Diary of an African Child 2

It was almost New Year and everyone was getting ready for the annual festivities. My mother with my father's wives went to the village's market to buy food stuffs and other provisions so as to make delicious delicacies to make the celebration a memorable one. My mother was an exceptional bargainer and an even more exceptional cook that could make any other mothers food look and taste like rubbish. My father especially liked her food more than his other wives and that was why he preferred her to his other wives. Although this did not stop him from marrying up to five wives. My mother was his first wife. All of this will make one wonder why he married other women since she knows how to cook so well. Turns out they lied to us when they said that the best way to a man's heart is through his stomach. But the desires of men are insatiable, so soon enough my father found another man to marry then another then another till they were five in number.

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Back to the celebration, the whole house was busy doing one thing and another. My siblings and I were in charge of killing the poultry fowls, pigs, goats and turkeys with long necks. It was a huge celebration so we had to kill a lot of those animals as we were a large family with a lot of family friends. The other wives and their kids were in charge of cooking delicacies such as jollof rice, fried rice, amala, pounded yam with soups such as Ewedu, Okro and Egusi. They also prepared fried beef, chicken and pork not forgetting the all important dodo.

To tell you the truth, it wasn't easy to kill the animals not because I was a vegetarian (God forbid) but because they were abnormally fast especially those fowls. I remember last year celebration when a crazy cock took me on a chase. God knows that I must have ran up to ten kilometers that day. Not only was I physically exhausted I was embarrassed by that chicken. Everyone was laughing at me including my siblings. My sister Funke said "are you that slow and sluggish not to catch an ordinary chicken, when you will not help in house hold chores how won't it happened". To which I replied " I think this chicken is possessed by a demon or any supernatural spirit". I finally caught the fowl with the help of my other brother and I didn't have mercy when killing. I slit the throat with a speed that even the god of speed will be jealous. I also made sure that it was that particular fowl that I ate and I ate it with pure satisfaction.

The celebration was a general success due to the contribution of the whole family. We might have our difference but at times like this we come together bury the hatchet and celebrate the End of the year and the beginning of a New year together. There was more than enough to eat and drink. The palm wine was particularly in surplus and I was definitely drunk. I also ate way too much fried meat for my good. I'm sure I will have a running stomach soon enough.

Time had gone, most of our guest had left for their respective homes, we were already gathering the left over food to give out and also give some to our dogs. It was dark and I was definitely over bloated. I went home without joining my siblings to clean up because they saw how tired I was. As I laid on my bed, I remembered what was going to come next with fear and trepidation. I just hope that I was ready for it.

Thank you very much for taking your time to read through this piece. I hope you enjoyed it.

Till next time.