Adults Tell The Best Lies.
A child can be likened to fresh clay ready for moulding. The end result depends on the person handling it. A child is ever curious and also innocent. Adults take advantage of this innocence and manipulate the child into believing a whole lot of things. A child has no reason to disbelieve the adult. I remember my experience growing up in the western part of Nigeria. This part to me is the home of ridiculous superstitions. I don't think any tribe in Nigeria can beat the Yorubas at this. The topic at hand is lies told to me as a child. I would relate it as a story.
At the age of seven, i was a quiet child but was ever curious. I wanted to know what this was for and how this was made. I asked my mother questions in the privacy of her room. I had a reputation to maintain as the most quiet child inthe neighbourhood...lol.
It was our neighbour's wedding and everyone was so busy. I went from one place to the other looking and poking around stuffs that was not any of my business. I continually got underfoot, annoying the adults. My friend also the son of a neighbour mimicked my actions.
Then the eldest woman in the compound called us both.
"Eyin mejeeji, e lo si odo iya alakara. Sofun pe ko fun yin ni arodan. E ma pada wa ti e ba ri. Egba wa nibi."
At this, the women laughed but kept quiet.
She had said we should go to the woman selling akara three streets away to get 'arodan'. We must not come back without it or we would be flogged.
We happily went on this errand that turned out to be a journey of no return. When we told the woman our errand l, she asked us to wait. She kept us for about 30 minutes then sent us to another woman claiming it was with her. That one sent us somewhere else and so it went on. We were sent from one house to another with no hope of getting the elusive 'arodan'. Late in the evening, the last woman we met told us she has sent someone to give the old woman a few minutes ago.
At this point, we were exhausted and at the point of tears. The fear of flogging had prevented us from going back home. We walked slowly and painfully with our sore little feet home. It is needless to say that all preparations for the ceremony was just concluded without our presence. We were given food and we promptly went to sleep.
I would later learn that children are sent to get arodan to get them out of a place that they are not needed. I was so angry when i learnt that fact. Arodan does not exist.
Another incident happened that same year. On our way from school was this little forest and just at the edge was a banana plantation. I and my friend, the same boy went over there one day to pick up our ball. We discovered it was cool there and so we resolved to play there a little each day before going home.
The very next day, we ran to the spot with glee shouting when we heard a woman calling us. She looked serious and so concerned we were scared. She said, " Don't you know you don't play in a place like that? There are 'iwin'(meaning evil spirits) living inside the banana trees. They would flog you with their long canes and the wounds don't heal. You would carry it forever."
That was enough to calm us down. From home videos, we knew how terrifying iwins were. They were always wicked and showed no mercy to their victims. We never looked back as we ran home. Anytime we pass that spot we would fearfully hurry along so the 'iwin' would not chase us with their canes.
It was just a ploy to prevent our being bitten by dangerous insects or even snakes that can be found in that kind of place. I reasoned that as a teenager.
I could go on and on about lies told to me as a child. Was it the sitting on a mortar means you would be barren all your life or the never use your hand to catch rain flowing down corrugated aluminium sheets. They said thunder would strike me if i did so. I was also told an orange tree would grow in my tummy if i swallowed the seeds while eating one. A lot of funny lies we were told as children that whenever i remember, i laugh and wonder how i believed. It is all just ridiculous.
This is written for the writing contest by @sankofa.
I am almost late with my entry but then its better late than ever.