Welcome beneath the storytelling tree.
This is not just a library. It’s a circle of tales — each one whispered with care, wrapped in metaphor, and sent into the world like a seed on the wind.
Here, I share short stories that spark joy, stir thought, and sometimes nudge your perspective sideways. They don’t take long to read, but they tend to linger — like drumbeats in the chest or echoes in the dusk.
Wander through the stories below. Some will make you smile. Others might make you pause. All are offered with the hope that they add a little more sunlight to your day.
Take your time, reflect, and pass it on if it speaks to you. Stories are alive as long as they’re shared.
The Bowl That Kept Me at My School Desk
I was born in southern Mali during the Sahel drought of 1968–74. What kept me at my school desk, more days than not, was a bowl of powdered milk and dried fish, shipped in from somewhere else, decided by someone else. Fifty years on, I still carry that bowl into every conversation about how aid should work, and who gets to decide.
Taking More, Returning Less
The dominant story about development finance is often told as a story of generosity: aid flows in, donors give, and recipient countries receive. But this hides a deeper imbalance. Far more wealth leaves the Global South through illicit financial flows, unfair tax rules, debt servicing, extractive contracts, profit repatriation and unequal trade.
This article offers a counter-narrative. It argues that aid still matters, but it cannot be understood honestly without looking at what continues to flow out. The issue is not only the size of the aid bucket. It is the system that keeps draining it.