The Deep

Amaba, Yetu’s mother, saves Yetu from danger—she is lost in a state of remembering among a group of sharks. Lost in remembering and, therefore, in time, Yetu has no idea how much time has passed and is physically weakened. She has spent so much time reliving the History—the experiences of her ancestors—that she has not taken care of her body through regular eating and exercise.

When Amaba finds her, Yetu has already missed the date of the annual Remembrance—a ritual that the wajinru, her people, need to survive—by about three months, a whole mating cycle. Yetu dreads the ceremony, but her mother reminds her of its necessity: “We grow anxious and restless without you, my child. One can only go for so long without asking who am I? Where do I come from? What does it all mean?” (8).

As they travel back to the deep, Yetu fears how much the Remembrance will take out of her. She is already a sensitive creature, and because of her role as the historian, she has witnessed and held 600 years’ worth of traumatic memories. As such, she has endured more pain and suffering than any other wajinru.