FABLES

FEATHER MY NEST.

Far out in the woods, lived a colony of robins - bush robins and farm robins. Farm robins were known for lack of manners, pride and general wildness. Bush robins were good, humble and hardworking birds.
Bob Robin, a farm robin, had reached the ripe age of marriage. It was time to go out and look for a good, faithful and hardworking wife. So out he flew to the bush to fulfil his mission.
Bob Robin came to the edge of the bush and heard a faint, sad and moving song. It was a girl’s song. He strained his ears to capture the melody that almost swept him off the tree he was in. The song ended and, almost immediately, began again. This time Bob Robin missed none of it:
Rain rain wash my tears away
Thunder thunder scare no one today
Wind Wind bring a friend to stay

Without knowing, Bob Robin found himself drifting towards the origin of the song. It was not long before he came face to face with the singer herself, a plain humble looking and very clean bush robin.
“I am Bob Robin,” he started strongly while circling her and chirping excitedly. “Will you come with me to the farm to lay eggs for me, make my nest comfortable and bring up children for me?”
The bush robin blushed, looked down shyly before replying in a soft but clear voice, “First sing me a song.”
Bob Robin looked shocked. He knew his voice as being croaky. He, however, cleared it and made the best attempt to sing his heart and head out.
Rain rain wash …
Wash the evil intentions
off my heart
And make me cleaner than a hat….
Wind Wind…… Blow!
Blow us to the nest..
Blow you east
Blow you west
For me you blow the best!

Lady Robin was struck. Her feathers stood out, clearly impressed by the young bird in front of her. His song was simply lovely. It warmed her heart and she gained courage. She found her voice and spoke softly, “I am Lady Robin. You Bob Robin look a clean and well-mannered bird. It is my pleasure and pride to go and lay eggs for you. I’ll compose songs and together we shall sing them early every morning and late in the evening. We may go.”
Bob Robin was very delighted as off they flew from the bush to the farm where his nest was. He did a jig almost landing on his back.
Lady Robin entered the nest and started cleaning straight away while scolding her husband. “You should eat worms outside the nest and change the grass inside everyday. Shame on you! Now go out and look for fresh grass.”
Out flew the impressed husband to look for clean grass. Blade by blade he carried the brand new grass to his home. After several rounds of this, the nest was clean and spanking new. It smelt of the fields and reminded the two of the size of their love for each other. That night they feasted on fat worms outside the nest and huddled together they sang:
Today is our night
Together we shall pull our weight
And not at all fight
Today is our night
There shall be plenty of light
Other robins heard them and knew that these were two who had just started their life together. Some laughed remembering how they had started their lives together. Most were very impressed by the song.
A week later, Lady Robin laid one egg. This continued for seven days when she stopped laying the eggs and started preparing for the period of hatching, which is preparing the eggs to become chicks.
Meanwhile Bob Robin flew in and out of the nest to bring food for his wife who had to remain inside the nest. It was a hard job but Bob Robin enjoyed it.
After two weeks of hatching, the first egg cracked and a tiny beak broke out. This was repeated for five other eggs while two did not hatch. Bob Robin was a very proud bird. His feathers stood out, his beak proud and pointed to the skies above. He immediately broke out into a song:
Now that I am a father
Let me spread out my feathers
And sing to change the weather.
Now that I am a father
Sing with me all ye birds
Sing to welcome my chicks
Sing my brothers, sing my sisters
Sing with me……………
Now that I am a father.

