HANNAH'S TALE (AFRICAN EDITION)

"Awon Iya ile, won ko ni omo. Awon iya ile, wo ko ni ayo,
Awa layo, omo si repete.
Awa loko, ife si repete"
So sang Iya Risi as she continued sweeping the veranda with a short broom.

While she swept, she increased the tempo of her song and swung her hips to the song and stopped at intervals to adjust her Iro.

Nothing was going to restrict her from being rude that day.

Apparently, she had woken on the wrong side of the world that day and was spoiling for a fight against anyone that dared to cross her path.

Apparently Ige, her husband, had told her to sweep the whole house since his first wife, Asake, was ill that day.
An illness which had come up as a result to the traumatizing experience which she had gotten the previous day.
For Iya Risi's stubborn twin boys had sprayed dried devil's weed in her bath water and rubbed it on her towel.

Apparently, her children had complained to her that their father refused to give them money for the textbooks, 'dic' 'tion' and 'ary' which were valued at 25 thousand naira each.
Instead, they reported that their father had chosen to give Asake, money to refurbish her shop which was already in a terrible state.

Iya Risi was ready to fight that morning, and that was why she kept on directing the song towards Asake who was quietly picking the beans in the corner.

"Edumare oba Oke, eshe wo ni mo se ti o ko le dariji mi. Which person's farm have I raided and whose yam have I uprooted that you have decided to punish me thus"

She could remember the good old days.

When herself and Ige would sit close to the river in Abule, while basking in the undulations and teasing of her friends around.

Days when they would both eat 'oka' with peace of mind in their little room.
Days when Ige would swear, with his cutlass firmly clenched in his fingers, to behead any man who dared to look at his dearest Oyin.
Days when he would call her 'Ife mi' with his left hand caressing her tender cheeks, while his right hand admired the texture of her suku hair and the ileke that she bind her it with.

Those were the sweet days until Iya Agba barged into her sweet home with a sledgehammer.

The sledgehammer was in form of a young lady.

One, whose looks were so repulsive to Ige that he immediately told the woman to leave his home.

One who could not dare to match Asake in any beauty contest.
For she had a long scar at the left side of her face.
A scar which had been put there by her opponents during her 'Sunday dagboru' days in the Abule.

A scar which had been replied with a stab in the chest of the opponent with a 33 lager beer bottle with jagged end.

Iya Agba's wishes later triumphed.

As Iya Agba kept calling Asake a witch who had eaten all the children which God had given her from 'ode orun'.

As iya Agba kept inviting all the herbalists in the village and telling them to come and break the jinx which Asake had placed on her son.

As the old woman insisted that she would kill herself if Ige refused her request to take the woman as a second wife.

The new wife came in and Ige reluctantly went to her bed.
Praying that she would not conceive at all so that he could chase her away quick.

Iro oo.
The bullet, he shot, killed two antelopes.
As the new wife took in and gave birth to twins at the first attempt.
A birth that solidified Iya Agba's accusations that were hurled against Asake.

Iya Agba had returned home after Iya Risi had given birth.

A return that had unleashed the beast which the new wife had kept in its cage.
For she was already tired of trying to conceal her true nature from public glare while iya Agba was around.

Just like the 'ijangbon omo' that keeps a smiling face and sits calmly on the parlor chair while the visitor is around.

Just like the sisi oge who keeps smiling even though the wig that sits comfortably on her head, is itching her badly.

Just like the yoruba demon that keeps acting humble in church so that the pastor can give him a much needed recommendation for a job he is applying for.

Just like the smiling 'oloshelu' (politician) that keeps smiling for the cameras, eating maize from the roadside and seating to eat Amala with small children just because he is trying to canvas for votes from the people.

This was the way the new wife acted while Iya Agba was around.
And then, she switched into her real colours when the old woman left.


Asake continued worrying as she absent-mindedly picked the beans she intended to prepare for her husband
.
Her eyes had swollen from the tears which had gushed out the previous night.
For she was lactating with her breasts full of milk, even though she had no children.
A medical case which the doctor called Galactorrhea.

"Ni ijo wo ni emi na ma fi eyin gbe omo kpon?" (Which had day will I carry a child with my back)
She asked as she momentarily paused and stared into the empty space in front.

She had already decided not to go to Yemoja to ask for a child.
As she had heard that such children fully belonged to Yemoja and could be called to do anything the goddess wanted at any point of their lives.

She had already decided not to visit Esu for a child.
For numerous people had told her that the god had enough children in his stock.

Agbako children who would fully drive their parents to their graves even before the time which Edumare had destined them to go.

Wicked children who would use catapults to kill every lizard in the neighborhood while young and then graduate to using big sticks to clubber human beings to death when they eventually grow old.

Evil weak hearted children who may decide to keep coming to the earth and returning to their spirit world at will.

'Ogbanje' was the name of the last set of children which Esu gave.
And they would only stop whenever the earthly father decides to disfigure their corpses in a crude way before burying them.

Asake looked to the heavens and uttered a deep cry.

One that caused Iya Risi to stop her mocking momentarily.

One that caused Ige to quickly rush out from the 'baluwe' with soap still on his body; intent on knowing what had happened to the 'Iyawo ti mo fe nisu loka'.

One that caused the twins to momentarily stop in their act of lifting meat from their mother's pot of Egusi.

One that caused Edumare oba Oke to rise in order to grant her request.

To be continued in later posts
#Bashorun

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