The ‘Black Dot’ in the Cospudener Sea

“You cannot know the extent of waters you have not been to.” -Tanzanian proverb.

This article is not an official chronicle of Cospudener See, but rather it is a consortium of the humanness that lies in the lake, with the stint of beauty coupled with the wholeness it offers to the community users and visitors alike. A lake that carries lots of burdens dropped by residents far and near, occasionally. A lake turned into solitary confinement, anchored on tranquillity and solitude. The heartbroken, love searchers, peace seekers, readers, researchers, et cetera, have turned the lake into their best place for seeking solutions to their troubled hearts and settling internal conflicts.

The difference between Mandela’s South Africa solitary confinement and the Cospudener See is that the former came with limitations and forceful unintended purposes aimed at castrating the South African political figure, while the latter does not have any form of restriction, — adding to human existence, growth, and spirituality. Categorically declared a free zone area. You can spend your whole day at the Cospudener See as you wish. It never complains about all the heinous burdens unloaded onto it by ‘us.’ It connects you to the blissful nature built around wholeness. A lake located in the enclaves of southern Leipzig, a city I may call “radiating the rainbow colour, which brightened the Saxony region of Germany.” The writer’s intentions are genuine and profound.

Talking about Leipzig city, with a land mass of 297.6 km², Leipzig is among the cities in the Saxony State that have witnessed in recent months the influx of people, including tourists from across the globe. Its population is increasing daily — gradually outgrowing the quest for demand and supply, painstakingly. The reason behind these regular visits is occasioned by its ‘openness’ to people from different cultures and traditions, social and ethnic backgrounds. No doubt, the hospitality industry could add to a nation’s income or Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The interconnectedness of its residence is evidenced by the warm smile received on the street.  As a newbie, you could easily perceive it. Please permit me the privilege of describing Leipzig as a “promissory city.”

I attended a summit in Western Leipzig, and it was almost impossible to carry out what Professor of Biology and Neurology at Stanford University, Robert Sapolsky, called the “Us versus Them” dichotomy in human differentiation (for example, see Sapolsky, 2017, p. 387). In attendance were Americans, Asians, Africans, Europeans, North Americans, et cetera. Different ethnic groups, races, tribes, religious were fully represented. It was a unification of the entire world because almost all the nationalities were captured in a single room. The common language was love and laughter. This explains the hallmark of a great city with fewer discriminatory attributes, perhaps. It was inspirational.

Let’s return to what I was saying about the Cospudener Sea. As a first timer, you will be first polished, fascinated with the beautiful stories of the sea; sandy beaches, nice restaurants, water sports, relaxation spots, etc. The summer season witnesses large numbers of people trooping to the lake with their bicycles through the path of the forest just to have a complete feel of nature. Cospudener Sea is the ‘unifying’ factor that binds every resident of Leipzig. The sea has peeled off the idiosyncrasies that abound amongst the residents of Leipzig, linearly, and showing enormous compassion in the summer.

Luise Karwofsky (2022) of Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH described the Cospudener Sea as “A lake full of possibilities”. She opined that “If you prefer to take it easy, you can enjoy a break from everyday life with a cup of coffee on the terrace or a boat trip on the MS Cospuden. Cozy holiday apartments directly on the lake also make a longer stay possible. If you don’t want to do without city life on holiday, you will find accommodation for every budget in Leipzig.” Cospudener Sea is a matched beach encircled with sands and trees and safely secured, for easy entrance, with more than half a million visitors every year. It is not hidden; it is largely open. In the summer, the flower beds were choked with weeds, and the grass was rarely mowed to shelter the birds. In the winter, the leaves gathered in drifts on the front porch, and someone was settled with the job of raking them.

My Experience of the Sea

“The one who tests the depth of the river with both feet must know how to swim.” It is the light of the above Nigerian proverb that nourished my taste for nature. One hot afternoon, I headed to the north side of the sea to ‘meet nature at its purest form.’ The air was chilly, and the leaves along the beach were turning and fluttering in the breeze. Walking distance from the forest, it was a shadowy, parched place with bright corners and booths that gave the impression that unannounced orientations were ongoing.