The nest was filled with uncoordinated chirpings from the chicks. “I’ll teach them how to sing,” said Bob Robin proudly to his wife. They looked at each other, happy that the nest was warm and full of life. He flew out severally to get worms for his chicks. He sang happily as he sped past several trees to his family.
Late in the evening, the tired robin finally squeezed beside his wife. Together they sang to thank God for the wonderful gifts He had given them. Life was good.
Bob Robin had a neighbour called Tom Robin, a young robin who was not yet married. Tom was a wanderer and loved touring the bushes and the forests for adventures and for fruits. It was during one of these tours that Tom Robin discovered that fermented fruits were the sweetest things ever created.
“Bob, come let us go and look for those fruits I told you about. A married bird should eat well so that he can have the strength to feed his family well,” Tom told his friend one day. He went on to describe the fruits, his eyes blinking quickly to show excitement.
Bob immediately protested. “But I have to keep my wife and children company. I also have to be around to fetch food for them.”
Tom was not defeated easily. In a deep voice full of concern, he told his friend, “More the reason why you should eat well, otherwise you will grow thinner everyday.” As Tom said this, he ruffled Bob’s feathers before adding, “ You used to be fatter than this. Once a week to the bushes will restore your strength. Think about it.”
Bob Robin decided to play safe. So he went and told Lady Robin that he was going to the forest to look for wild fruits.
“Come back early,” warned Lady Robin, “and bring some fat worms for us.” Bob Robin made all kind promises to his adoring wife. She looked lovely taking care of those five noisy yet charming chicks.
The two male robins then flew out to look for the fermented grapes that Tom Robin had been talking about all the time. Bob Robin was dying to see and taste these fruits.
It was not long before the two birds reached their destination and straight away descended on the fallen grapes sucking them dearly.
“Wow, what a feeling!” exclaimed Bob Robin as he deeply sucked juice from grape to grape. He kept on chirping excitedly, “This is great!” He and Tom Robin slapped each other in the back, clearly overwhelmed by the fallen grapes.
By late evening, the two birds were completely drunk and could hardly walk, let alone fly. Bob Robin tried singing but the words could hardly come out. So they just lay where they were until late at night when they gathered minimum strength to take off. Took off they did but after crashing into several trees.
Very late at night the two birds came home singing loudly, wildly and completely off key. The whole colony woke up and they were not amused by this disturbance, the first of its kind. Lady Robin was both furious and ashamed of her husband.
“You are a shameful husband. Getting drunk is the only thing you could do. Your chicks remained hungry the whole day because of you and here you come singing at the top of your voice and smelling like a brewery,” Lady Robin complained hysterically. Only the chirping of the hungry chicks stopped her.
The following morning, Bob Robin woke up with a throbbing headache and sour tongue. He was feeling terrible, guilty, and ashamed at what he had done the previous day. He went and apologised to his wife but she could hear nothing of it.
Bob Robin was sorry and vowed never to take fermented fruit again or go to the forest to look for fruits. He became a good and responsible husband for the next few days. Lady Robin forgave him. They went back to their singing as the chicks gained weight and height.
But to Bob Robin the temptation of visiting the forest kept on strongly coming and going. Worse still, it seems like more and more birds were discovering the sweetness of fermented fruits. The colony was getting noisier and noisier. Lady Robin was not too happy with the turn of events.
Tom Robin did not leave Bob Robin in peace. One day, Bob, without the knowledge of his wife, decided to go to the forest briefly. He vowed to himself that he would only take one grape. When he arrived, he found a group of young birds already drunk and singing wildly. He joined them and soon one grape became one too many. Within a short time, he was also drunk.
Late at night the group of young birds came singing and making noise. Bob, who was among them, went to his nest and tried to squeeze in between his wife and chicks. His wife did not allow him to do so. He was chased away to go and look for another place to sleep in. He went to Tom Robin’s nest.
Early in the morning, Lady Robin, who had had enough of drunkards, gathered her chicks and flew out of the nest back to the bush where she had come from. As she flew, she sang:
Rain rain wash my tears away
Thunder thunder scare people today
Wind wind let me alone to stay.
Wind Wind…… Blow!
Blow! Blow you east
Blow! Blow you west
Please blow me from the rest!

Bob woke up from his place of slumber and went straight to the nest. His wife and chicks were missing. The nest was empty.
Bob Robin was sad. First he sat inside the empty nest waiting for his family to come back. “Maybe they will be back in a while,” he comforted himself. They did not come back. Next he flew all over the farm looking for his family but they were nowhere to be seen. He went to the bush where he had met Lady Robin for the first time but she was not there.
Very late in the evening, completely tired and depressed, Bob Robin came back to his nest and sang a very sad song:
Lady lady please be back
Drink and drink has spoilt my luck
Lady lady come be my wife
Drink and drink has ruined my life.
Tears, tears……Flow
Flow! Flow you east
Flow! Flow you west
For me you flow from the nest!


CAT GETS A HOME.

