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ENGLISHMAN IN BENIN CITY, 1982 (Part Thirty-Two)
Steve quickly realized that it was a bad idea to take off his shirt to enjoy the breeze. He hurriedly wore it back. He had complained about the heat, which was one of the reasons we left the house.
Steve, finally, decided to take us to a place not too far from the house to show off the body of water he said he discovered. He had been raving about it, but we were unable to go and see it, distracted by the various things happening in such rapid succession.
Prominent on the list of my to-do-things was a visit to River Steve.
Where is Mama Nigeria?
Where is Mama Nigeria? Is the nation motherless? Where is the Helen Sirleaf Johnson of Nigeria?…
BISCUIT BONES.
BISCUIT BONES.
Let me introduce you to Jẹgúdújẹrá, (Chop-and-quench).
Do you know how the Jẹgúdújẹrá Nigerian eats chicken thigh?
I will tell you:
Set the plate of chicken thigh in front of Jẹgúdújẹrá, and the eyes bulge, opening as wide as possible.
A wide smile distorts Jẹgúdújẹrá’s face into a demonic mask of inner delight.
Jẹgúdújẹrá starts with the flesh. With studied concentration, Jẹgúdújẹrá bites deep into the flesh until the entire mouth is full, with both cheeks bulging.
A TALE OF THREE ROBBERS
My father told me the story of three thieves. He was a fiction writer, so I never knew if it was something he made up, or read up.
But let me tell you the tale if you got one minute:
Three thieves received info that a miner kept a large bundle of gold in his house. They decided they should go and relieve the guy of his treasure. “After all,” argued one thief, “he dug up this stone from the ground that God gave all of us.”
Ela, Offspring of Olodumare
Jumped in my Jeep,
started the engine to warm it
and listen to public radio
for 5 minutes.
Jumped out.
Ex-marine neighbor,
calling across the street:
“Mayu, come here.”
Me: Not coming. Too dangerous. Not safe. Covid 19 is ravaging Texas.
It is not an okada o.
It is not an okada o.
It’s a long tori.
It started with a green snake.
It entered the house and crawled into bed with my friend.
I was in the other house, painting, when my friend came running in. “A snake! A snake. Quick!” She said, breathless. “Come, quickly. Please! Come and kill it!”