Cough and sneeze the appetite forsakes
Skyscrapers and empty streets are all we see
Cover under the sheet of materialism is the vanity we cheat.

She rises from the east
And everyone retreats
into the safety of their cave
Afraid of her wrath, a name ahead engrave
A darkness has fallen upon us
The happy new year they say but never told us that the queen is worse.
Everyone has dropped their phones
She has all the attention she wants as she sits on her throne.
Washing of hands is never enough
The elbow holding droplets is tough
How fresh can the air be yet we are terrified to take it in.
Surfaces are all infected we are all afraid to touch the bin.

The sun will rise from the east again
Daylight and rays our faces it stains
Waters are cleaner, the sky is clearer
Animals are out with a torchbearer
This earth belongs to us all
We have to stop with the brawl.
We are in this together
Yet, social distancing is a bother.
As mankind go back to his selfish ways
What the queen’s name again? We blaze, Corona they all call out, while we gaze.
The only question that needs an answer now is, are we really the Victim or the Virus?

Stay Safe everyone! Cough or sneeze inside your elbow, wash your hands regularly and practice social distancing. That is the only cure you have right now.

Peom©By Rahima Vandy Kargbo known as Dasalonetiti Rahima

https://www.dasalone-titi.com

“The greatest sweetener of human life is friendship. To raise this to the highest pitch of enjoyment is a secret which only but a few discover”- Joseph Addison.

Friendship is the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person or persons that trust, understand and respect you irrespective of all your flaws and never judge you.

A company of seven and eight intelligent women with strong characters and persona can seem intimidating, energy-draining for most people. But we have been together for over twelve years and still counting. The most frequently asked question is; How do you do it? How do you manage to stay together?

We have been together since our first year at the university and have managed to stay inseparable ever since. Over the years we have seen ourselves metamorphose into a better version of ourselves educationally, economically, socially and spiritually – As we seek the innate desire to find our true selves.

Like every relationship, we have thrived. Initially, there were the expected personality clashes, bickering and fussing about each other but we have always succeeded in getting our heads above water. We have always honored the silent girl’s code by respecting each other space and privacy. We have all been there through graduation parties, job celebrations, engagements, weddings, pregnancies, naming ceremonies, birthday parties, and anniversaries. We have been together through losses, heartbreaks, break ups, deaths, and grief over loved ones. We have been each other’s shrink as and when the need arises.

” Ours is a relationship built on genuine love, trust and mutual respect for each other. As we understand the unique dynamics of this thing called friendship”

We have the geeks, the divas, the ladies, and the straight-up ratchet. Some fit into two or more categories. Others fit into all. There is no better feeling than talking to a friend for long hours after a long absence (usually caused by our individually busy schedules).

There is always an endless list of things to do with your girlfriends; who else is going, to be honest with you when you wear the wrong clothes or have a bad hair day? Who will mock the hell out of you if you have a wardrobe malfunction but still help to save the day? Who would stop you from that impulse buying and tell you how you need to save? Who would celebrate you even when you messed up? Who would listen to all your ranting after a bad day’s work? Who would listen to you and pass you the tissue paper when you are heartbroken? Who would listen to your goals and cheer you harder? Who would laugh the fun out of you for no good reason? Who would you rather unrepentantly let your guard down with, throw your wig at and eat together in a pot with your hands?

What I have noticed about female friendship is, girls are competitive as though there’s only one spot in the world for everything and that’s not true. The sky is big for every woman out there to fly. We do have competition, healthy competition. One which is more about us evolving into better versions of ourselves with each passing day, than the toxicity I see among many other female groups. As women, we are frequently put against each other, left to battle over who is the best in mundane or petty things that are really irrelevant. But this sisterhood does so much more than just help each other look or feel good. We are one another’s cheerleader and support system through every weather.

We need to stick together and open our hearts to see that there is more to life than competing for a spot or to please men. It’s important not to cut yourself off from your female friends. We are not perfect, nor are we the best of girlfriends to each other. But we task ourselves to put the individual effort required to make the whole group work and that’s all we ask of each other.

Finally, as we go along this path with the awareness and the idea that our children are getting bigger. There is no intense pressure on them to be friends. We believe they will find their own true path to friendship and happiness. We just pray and hope that in the course of their existence they will get to experience a friendship like ours.

Hey, it’s understandable not everyone will get it, some might tag you negatively, or called you names. Some might pretend to dislike all you stand for because they want a friendship like yours. Guard your female friendships and enjoy every bit of it. It doesn’t come easy.