The whole family was silent as they gathered round to listen to their very sick parents. All wanted to hear what the parents had to say.
Father Cat looked around. All his children were there: the Lions, the Leopards, the Cheetahs, the Jaguars, the Tigers, the Pumas, and the youngest, the Cats named after their parents.
"My sons and daughters, our days are numbered. We have called you here to remind you of the unity that has always been our strongest point. Your mother and I want you to strengthen this unity among yourselves,” said Father Cat who went to talk in length about the family history. His children listened keenly.
Three days later, Father Cat and Mother Cat died of old age. The family mourned them deeply.
After some time, Lion called for a another meeting and here duties were allocated to all the members of the family. Animals were given a day in which they would be responsible for feeding the whole family.
The first day was the turn of the Lions to bring food. They set off to the forest while the rest waited at home playing games. The Lions went straight to a herd of buffaloes and managed to kill four of them. They dragged their game home and that day the family had a hearty meal. It was a good beginning.
The following day was the Tigers' turn. They woke up early to go to the lake, where all the animal drank water. The tigers hid behind some bushes before striking. Five gazelles fell and were taken home. That evening everyone was happy. Everyone, except the Lions.
"The meat was too soft and it was not enough,” grumbled one Lion to his sister. "They should have brought buffalo meat which is neither too soft nor too hard." The others agreed entirely with their brother.
The tigers were unamused. "Whenever it is not the Lions' idea, they complain and make a fuss over nothing. As far as we re concerned, we brought food and all managed to eat,” said one angry Tiger.
The following day, the Cheetahs went out to hunt. Out to impress the rest, they went for the buffaloes which were not in a very good mood, especially after losing four of their members to the lions. The buffaloes charged at the Cheetahs and chased them away.
"Wow!" exclaimed one Cheetah. "Those buffaloes are really in a foul mood today. I think we should to for gazelles." But the gazelles were nowhere to be seen. Since it was getting late, the Cheetahs decided to get the antelopes which were readily available. They managed to get six of them.
The others had waited long enough. So when the Cheetahs reached home, the welcome they received was not exactly the best.
"We have our meals at mid-day," said one Lion. "It is way past mid-day."
"And what is this that you have brought?" added another Lioness with disgust written all over her face.
The meat was sweet but insufficient, according to the Tigers. The rest did not mind the meat at all.
The Leopards brought zebra meat, which the Lions, Tigers and Cheetahs dismissed as very tough.
The Jaguars caught a giraffe, which was ruled out as having very long muscles, obviously making chewing a difficult thing.
The Pumas, after much sweating, managed to get two old buffaloes which were too bitter for the rest.
"How can you bring such old and rotten meat for a meal?" screamed one Lion in disgust. The complaint was echoed by all the rest, except the cats which didn't seem to mind the meat.
Finally the turn of the Cats came. Out they went determined to prove to the others that they were capable of doing something. But things were not that simple. After a rough day in which one of them was killed by a buffalo, the Cats finally came home very late in the evening.
"Rats!" screamed the Tigers. "Squirrels!" added the Leopards. All the others refused eat Cats' catch and that day they all went without food. Only the cats ate.
"What is the use of bringing good food when the others only serve rats, squirrels and rotten buffaloes?" asked one Lion.
The following day, the Lions, after several days of resting, were out again to hunt. "We might as well have our meal here and then go back and tell the others that we did not succeed," said one Lioness after they had caught some buffaloes. And that is what they exactly did. The game was on, it was everyone for himself.
Sooner than expected the family scattered into different parts of the forest. Only the Cats were left behind. They found it quite boring being alone and with no one to protect them. So they also left to go and look for a better place.
After many days of travelling, the Cats came to a house. "Let us go and ask for food there," said one hungry Cat.
As they were going to the house, they saw four rats running towards the house. Since they were hungry, they gave the mice a mighty chase. The mice entered the house and the Cats stopped outside wondering whether to go in or not.
Someone from the house screamed. "Get these ugly creatures out of this place!" The Cats moved in fast and gladly gobbled the rats. The owner of the house was happy.
"You have saved me from those filthy creatures which have been terrorizing my family. Ask anything that you want from me," she told the exhausted Cats.
The Cats all asked for shelter and food. Both were granted without any complains. Ever since then, Cats live with human beings while their elder brothers and sisters roam the forests in search of their food.


CHAMELEON'S DAUGHTER.

