Sailing

With empty baskets and visible disappointments, the fishermen of the town of Kwoli returned back without being able to catch any fish. The head of team of the fishermen led them once again to report what they experienced to the King.

The leader is a tall, broad chested middle age man that his exploits in fishing earned him traditional title in the kingdom of Kwoli. He started the fishing job right since decades ago using the traditional method of using nets and basket. The limitation in those years was that they can only fish in shallow waters.

At the other side of the river is located the town of Kwal. The two towns are separated by a deep and wide river. Just like in Kwoli, the people of Kwal are majorly fishermen while the women trade in fish and fish products.The rivalry between the two towns due to competition in fishing in the river has been in existence for decades. Each town would accused the other of trespassing its territory on the approximate informal demarcation they lay claim to in the river. Crossing from one village to the other was near impossible until they discovered a shallow part of the river about 2km away from where the towns were separated by the river. On that side of the river, there is a wooden canoe which is used to cross from one town to the other.

Anyone embarking on such journey would have to endure trekking 8 KM to complete a cycle of the journey. Developments were very slow in both towns. No amenities, no standard schools and standard of living generally was very low.

On the top of the agenda of both towns was acquiring a boat to ease their fishing affairs.The town of Kwal got a sigh of relief when one of their sons who had worked for a multinational company for decades and returned home after retirement promised to take advantage of his contact to purchase a boat for the fishermen. He also facilitated other developmental projects to the town.It was on the day of annual fishing festival of Kwal that the boat was unveiled. Even the domestic animals in the town could feel the joy in the town that day. The leftover of quality foods - a type that is hardly prepared in the town - for the animals definitely sent a signal of celebration to the animal kingdom.

This was a big challenge for the people of Kwoli that came to celebrate the festival and the dream boat acquisition with the people of Kwal. It was mixed reaction among the Kwolians going back home."How are our husbands and youths going to be able to cope with the competition in the fishing business now that Kwal is having boat to help them out?" Mary, a concerned wife of a professional fisherman lamented while walking home with her friend, Janet.

In her response, Janet also support the concern of Mary but expressed hope that their king would rally the sons and daughters of the town to get a boat for their men too.

The king of Kwoli made a fruitless efforts to mobilize fund and purchasing the boat but it didn't work out and as a result, he liaised with Kwal King for joint usage of the boat. Under the arrangements, the fishermen of Kwoli would join their counterparts in Kwal to fish together with the boat while the fueling are jointly sponsored.

When the boat was brought in Kwal, only one of canoe paddlers was trained on how to sail the boat. Any day that he fell ill or wasn't able to, due to any reason, go out for fishing, others would remain in their homes because of lack of someone else to take his position. In addition to this, the terms of engagement is solely under the control of Kwal fishing team as in the case of a popular saying that 'he who hold the piper dictates the tune'. It was a great source of concern for the Kwoli team.

Few years into the partnership, there was accusations and counter accusations that one side is fueling the boat for both team while there is another claim of being responsible for repairing the boat when faulty.

The relationship grew sour.It got to a point that if 7 people go out to fish from Kwoli, only 2 would be admitted into the boat. Today, unfortunately, the whole of them was denied the usage of the boat. While at the palace of the King, the head of the team explained their latest experience to the Kwoli King."Well, it's not their fault. If we had ours, we wouldn't have experienced this." The King stated. "I have discussed with a sailor in the neighboring state and one of you shall be sent to learn how to sail the boat. Let's get prepared for when we will be getting our own boat which I believe to be very soon" He concluded.

Their was a lot of jubilation among the people. The king kept to his words by sending one of his subjects, Paul for the training. Paul returned back with the knowledge six months later.Within this six months, a lot happened.When the Kwal fishing team noticed that for a month, their counterparts from Kwoli haven't been showing up for fishing, they felt guilty for being harsh on them which led to their action.

They sent the olive branch about four months later when the king of Kwal invited the team from Kwoli.In his speech, the King stated how working in friendship could be beneficial to all."It's not just about having a boat but having a sailor to help operate it. We need to work together with sincerity. Please, I want all your differences buried and continue to work together again."The return of Paul was timely. The boat had been idle for a while. The Kwalian sailor had been incapacitated. Paul took over under the agreement of both teams. They sailed successfully afterwards to hunt for fishes. They've understood the important of harmonious relationship. They joined hands to celebrate the fishing festival that followed.

There is gain in working together in love and harmony. The world would be a better place if A is ready to fill the vacuum of weakness of B wherever it can and B also ready to do the same for A. We will be sailing to greatness.