Finally, It was a weekend getaway with Lyoa Honey. It helps sweeten the precious moments, try it and thank me later😊😍

Copyright ©By Rahima Vandy-Kargbo known as Dasalonetiti Rahima

https://www.dasalone-titi.com

“Honey consumption (as compared to refined sugar or HFCS) leads directly to the formation of liver glycogen, thus stabilizing blood sugar levels. Honey thereby reduces metabolic stress and improves fat metabolism and disposal, thus combating two of the key parameters of the metabolic syndrome, Type 2 Diabetes, and obesity.”    -Dr. Ron Fessenden

This week we have the pleasure of talking to a young social entrepreneur, resilient and strong in her drive to bring pure undiluted honey to the people of Sierra Leone and beyond. She is into the agribusiness to make a difference. She packages and sells the best honey in Sierra Leone, source from the interiors of Kabala, Koinadugu District. So readers, please meet the owner and founder of Lyoasourced Company Limited. Ms. Juliana Thambie Sesay. You can reach her through her social media pages on Facebook and Instagram @ Lyoasourced. Co or you can send her an email to lyoasourced@gmail.com

Raised in the Central District of Freetown. She attended the all-mighty Annie Walsh Memorial School and then proceeded to the Institute of Public Administration and Management, the University of Sierra Leone, where she bagged a honors degree in Financial Services. We hope you enjoy this week’s read as much as we did.

DS: Why did you choose to go into the honey business?

LS: When I started this company twenty months ago, there was a need to add value to our local produce, to brand them and display them in shops and supermarkets in Sierra Leone. There was so much local produce I was looking at before I started, with the intent to add value to them. But I needed to start with something and honey it was.

DS: How local is the honey?

LS: Lyoa Sourced Company is a small value-adding Agribusiness Company that started in July 2018. We source Honey and Beeswax from multiple bee hunters in the wild forests around Koinadugu District, Northern Sierra Leone. This supports sustainable beekeeping livelihoods in those communities. We do not heat or blend our honey to keep it in its raw state. This allows the natural enzymes and pollen particles to remain in the honey. As a result, it is not uncommon to occasionally find a spec of wax or pollen in the honey. By not overheating the micro-crystals or pollen, the honey may crystalize rapidly.
This is perfectly normal. Our honey is always unpasteurized and minimally filtered retaining its natural
properties.

DS: Have you tried to collaborate with the hospitality industry?

LS: Yes,! I have contacted many hotels in the country to supply them honey but a lot of them really prefer to buy it in gallons rather than the jars we sell. So far we supply Radisson blu, family kingdom, Wusum hotel in Makeni and a few others on and off.

DS: What are some of your challenges?

LS: The challenges are numerous for small startups in Sierra Leone, the major one for me is the lack of packaging industry in Sierra Leone. We have to source everything from Overseas and most of the time that triples our cost of production. Considering the devaluation of our currency to other foreign currencies used to buy overseas, every day we need to get more leones to be able to make a purchase of the same quantity of material previously bought at a certain price.
The time and cost factors of transporting those things from suppliers around the world to Sierra Leone is another challenge.
The business environment gets depressed over time due to the economic situation in the country.
Quite recently, I became a first-time mom and combining doing business and motherhood has also been challenging, especially for a small start-up like mine, without fix staff.

DS: Do you produce other things aside honey?                                                    LS: Yes I do produce Beeswax scented candles. We also do favors for special occasions and tons of gift ideas.

DS: What are some of your highlights?                                              LS: Well in July we will be celebrating our second anniversary, we have been able to survive for two years. We also have contact buyers who will use nothing else but Lyoa Honey, our souvenir line is also growing. For instance, recently I realized that we can also customize the big jars for people when one of our customers required it. And I have recently been nominated for an award as an entrepreneur of the year (even though I have my reservations about that considering the difficult year I have had in my personal life I feel I could have done better this year)

DS: What are your goals for the next
five years?

LS: My five-year goals are huge: first of all exporting is major, the market in Sierra Leone is very small so to be financially stable to keep business running we are seriously looking at ways to get our product overseas. The first step is getting a website that I hope to get help with very soon.
We are also looking at creating varieties, not just honey and candles or souvenirs. There are so many other things we intend to do but will not mention here so as not to give ideas to other people.
And the ultimate goal is to have a supermarket of everything made in Sierra Leone.

DS: What’s your advice to young people that wants to venture into the honey industry
LS: Business is not easy, you need passion, dedication, and wit to be able to withstand and deliver. In the end, you will have the personal satisfaction of building something from nothing; there are few times when you are pleased with yourself for meeting deadlines and customer’s specifications but overall it is a very challenging venture and its not for the faint-hearted.

Well, readers, you read it first from here, the full story of Lyoasourced. We want to wish you all a happy International Women’s Day. It’s the Salone way or no way at all. Peace ✌️

Copyright ©By Rahima Vandy Kargbo known as Dasalonetiti Rahima

http://www.dasalone-titi.com