There was excitement throughout the animal kingdom. It was time for one of the greatest and most awaited occasions of the season: Wedding time.
"Let us see who you will marry this season," Mother Giraffe told her tall and handsome son. "Last season your sister got married to Elephant's son and the two of them are very happy together."
The procedure was simple. Each young male who had attained the age of marriage had to look for a suitable bride and propose to the bride. If the bride agreed then a meeting was to be arranged between the parents of the two. The meeting was to discuss and negotiate the dowry which had to be settled before the Wedding time. Each season there were about twenty animals being joined.
A young lion brushed his fur and combed his long mane. "I'll go for the most beautiful and attractive of all the females. One who has smooth skin, nice legs, white teeth and sparkling eyes," said the young excited lion to his amused mother.
"Listen carefully to me my son. Look for a female with a clean heart because a clean heart means a clean house, and most important of all, a clean heart means clean intentions. My son, beauty alone does not count," the lioness told her son.
The young lion looked at her mother and cheekily asked, "And who exactly do you have in mind, mother?"
"The most humble of all is Chameleon's daughter," replied the lioness who was interrupted by her son's thundering and irritating laughter.
The lioness was hurt and mumbled to herself, "These youngsters of nowadays know nothing about marriage."
The young lion was certainly not alone in his train of thought and dreams. All the other young males saw beauty as the only determining factor in choosing a partner in life. Hence spotted animals like leopardess, animals with beautiful fur like sheep, those with white small eyes like elephant were considered beautiful. No one wanted anything to do with Chameleons, Frogs or Lizards.
The big day was nearing. All the eligible males had already made their choice. One was allowed only one choice. Chameleon's daughter was sad. She was the only female without a partner.
"Mother you told me that I would get a partner. Why hasn't anyone come for me?" Chameleon's daughter asked with tears streaming down her cheeks. Even crocodile's son and python's son who had missed partners did not come to propose.
"Don't worry my dear, someone will come to propose to you. It always pays to be patient," Mother Chameleon consoled her sad and depressed daughter.
But no one came for her. The big wedding party was held and twenty animals exchanged vows. Only three eligible animals did not feature at all: Chameleon's daughter, Crocodile's son and python's son. These three had to wait till the following season to choose other partners.
Unfortunately the following season was the same for Chameleon's daughter. No one wanted to marry her.
"Her eyes are bigger than her feet," commented one young handsome and proud Fox. "She'll frighten the children at night," was the comment given by the big Elephant. Even her closest family friends did not spare her at all. "She'll never reach the market: far too slow for life," was the comment given by Frog's son.
Chameleon's daughter became sadder and more depressed as another year passed by without anyone coming to propose to her. Her parents were also worried by now as it now seemed evident that no one was going to marry their only child. As the days increased so did their worries.
Meanwhile the newly married couples started having their own share of problems. The beautiful ones were just that: beautiful. Most of them proved to be lazy, bad cooks, boastful and annoying to their husbands.
"You just spend all your time walking to and from the marked so that others can admire you. Who are you trying to attract now? You are already a mother of two and very married," a young leopard scolded his vixen wife, who was quite unmoved by the shouts.
Soon most young males started complaining to their about their wives. Only the ones who had married Frogs, Lizards and Tortoises were satisfied with their spouses. The rest were quite unhappy but there was nothing they could as the laws did not allow one to change a partner.
The following season, Chameleon and his wife were shocked to see a long queue of young unmarried male outside their house. They all wanted to have Chameleon's daughter as a partner in life. They had learnt from their elders.
All who wanted Chameleon's daughter were subjected to a very simple test. "What will you give our daughter in life?" was the question all were asked. Most gave funny answers like clothes, food, and a big house. They all failed. Only Tortoise's son passed the test. "I promise to give your daughter two things: happiness and myself."
So Tortoise’s son finally married Chameleon’s daughter. The two became the envy of many.


COCK-A-DOODLE-DO!