I came across a large crowd of people doing different things in the lake: swimming, dancing, and merrymaking for birthdays. Others lay on the beach having chit-chat with loved ones, with no finger in the pie. I saw young people who turned out to be hyper-sort and chain-smoked with little regard for where their fumes drifted. I maintained a smile and gave away nothing. The bushes along the pathway were a hiding place for this kind of activity. I saw a spot, like a mini-kitchen full of women cooking and men toasting a glass of wine, that only they can explain.

There was a sudden incursion that greeted the lake when I surfaced. Everyone seemed to take cognizance of my arrival. The vicinity almost shook with persuasive energy. Eyes opened, spines stiffened, rear ends inched to the edges of the water, and a couple of telling glances were exchanged. They poignantly looked at me as though I would be somewhere else — not there. Suddenly, one of Tupac Shakur’s songs titled “All Eyes on Me” started ringing a bell in my mind. I became their favorite topic at the moment. They stood helplessly, in disbelief, mouths wide open. The scene looks obscure to fathom the transformation that ensued.

This is the “black spot in the Cospudener Sea,” a voice yelled. “Are you the Christopher Columbus of our time?” another asked politely while pointing in my direction. Almost everyone was either happy to see me or good at pretending. Either way, I enjoyed the uneasiness in their faces.  “My oh my”, I muttered. In pretense, I smiled and continued walking gallantly as if nothing had been said to me. The pool of people fixed their eyes on me. Every action was recorded by the public’s eyes which comforted me, but things look grim — inside. I realized I was the only person of distinct skin colour in the sea at that moment. My presence produced a feeling of recognition. The atmosphere was charged while I gazed at every living and non-living thing(s) in the vicinity.

As the shining sun became severe, more people were forced to throw themselves into the deeper part to embrace the warmth of the sea. My childhood memory besieged me. I remembered Oguta lake located in south-eastern Nigeria, and Lake Chad, which covers Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger, and Chad. One of the cleanest lakes with freshwater in Africa. My penchant to be dramatic grew, and then at this point, I realized to turn the event into a beautiful story. “The surgeon is always reserved when confronted with a complicated procedure,” I called for some fresh air and stretched out my left hand, making something out of nothing.

Uncomfortable with the debacle, I left for the western side of the sea, where the crowd continued to grow. The mini-bar I saw was adorned with chandeliers and silver bells, but the same scenario repeated: the outrage at my skin colour. I watched some people move as if they were going to deliver an important message. “I can handle this,” I said to myself. People were desirous to know my motives in the sea. “I came to identify with nature, that is all”. I wish I could say this to anyone who asked.

I breathed deeply and felt a thick knot in my stomach. I love the spotlight, the admiration, and the fawning. “Was I not supposed to be here and think about the unforeseeable future?” I asked myself. As they fixed their eyes on me, I walked graciously, discovering without any hindsight the galore of interest intruding into my path. Another casual shrug, a quick shake of the head, a smile.

Nonetheless, I nurtured a second plan. The Zambian proverb says that “he who wants to cross a river must not be afraid of getting wet.” I left the sea and promised myself to return later, perhaps at the dead hours of the sea. This joyous moment of the Black dot spotted at the Cospudener Sea must be momentarily outlived. Admiringly, I took the long route home, riding slowly away from the sea and into the shaded streets of Koburger Street. I will return. I promised. I needed to learn more about how my presence influences the intentions of ‘others.’

In the Second Scene of the story

Lustrous early morning sunlight streamed through the window blinds and fell into the eight rolls across my room. The air was brisk but not too cold. I glanced through the window and was greeted by the sweet melodies from the birds that always gather in my compound to feed from the fruits in the garden for breakfast. We watched the grass bend with the wind, and the leaves scatter.

To be continued…