Burkina By Bobby

The moment I graduated from High School I always felt bashful about recounting my athletic exploits. While in High School the football and wrestling teams were constantly visited by alumni. The majority of alumni were fine men who observed practices and games with a reserved sense of nostalgia. There were, of course, those individuals who left an indelible mark: This "type" of person generally came to multiple practices a week without being solicited by anyone involved with the High School. He tended to be 37 years old 50 pounds heavier than he was in High School, yet he still wore his letterman's jacket and was quick to point out how impressive of an athlete he was at the age of 17. It was, in a word... pathetic; it made me reject the idea of talking about myself as an athlete, unless I was playing on an organized team.

I now believe this stance might be a little harsh but I thought it was appropriate to provide a preface to the story of my return to athletic glory:

Each night during the month of October people gather to celebrate Ramadan with events called luttes. Boys as young as 6 years old ranging to men who are 60 gather at the house of the traditional war chief to wrestle. The village where I live is split by the paved road that goes to the capital. This road serves as a type of dividing line where the five families close to the road have formed alliance and have come a team to take on the other group of families who live further away from the main road. There is no bad blood between the two teams, but it is a bit like the Hatfields vs. the McCoys because the two different teams share different bloodlines and generally speaking it was the Sowadogos vs. the Oudragos. I happen to be a Sowadogo.
As I showed up to the house of the war chief the men were gathered in a large circle of close to 200 men and boys. The women were separated into their own circle whereperformedformed dances and sang songs to accompany the wrestling. There was absolutely no light other than the light that was provided by the half moon. Perhaps surprisingly, this was more than enough light to see your opponent and wrestle well. I came to the event initially as a spectator, though I knew that at some point throughout the night I would join in the festivities. My friend Ali made sure that the point at which I joined was sooner rather than later. Within five minutes of watching the bouts I had taken of my shoes and joined the camp of the Sowadogos. Before the wrestling began each team took a turn in intimidating the other team. On team would stay in a crouch while the other team sent out representatives to show how high they could jump, after the representatives finished jumping their entire team sprung to their feet and began running a circles around their squatting adversaries, clapping in their face and preparing for the battle. After the team had finished taunting it was their turn to be taunted and they assumed the crouching position.
The wrestling in Burkina is a bit different than what I was used to in High School. For example, there are no mats. There are 200 males creating a circle of hard clay earth with a considerable amount of pebbles and rocks. Secondly, the matches are very short, (10 sec. on average) It is basically a test to see who can get the leverage. Thirdly, if a stalemate occurred it was settled by seeing who could jump higher. I wrestled with men ranging anywhere from 19 to 27 years old. It was intense yet thoroughly entertaining and it put me back into the competitive mindset of a High School athlete. I wrestled more than 10 times, winning more than I lost but endistalemateemates as much as I won. My wins were met with cheers and losses were met with laughter though the truth in the end is that there was no official score. It was an event for the community and a personal challenge for the two men wrestling.
The next day it was the talk of the town; this is not because of performedformed but simply the fact that performedformed. It was a great opportunity to share cultures and integrate into the community. My only regret is that I had not been able to do it earlier as the time in village is coming to a quick end.