The sun blazed fiercely as silence engulfed the whole village. No one moved, nothing stirred. All was silent and peaceful, something which would make one think that the village was deserted.
Moments later, a roar was heard and life sprang into the animal kingdom. The roar was the alarm to wake everyone up. Like all the other days, the roar had come late.
Chief Lion stretched himself and moved out of his house. "My goodness! It is almost mid-day. Quickly gather all the other animals to the gardens," Buffalo was instructed.
Soon all the animals were out of the village, going to work on their gardens which were some distance from the village. They reached there and what a mess they saw. The birds of the forests had invaded their crops again. This was now becoming too much. At this rate, they would soon have no crops.
"Wow!" exclaimed Lion. "We seriously have to do something about this destruction before it is too late."
Leopard was also shocked. "Why not put someone as a guard to keep the birds away?" he asked.
"But this place is too big for one animal or even for a small group," said Zebra. "We all have to guard the place."
There was silence as each animal looked at the damage the birds had wrought. It was true, something had to be done - fast.
Elephant spoke, "I suggest we start work very early in the morning before the birds are up. We should also leave the gardens late in the evening. By this time, the birds will have fed somewhere else, surely not on our gardens."
"Good idea," said Lion. "From tomorrow, we all should be here before sunrise and leave in the evening. The mid-day meal shall be eaten here."
The animals then did their best to remedy all that the birds had made a mess of. It was a hard job, everyday repeating what you had done the previous day. Despite the depressing sight, all the animals worked harmoniously.
The following morning, however, no one woke up early enough. When the animals finally woke up, the sun was already high and the birds had already caused enough damage. The animals were sad.
"We need someone to wake us up every morning, otherwise we will continue with the same trend as before," said Hare sadly.
Hare's suggestion was considered and soon duties were allocated to all the animals. The first day was to be Hare's turn.
Come morning and no one had woken up, not even Hare himself. When he finally woke up, it was late. He went round waking the others who were still deep asleep. When they finally reached the gardens, all was a mess. The damage had been done.
"You have let us down, Hare," said Monkey. "When one is given a job to do, he should take it seriously." The other animals felt the same, now that they had somebody to blame for their lateness.
Naturally, Hare defended himself. "It was not my intention to let you down. Like everybody, I also like sleeping." Hare was right. All the animals loved their sleep dearly, and this was what was causing all the problems.
The days rolled by and no improvement was seen by the animals. Those on duty continued to oversleep and the birds of the forest also continued with their destruction.
"If this continues for one more week, then we shall have no crops left in the gardens. Our harvest will be nil," said Lion thoughtfully.
The next animal to be on duty was Hen. Her husband, Cock, told her, "Let me do this duty for you. I can't stand seeing you blamed for the misfortunes of our crops." Hen did not object, in fact she was relieved.
Throughout the night, Cock did not sleep. He was worried about letting the whole village down. He could not stomach the idea of going a whole season without a proper harvest. As the night wore on, Cock kept on tossing in bed, completely unable to sleep.
Finally he could bear it no longer. He went out and woke up Lion, whose first reaction was to complain that it was still too early to get out of bed. Cock, however, insisted so much that the Chief had no option but to wake up. Lion then gave one of his loud roars to wake up the rest.
"It is still dark," said Cheetah. "I am going back to sleep for some five more minutes." His wife could hear nothing of such. She forced him out of the house.
The animals all woke up complaining of the ungodly hour they had all been woken up. But soon the complains turned to compliments and Cock was widely congratulated for his commendable job. At last someone had succeeded where the others had failed.
For once the birds did not invade the gardens. The animals managed to work without the usual depressing mood. All were happy with what Cock had done.
"He ought to do this everyday," said Lion. "He is the only one who has proved trustworthy and mindful of others' welfare. Cock agreed to do it on a daily basis.
And so every morning, Cock would go and wake Lion who would in turn roar to wake up the others. This continued for some time when Lion thought it unnecessary for Cock to wake him up.
"All you have to do is to call out the animals and they will respond to your calls," Lion told him.
And ever since, Cocks always crow in the morning to wake up others just before the sun rises........ COCK-A-DOODLE-DO!!!!

THE HUNGRY HYENA.

Pangs of hunger interrupted the smooth sleep, which Hyena was having. He woke up, yawned mannerlessly and then clutched his stomach, which looked flatter than Monkey's head.
"I have never been so hungry in my life. The problem with food is that it is always available when I don't need it. Now that I need it, it is nowhere to be seen," Hyena grumbled to himself.
The hungry Hyena dragged his feet and slowly plodded out of his small hut to go and look for food. Just after stepping out of his hut, Hyena came across a dead rotting bird. He looked at it and sneered, "This is too small for me and furthermore it is unfit for animal consumption. I should look for something more substantial and appealing to my eyes."
The dead bird was kicked aside as Hyena went on looking for something, which would reduce his hunger considerably. Next he came across an egg; a large one and he didn't know whom it belonged to. "It looks like a Crocodile's egg to me, or it could be an Ostrich's egg," said Hyena while rolling the egg trying to decide what to do with it.
Hyena, however, decided to leave the egg alone, "Eggs are only good when one has a full stomach. Egg yolk washes down the food in one's intestine and gives one the satisfying feeling that one has really had a meal. I will come back for this when I am full." With those words he was off to search for something of more substance.
After leaving the egg, Hyena then spotted a squirrel and immediately darted for the kill. By now he was completely uncomfortable with his situation. He caught the squirrel quite easily as it looked like a squirrel, which could not run - it was lame.
"Although you are not very big, you will at least serve as a good breakfast," Hyena told the scared squirrel which could not stop squealing in pain.
The squirrel, despite the pain and risk of her life, decided to talk to Hyena. "You should be ashamed of yourself," she told Hyena who was shocked to be challenged by such a tiny creature. "An animal like you should be hunting animals like antelopes, gazelles and buffaloes, not dwarfs like me. There are bigger, fatter and juicer antelopes grazing just by the stream and here you are wasting your time with bones like me," the squirrel added hoping hard that Hyena would be taken in by the challenging and elaborate speech.
At the mention of the words `bigger', `fatter', and `juicer', Hyena released his grip on the squirrel and started off towards the pool. He did not want to miss the antelopes as he had done so many times before. Antelopes were among the sweetest animals in the forests, unfortunately they were also the most difficult ones to capture. Hyena took off, as he didn't want to miss the chance of capturing the fat, sweet and juicy antelopes.
Squirrel smiled to herself as she watched Hyena darting towards the stream. "That was a lame excuse," she muttered to herself. "It is good it fooled him. I didn't expect it to work, least of all on Hyena."
Hyena, as expected, went straight to the stream and there he saw some antelopes drinking water. He took his time as he planned how he was going to strike the six juicy and extremely fat antelopes in front of him. The more he thought the hungrier he became. Finally he could manage his hunger no longer and went straight towards the antelopes.
The well-fed and extremely fast antelopes saw the aggressor and immediately took off. Hyena picked on one antelope and decided to stick to it. There was no way he was going to stop the chase as his hunger was driving him.
The antelope being chased soon became tired and was about to collapse from exhaustion when Hyena gave up the chase. He had just spotted a herd of buffaloes and remembered that the last time he had eaten buffalo's meat, it had lasted him almost a full week. In that week, he had never bothered to hunt at all.
"If I can get only one buffalo, then my hunger will disappear for almost a month," Hyena said as he turned and channeled his remaining energy to the peaceful herd of buffaloes.
The buffaloes saw a cloud of dust coming towards them and wondered what it could be. Soon they realized that it was only Hyena. So the buffaloes snorted furiously, pawed the ground wildly and bellowed loudly enough to bring down even the mightiest of the trees in the forest.
Hyena heard the bellows and immediately came to a stop as he found himself face to face with five mighty and strong buffaloes. The buffaloes went for Hyena, tossed him around and laughed at poor Hyena as he flew from buffalo to buffalo.
The shaken Hyena got a chance and immediately took off from the herd of buffaloes who could not stop laughing. "Don't try to fly before you can crawl,” is all that Hyena kept on hearing over and over again as he sat down under a tree recovering from the shock and wounds he had sustained from the buffaloes.
Hunger now started clawing harder and deeper into Hyena's stomach. He went and looked around for the lame squirrel but he could not see her. The antelopes also were nowhere to be seen. Hyena then went to where he had left the egg and the dead bird but even those were not there.
So as the night wore on, Hyena curled himself under the big tree waiting for the lame squirrel to come that way. Hunger clawed harder and what had began as a hungry day had ended as an extremely hungrier one.

