Outcast - Episode 5

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Since I started school, Mama had been leaving me to myself. I was beginning to adapt. One thing about me, was that I clung to Mama so much but I still was free when I wasn't with her. Mama normally visited the hospital for her antenatal and sometimes, she paid a visit to the man that was dealing in local herbs. Whenever she was coming back, she gets a gift for me.

On Saturday, as usual, Mama woke up early, and prepared food for everybody in the house . Since Mama became pregnant, Mama Nnukwu had been eating her food again. I still wondered why the sudden behaviour. Papa woke up, ate and went to do his normal routines. Papa was never tired of his farm work. Mama wore a long flowing gown and tied a wrapper around her waist. She tied her head gear carelessly, put on her slippers, carried her bag and left. I stayed indoor and flipped through the pages of my books staring at what I have been taught in school.

"What are you doing?", Mama Nnukwu asked and peeped from the door into the sitting room; I was sitting on the floor. I stared at her and didn't talk. 

"Nwoke'm, come outside and play and stop being reserved", she said in a friendly tone. I arranged my books inside my bag and came outside to play

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. We had a big spacious compound. Very big that it would contain thousands of people. Mama Nnukwu always emphasized to Papa and Mama about the fact that she should have given birth to numerous children but the goddess of fertility, Ala, wasn't in her favour during her prime. Oma'mmiri is their river goddess who is one of the maidservant of their goddess Ala. Ala womb carries the dead children as they reincarnate.

I came outside the compound to play. I sat on the sand filled compound trying to gather basic things like tin of milk, tea, tomato etc to play with. I wanted to ask Mama Nnukwu to tell Adaeze to play with me but words failed me. Adaeze was Mama Nnukwu friend's granddaughter who was birthed out of wedlock and abandoned for her grandmother to take care of. Adaeze was the same height as I was but looked older. She spoke fluently. Anytime she came with her grand mother, she always tried to cajole me to play with her, but I clung to Mama. She was in primary three. I continued playing with myself. I took one of the empty can to fill it with sand, I saw a black scary creature at our gate side. It crawled and moved slowly. My eyes opened widely, I swallowed my spit and ran to Mama Nnukwu screaming.

"What's that?", Mama Nnukwu asked as she came out from her hut where she was trying to break palm kernel nuts. I pointed at the creature for her. She laughed, and I stared at her scarily.

"It's Éké, python, my friend. She is the goddess's messenger. She knows your mother is pregnant. She came to deliver the message. She is not meant to be killed. It will be an abomination, Aruala", Mama Nnukwu said and rubbed my head. What's Mama Nnukwu saying? A scary creature? In my catechism class, I was taught that God made enmity between a woman and snake for a woman to trample on its head. What's Mama Nnukwu now saying? My Reverend sister sounded more believable than Mama Nnukwu. Snakes are scary creature and no right thinking person should be friend with it. Our St. Vincent De'Paul Catholic church had the picture of Blessed Virgin Mary on the door trampling on the snake's head. I saw Mama Nnukwu moved close to the snake and carried it. It curled loosely around Mama Nnukwu's hand. She carried it to her hut and sat with it as she continued talking to it. I was staring at them. I vouched never to allow Mama Nnukwu touch me with her hands again.

Read " The Dormitory (A Sequel) " by the same author ( Obinna Tony )

. I found her disgusting. I still watched Mama Nnukwu served the snake with food in a small mortar. After she was done with the snake, she sent the snake away.

"Come, my son", Mama Nnukwu said. My body was covered with goose bumps as I tried to move close to her. I couldn't enter her hut. I stood at the entrance.

"You have a long way in learning our tradition my son. Your unborn sister will become the priestess of the river, Oma'mmiri. Éké is the messenger of the goddess and Ala is the goddess of fertility who is the wife of Amadioha, the god of thunder", Mama Nnukwu said. I watched as she completed her ramblings, I ran to our house which was opposite and locked the door of the sitting room. Every move both real and my imagination in the sitting room, sounded like the python scrambling around. I screamed and cried throughout until there was a knock on the door and it was Mama.

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