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Name: Fatmatta R. Kanu
Organization: Author, Historian
Website: http://www.fatmattakanu.com
Bio:
Fatmatta Kanu has always been a writer.
Fatmatta is the family correspondent, keeping in touch with relatives, friends and acquaintances. The trend continued even more so when she moved away from her home country of Sierra Leone – writing letters back home from Edmonton, Canada where she moved as a newlywed in the 60s. Her writings exist in the diaries she kept through life from adolescence and young adulthood in Sierra Leone, continuing through student days abroad and during her husband’s diplomatic career in Europe in the 70s and 80s.
Born in Freetown, Sierra Leone in 1941, she completed her secondary and teacher’s certification there, then spent 15 years studying and working in Canada, England, Germany and Brussels with her husband, Dr. Sheka Hassan Kanu. During that time and beyond, Fatmatta added to her rich perspective through diverse work experiences as a teacher, librarian, researcher, city councillor and cross cultural facilitator. Fatmatta completed a degree in History with a minor in education from the University of Maryland, and a Masters in International Relations from Boston University. She completed those studies while supporting her husband in the diplomatic service and raising between eight and a dozen children at any given time.
Wherever she has lived, Fatmatta has contributed to her communities through volunteer service and participation in civil societies, such as the Sierra Leone Women’s Peace Movement, as a radio and TV host on Islamic issues and as a leader at the multicultural family centre in British Columbia to name a few. She continues that tradition in her current community of Mississauga, Ontario where she is a member of the Canadian Federation of University Women (CFUW), Ontario, the Writers and Editors Network (WEN) Ontario, Sierra Leone Muslim Jamat in Toronto, Toronto branch of the Annie Walsh Old Girls Association (AWOGA) and volunteers for social and religious organizations whenever possible. She has won awards in recognition of her service.
As an author, Fatmatta’s books take readers through her journey. They give readers insights into West African traditions, the experience and shocks of living in different countries and cultures. Now in retirement age, Fatmatta is motivated to tell her stories as a legacy for her children and many grandchildren.
Publications:
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ROCK BEHIND THE WATERFALL: An Insider’s View of Diplomatic Life
The hard work of ambassadors’ spouses that is hidden from the public eye is the stuff as it were, that happens behind the gates of palaces and presidential mansions that we frequented. I learnt and grew in a myriad of ways as an ambassador’s wife. I learned the rules of diplomacy that equipped me to function correctly within protocols. I was the employer for the domestic staff. I was the chief event planner and sometimes chairperson at selected gatherings as requested.
There were social welfare aspects of the duties of the ambassador’s wife. Very often I had to be counselor for a range of people. I was service provider for visitors – dignitaries and general visitors alike – to the country of accreditation. I participated in official engagements with my husband. All of these had to be combined with the duties of a wife and mother.
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TASTE OF THE KOLA NUT
In Sierra Leonean societies the kola nut is regarded as symbolic of life itself, particularly in its ceremonial uses such as during marriage ceremonies. This is because the taste of the kola nut which is initially a little strange and bitter, soon changes into a pleasant taste which further enhances the flavour of anything ingested afterwards.
The Taste of the Kola Nut is therefore a fitting title for a story about the path I traveled with my husband as we started a new stage of our lives as newly-weds, as foreigners living in a new country and a new continent as students and as parents in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The taste of the Kola Nut therefore sums up our journey through life at that time in one small package that metaphorically reflects our personal experience.
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THROUGH THE CALABASH
​​For a woman who grew up in an era when girls, especially those of my ethnicity did not go to school, the phrase “it’s a man’s world” should hold a myriad of meanings and emotions that would not necessarily be positive. Yet my primary response to that phrase is the deep warmth that follows fond memories, because my world was a man’s world. Four men in particular, My father and three brothers, created unique circumstances around which I was raised.
In the midst of their careful nurturing, which I did not always appreciate at the time, I was surrounded with love and great care. The result of my upbringing started its manifestation with my travel abroad when my husband and I lived in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, thousands of miles from home. The lessons I learned during those early years became my guide for the rest of my life.
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