Cycle Of Life

Cycle of Life….

The two girls met outside Julie’s compound. Same height, same built, same age. Julie, the neater and more presentable of the two was riding her old rickety bike and had ventured outside the gate. Rule number one had been broken.
“I am going to tell on you!” Julie’s younger sister shouted as Julie’s small bike clattered outside the gate.
Julie had to brake hard using her legs on the ground to avoid hitting the girl who had suddenly appeared in front. Julie had seen the girl so many times before. She came from the neighbouring ‘kijiji’ and always joined in a group of children who hovered around Julie’s block of flats.
“Hi Julie,” the girl said in a clear voice.
“Hi,” Julie replied, surprised that the girl knew her name. Julie extended her hand and the two shook hands.
“My name is Susan,” she said, her eyes firmly on Julie’s bike.
“Do you want a ride?” Julie asked. She knew what the answer would be but before Susan could answer, Julie’s sister screamed from the balcony.
“I am going to phone mom right away and tell her you are out of the gate!” Julie ignored her sister’s tantrums. Threats, blackmails, coaxing, making up was part of their daily life.
Susan hesitated but when Julie dismounted and motioned her, Susan took the cue and mounted the bike.
“Confidence comes first. Focus on the road and not on the handle bar,” Julie instructed Susan. A group of curious ‘kijiji’ children gathered to witness the two girls. There were giggles and laughter as Susan tired her desperate best to at least ride 10 or so meters without falling.
“You can do it!” Julie’s firm assurance gave Susan hope that she could do it. After about 15 minutes of balance drills, the two decided to take a break.
“Tomorrow is Christmas day,” Susan said, sweat dripping down her forehead. “I am going to wear my new dress!” The smile and joy on Susan’s face melted Julie’s heart. For the first time, Julie noticed Susan’s tattered clothes.
Another shout from Julie’s sister brought the two girls back to reality. “Julie, mom is on the phone and she wants to speak to you!” Julie obliged and head downcast walked towards the gate where her sister was proudly holding the house phone.
“Hi mom!”
“How many times have I told you not to go out of the gate?”
“Many times mom!”
“So what are you doing outside the gate?”
Silence.
“I am talking to you!”
“Mom, I was teaching Susan how to ride a bike.”
Silence.
“And she says that tomorrow she will have a new Christmas dress.”
“Ok Julie, keep teaching her but make sure you don’t go far. I will see you in the evening!”
“Thank you mom. You are the best!”
Julie was elated. She handed the phone to her sister and managed to stick her tongue out. She was leading in the game.
Susan and Julie continued for another hour before they called it a day.
“Meet me here tomorrow in the morning. I will have something for you,” Julie told the appreciative Susan.
In the evening, Julie’s parents came with loads of shopping and Christmas presents. Julie’s eyes widened at the new mountain bike she had dreamt of having. She hugged both her parents and thanked them profusely. Julie’s younger sister got her expected full set of Barbie dolls.
“What will I do with two bikes mom?” Julie asked.
Mom knew the direction the conversation was leading towards. “You can give one of them away.”
Julie let out a loud whooping “YES!”
Julie and family settled for the evening prayers and meal as they waited for the clock to strike midnight. They sang carols and joined their neighbours in exchanging cards and gifts.
Julie did not sleep a wink. She turned and tossed in bed the whole night. Very early in the morning before going to church, Julie rode her new mountain bike to the gate and outside. Susan was waiting for her. She was wearing her new sparkling white dress. She looked like an angel.
“Merry Christmas,” Susan told Julie. She gave Julie a hug and a small hand made card.
“Merry Christmas,” Julie told her as she dismounted from her bike. “Take it, it’s yours! My mom said I could give one of my bikes!”
Susan was over the moon. She cried as she bade Julie good bye.

