Man and woman were on an aimless, purposeless journey. He led the way. He also protected and provided for her. She obediently followed him. Afterall, she had seen him kill a wolf and animals of the forests for food and safety. She felt secure under his care, but a few things were unclear to her. She never understood why he was so committed to her. She admired his loyalty, but she was tired of his rigid nature. Man had no fun. He was trained to be a beast of duty. He was fearless, focused and determined. He executed all his duties without complaints. He barely showed pain. Every time woman asked why he was this way, he always gave one answer; "It is the ways of men. I must do that because I am a man. If I don't do that, then I cease to be a man"

Woman got fed up. She wanted fun. She was tired of quietly following man. One day, she stopped following man. Man turned around and asked her "woman, why did you stop following me? don't you know that if you stop following me, you'd get eaten by wolves?"

She said "What crime did you commit? Who cursed you to always protect me with your life? Who made you a slave?"

He replied "I'm not a slave. I'm a man. My loyalty is to my duties and the laws of men. A man must always protect women, even with his life. He must work harder than ever. A man must use all his strength to execute his duties till he dies. If he does not do these, he is not a man. This is the laws of men".

"Who gave you these laws? What are their names? Who are they to you?" She fired back.

Man was furious. He replied angrily "You are a woman. You do not question the ways of men".

She gave a mischievous smile. Suddenly she ran and dived into a nearby river. Man went after her. Woman came out of the river, she went up the mountains, she climbed the trees and ran back into the forest. Men kept chasing her, saying; " come back here woman. You have no strength nor experience with the jungle. Come back under my care".

After so much running, woman stopped. She looked at him pitifully. "My sweet man. Are you having fun? Can't you see that nobody punished me for going against your laws? Why are you too scared to go against the laws of men? Is your pride as a man, worth your happiness? Now that you have run, climbed the trees and mountains with me, who punished you? Can't you see that these laws are in your head and have nobody to enforce them? " She said.

Man looked at her angrily. If woman were an animal, he'd have torn her apart with his bare hands. "If you keep running away from my care, I'd have no choice but to restrict you by using my muscles to exert pressure on you". He said.


She held his hands, looked him in the eye and spoke with passion "my sweet man. I have watched you for a long time. You live but do not live. You do not live because you do not live your own life. You toil, protect, face hardship, take life-ending risks and subject yourself to slavery. You are not even allowed to be weak. You do not seem human anymore because your life is bland. You have no colour in your life. You spend your whole life proving that you are a man instead of being happy. The only reward you get for your life service is being called a man. I want to make you an offer. I want you to be happy. Have your fun. Climb trees, swim in the river, be happy. Take some time off. Let me share some of your duties with you. While you have your fun, I will sit and watch out for you. When you finish your fun, I will have mine. We will take turns having fun.

Man laughed hysterically and said "How can you take my duties? You are weak and have no strength. How can you protect me when you cannot even defeat a goat in a fight? You see insects and you scream. I do not trust you with my duties because you are weak, you love fun and you are rebellious"

Woman felt insulted. She had always looked at man as a good thinker but she was disappointed that man could not see beyond his petty laws. He could not see that his laws have no weight. She was angry because man was insistent on his stupid laws, to the detriment of his own happiness. She was furious because man could not see that she wants what is best for him.

She said "Since you have chosen to be a slave to your laws, I wish you good luck. I refuse to let any stupid laws of some gang of unknown, faceless men direct my life. I will have my own life, have fun and be happy"

Woman turned around and ran back into the wild.

Man felt stuck. He did not know how to express himself because he was trained to never explain or argue. Arguing with a woman is unmanly. But He needed her. Importantly, he needed an offspring. If he's not able to get his own child, then he has failed as a man.

Man ran after her