August 5,2025- I watched a remarkable 2015 Canadian miniseries, “The Book of Negroes”, based on novel by Lawrence Hill, which in turn was based on an actual British Naval record of 3000 freed African slaves who were brought to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, after the American Revolution.

The story is told through the eyes of an African woman who is also a polymath, at a time when most Africans were seen as illiterate savages, worthy of no treatment better than brutality or manipulation. Aminata Diallo is a fictional character, somewhat inspired by Phillis Wheatly, who was an actual African-American poet of about the time Aminata’s story unfolded. Phillis lived in colonial Massachusetts, while Aminata’s story unfolds in what is now Guinea, then to South Carolina, moving by turns to New York, Nova Scotia, Sierra Leone and London. Actual historical characters General Guy Carleton, Samuel Fraunces and George Washington appear in the New York segment of the story, with Fraunces presented as a mentor and protector of Aminata.

Aminata tells her adult daughter that every story is a treasure, and that even the losses (of which she had several) are worthy of gratitude. Her story does not spare any of the principal forces in the slave trade, yet she faces them all with a life force born in honour. Her fortitude is showcased throughout, and most clearly when she humbles a young slavery advocate during a meeting of the British House of Commons, leading up to the vote to end the slave trade.

A childhood friend remarked to me, about ten years ago, that everyone our age has been through a fair amount of hardship. This is a man who has known quite a bit of success in life, so for him to come forward about the rough patches is quite a revelation. It underscores what Lawrence Hill addresses in his novel, and puts my own highs and lows into perspective. I stopped wallowing in self-pity some time back and can see exactly what Hill’s protagonist is saying.

Those of us who are fully alive have amassed many treasures.