Petals Of Love.

Petals of Love….
If you love someone, let them know……

Brian counted the money he had faithfully been saving for the last two months. It amounted to a cool shs.955, courtesy of missed lunches, extra chores within the house. He had never had so much money at one go.
“I am still short of some three hundred or so shillings and Valentine’s Day is just around the corner,” Brian whispered to himself. He continuously shook his head, a clear sign of desperation. He did not want a repeat of last year’s embarrassment where he received gifts from 6 different people while he dished out nothing.
Brian looked at his Valentine’s to do list: flowers, cards and chocolates for 5 people. His parents topped the list, though he knew how skeptical his dad would react with a dismissive, “Love is for the birds!” His mother and his pretty 14 year old sister would be thrilled. It’s the only thing that Brian loved about his sister: appreciation. Gifts had the unique way of bringing the best out of her.
“Which bank did you rob this time?” Brian imagined the teasing from his mom. Or, “Which girl dumped you this time?” his sister would retort. Women!
Two more people and Brian’s list would be complete. There was his class teacher – a petit, humorous and extremely beautiful person. All the boys in the class had a crash on her, though she seemed to favour the notorious Barasa.
“I wonder how old she is,” Brian mused aloud. Whatever her age, the class teacher was one person who Brian felt thoroughly deserved his chocolate and flowers.
Finally, the last name on the list was Cynthia, Brian’s classmate and heart throb. Brian had never told anyone about his love for Cynthia. If he gave her a flower or chocolate then everyone would know. If he did not give her then his heart would not be at peace. Oh, bother! His dad was right about love.
Two days before Valentine and Brian was a bag of nerves. He had resolved all the other issues except Cynthia’s. He tried all manner of disguising the problem without any success.
“Lovey-dovey butterflies!” mum teased him.
“Cupid’s broken arrow,” his sister added to the tension.
“Mr. Lover lover – bombastic!” his dad sang one of those old ragga songs that often belted out of the radio stations.
A day before Valentine’s Day and Brian’s plans were all intact. He collected the red flowers from Kariz the florist. They were all delicately wrapped in a red ribbon. “Thanks mbuyu,” Brian expressed his gratitude.
Brian then proceeded to the supermarket where he bought five 100g chocolate bars and five Valentine’s cards. The cashier winked at him, “So many women! Lucky guy!”
Brian smiled and then muttered, “Trouble my friend!” They both laughed.
The big day dawned and Brian who had not slept a wink was the first one at the dining table. He placed a card, a chocolate and a flower at each person’s eating place. He did not wait for breakfast. A quick wash of face, brushing of teeth and hurried wearing of uniform saw him out of the house in less than ten minutes.
Brian was the first one to reach school. “Have you joined our profession?” the school watchman teased him as Brian strolled into the school compound. He went to class and carefully opened Cynthia’s desk. He placed the flower and gift box inside. He also left one on the teacher’s desk.
Brian hang around waiting for his friends to come. It took another fifteen minutes before the first batch of pupils arrived abode one of the private transporters.
“Happy Valentine!” the boys mocked each other with fake flying kisses. A few brave boys offered girls flowers. This was met with loud hooting and whistles as the girls giggled in appreciation.
Finally Brian saw Cynthia coming towards the group of boys and girls. She looked stunning, the background risen sun radiating on her rotund face. She was carrying a flower and a gift box. All the eyes turned towards her. There was silence as every single boy tensed wondering who the lucky boy was going to be.
Cynthia stopped at Brian’s and with all the confidence of the boys combined, she whispered, “Happy Valentine handsome!” She gave Brian a red flower and beautifully wrapped gift. Brian did not hear the roar of approval / disapproval whatever it was. He muttered something like, “Ata wewe!” Fat goose pimples quickly spread through his body as his legs felt rubbery, his mouth went completely dry while his head spun. “Handsome! Handsome!”
They all watched as Cynthia disappeared into the classroom. Brian was surrounded by a hoard of boys who demanded a share of his loot.
A sudden scream of delight brought Brian and his goons to their senses. It was Cynthia who had discovered her gift. They all rushed in and found Cynthia holding opening her card. Tears flowed freely on her cheeks as she loudly read the poem…
I love
The sunshine in your touch
The moonlight in your smile
The stars in your eyes
The sunrise in your being
The sunset in your laughter
I love
The universe in you.
Be my Valentine…
The card was not signed.
“That was a lovely poem. Who wrote it?” the voice of the class teacher cut across the silence. All heads turned towards the teacher who had just entered the class. There was a stint of silence.
Brian gathered guts and owned up. “I did!” As the words came out of his mouth, he felt a sudden pride in finally declaring his love for Cynthia. He was proud of what he had done. He was at peace with himself. Love was in the air.

