Help Chloe Reunite with Her Love in Tanzania

Hi everyone, my name is Chloe Mesa, and I am asking for help getting to Tanzania so I can see my partner who lives there. His name is Baraka, which, when translated, means blessing. This is very much how I see him and our relationship.

I am going to share our love story, so you all know how important we are to one another. I met Baraka in the summer of 2023, during my Ethnographic field school trip to Tanzania. I was a researcher and he was a translator. From the moment I met him, I had a deep level of respect and admiration for him. He is one of the kindest, humblest, and most gentle people I have ever met. Throughout the trip, I tried to fight my feelings for him, only to find out they grew more and more the more time I spent around him and the more I knew about him. He made me feel seen, understood, and special. Towards the end of our trip, I felt myself dreading leaving Tanzania and not being able to see Baraka every day as I had grown used to. I was crushing so hard on him at this point, so I decided to ask for his WhatsApp so we could stay in contact.

From there, I went back home to America. As my plane took off, I felt both a deep fear and sadness that I may never see this sweet man again. From there, we texted every day as friends and updated one another on every life event that we had. We comforted each other through deaths in the family, friendship breakups, career struggles, family problems, natural disasters, and the everyday stresses of life. We created a safe space within one another, which allowed our feelings to become stronger, eventually growing from like into love. I would check my phone constantly, hoping to see a green WhatsApp notification from Baraka. We tried many times to move on and allow our feelings to die down. However, we always found something else to love about one another.

To my great joy, we found hope to be reunited in the summer of 2024. I was so pleased to find out that my professor, Dr. Marnie Thomson, wanted me to be a teacher's assistant for the Ethnographic field school in Tanzania. The best part was that I was getting paid to go this time, so I had no worries about securing funding for a ticket. So as soon as I found out, I started telling all my friends and loved ones in Tanzania that I would be coming back, and I was looking forward to seeing them. (Especially Baraka). During this time, I had given up on finding love, and I was so sure that someone saw how wonderful Baraka was and snatched him up. So, I reached out to Baraka and told him I was coming back to Tanzania and I wanted to see him again if he had time.

He replied to me and said yes, and that he was so happy to hear I was coming back with the class, and that we could see each other once again. From there, I noticed he started to flirt with me, but I was still so crazy about him that I didn't believe he was. I asked my professor later for her advice and if she noticed the same thing. Both my professor and I were so oblivious, and I waited to see if he would tell me if he liked me. Within the next few days, I was overjoyed to hear from him. As I was going to bed one night, I saw that he was typing something to me for almost an hour. Just as I was about to give up, he sent the message, and it was one of the most beautiful and heartfelt messages I had ever read. He told me he had liked me so deeply for almost a year and had such deep feelings for me. He asked if we could go on a date when I got to Tanzania. As I read his beautiful words, I felt my heart jump with joy, and I said yes, and I would be looking forward to our date.

I had a great time with the class, and I was looking forward to seeing Baraka every day. The day finally came when we went on our date. I was so excited that I was unable to sit still; I kept scanning the room, desperate to see him. I ran around the restaurant looking for him like a lost puppy. When I finally saw him, I ran to his arms to hug him, and finally got to be held by him. From there, we went on our date and told one another how we felt. We discussed the struggles we would have if we did decide to be in a relationship. After all our discussions, we decided that we were worth it and we wanted to take this chance. Although long distance is so hard, he makes every day worth it. I have been the happiest I have ever been while in this relationship with him. We have seen each other through so many struggles within the year of our relationship. He has taken care of me and my emotions so well, and even has gone as far as allowing himself to be my scapegoat when I needed it.

I love Baraka so much, and I want to keep building a future with him in it. Although I know our story is very long, I hope that you will all help us to keep our story going.