This all started last year when I realized I hated my business major. Felt like chewing cardboard every single class. One rainy Tuesday, skipped lectures entirely, sat in the library feeling sorry for myself. Stumbled upon this dusty book about Mali Empire trade routes. Couldn't put it down. Finished it in one sitting, knees gone stiff. Thought, "Man, African history hits different."
Decided I wanted to dive deeper. Googled stuff like "study Africa history beginner." Got overwhelmed fast. Found fancy university programs talking about "postcolonial discourse" and "historiographical methodologies." Nearly cried. My brain couldn'tt handle it.
Step 1: Just Start Reading Anything (Seriously)
Gave up on the big words. Went back to the library. Grabbed anything with "Africa" in the title that looked kinda interesting. Didn't care if it was kids' books, travel guides, old magazines. Read about Mansa Musa’s gold, Shaka Zulu’s battles, the Great Zimbabwe ruins. Scribbled notes on napkins. Filled an old shoebox with random facts.
Step 2: Map It Out Like a Detective
Got lost trying to remember who was where and when. Felt so stupid. Went to a thrift store, bought a huge world map for $2. Pinned it on my dorm wall with thumbtacks. Started drawing arrows with red marker – trade routes from Mali to Egypt. Stuck yellow sticky notes on kingdoms and empires. Used blue marker for rivers and green for rainforests. Looked messy as heck, but finally made sense in my head.
Step 3: Talk to Real People (Even If It's Awkward)
Knew I needed more than just books. Emailed three professors at my college who taught anything vaguely related to Africa. Only one replied. Met Dr. Agbasi in her cramped office, surrounded by stacks of papers. Stammered like an idiot explaining why I cared. She smiled, didn’t laugh at me. Gave me three book titles – simple ones! – and told me about a free online lecture series from a Nigerian university. Felt like winning the lottery.
Step 4: Pick One Tiny Thing & Obsess Over It
Still felt like I knew nothing. Dr. Agbasi said, "Pick one object." Found this photo of Oba of Benin bronze plaques online. Got hooked. Started digging ONLY into that. How were they made? Why the Portuguese traders wanted them? What stories did the figures tell? Ignored everything else. Bought two cheap books specific to Benin art. Drove my roommate nuts talking about it nonstop.
Step 5: Write Down What You Think (Even If It Feels Wrong)
Scariest part. Felt like I wasn’t "qualified." Started a crappy blog anyway, hiding my name. Wrote a messy 300-word post: "Why the Benin Bronzes Aren’t Just Pretty Metal." Made wild guesses. Cited one of my thrift store books. Felt shaky hitting publish. A week later, some guy commented: "You got the trade route dates mixed up, but your point about the cultural record is solid." Nearly fell off my chair. Kept writing.
So yeah, here I am. Broke as a joke after buying three geography books. That big Mali Empire map? Still on my wall, corners curling. Dr. Agbasi lets me bug her in office hours once a month. Still obsessed with Benin Bronzes. Still feel like I don’t know enough. But turns out, actually caring about the stuff and just… doing it piece by piece? That’s the whole game. Crazy.
