The Sorrow of Kodio
from the Baulé, Ivory Coast
We were three women
Three men
And myself, Kodio Ango
We were on our way to work in the city
And I lost my wife Nanama on the way
I alone have lost my wife
To me alone such misery has happened
To me alone, Kodio, the most handsome of the three men such misery has happened
In vain I call for my wife
She died on the way like a chicken running
How shall I tell her mother
How shall I tell it to her, I Kodio, when it is so hard to hold back my own pain.
Three men
And myself, Kodio Ango
We were on our way to work in the city
And I lost my wife Nanama on the way
I alone have lost my wife
To me alone such misery has happened
To me alone, Kodio, the most handsome of the three men such misery has happened
In vain I call for my wife
She died on the way like a chicken running
How shall I tell her mother
How shall I tell it to her, I Kodio, when it is so hard to hold back my own pain.