First Lady First Mistress

First Lady, First Mistress

7.48 a.m. Anne looked at the guest list for the umpteenth time. She wanted to make sure that all the members of The Club were going to be present for the workshop dubbed ‘Assertiveness is not Aggression’. She did not want any apologies; all had to attend.
Anne’s phone rang and she looked at the number on the screen. It was Judy, her legal advisor. “Are you coming for the ruling?” Judy asked casually, knowing that as The First Lady, Anne’s schedule was pretty tight and that she had neither the time nor energy to run around the congested and often confusing dark court corridors.
“No, Judy. I have to attend to this workshop. It might be the last one I am presiding over as a First Lady,” Anne replied dryly. Judy winced.
Anne’s husband, the president of the country, had filed for a divorce on grounds of nullity of the marriage resulting from childlessness. Surprisingly the case was treated as a low-key affair amongst the press, mainly out of respect for The First Lady’s effort in community service. But it was an open secret amongst the ruling elite that things were not that rosy at The Palace.
“Do what you can,” Anne finally told Judy, her former schoolmate and a personal friend of many years. Judy could not understand how a lady could give up so easily and yet conduct a workshop on assertiveness.
Some things just never made sense. Judy had tried telling Anne to settle for half the estate but Anne had been adamant; “If you can’t share the sky, why share the land?” had been her wise crack at Judy.
Anne had insisted that she wanted nothing from their 10-year-old marriage. She just wanted to be left alone to continue with her charity work. “Let him go his way, and I go mine,” had been Anne’s final words.
Anne looked at the list again. She was at the prestigious Sheraton Hotel, finalising all the details for the day. She glanced at her watch and knew that the elegant ladies were about to start trooping in.
‘The First Wives Club’ had been Anne’s brainchild. The group brought together all the top women in the country: wives of cabinet ministers and wives of the top military brass. No politicians were allowed. The group had become the conscience of the society, sometimes rubbing politicians the wrong way.
8.02 a.m. Anne looked out of the window of the V.I.P lounge, eager to see what poets and authors regaled about the world. There was no chirping of birds or crickets, no howling of the wind or the sun breaking from dark clouds. It was a dull day. Nothing to write home about. Just another day.
The phone rang again and this time the Chief of General Staff, Jairus Mango, broke the silence. “All security measures have been taken care of,” he formally informed the First Lady who did not want to gamble with the Club’s security.
“Thanks Jairo,” Anne replied, preferring to use the Chief’s pet name. She smiled and knew that Jairo meant every word of it when he said that all was well taken care of. That was all she needed to run her meeting safely.
By 9 o’clock, all the ladies had arrived in pomp and splendour, a parade of sets of new clothes, jewellery, shoes, handbags, perfume. Huge suitcases were towed into the hotel by the porters. There was excited chattering as the ladies hugged and held hands, as if they had not seen each others for ages.
The group moved to the venue of the workshop: the bunker, a place where one got lost and forgot about the outside world. The ladies were to be there for the better part of the day.
Half an hour later, Anne summoned all the women to the Temptation Hall. “You all have ten minutes to make a phone call, after which no calls will be allowed,” she announced to the attentive group. They knew the rules of the bunker; no calls could be made as a jamming device that made it impossible for mobile phones to be used had been installed.
The ladies made good use of the grace period, knowing that the next break would be well after 5pm. They all knew and accepted that as the coordinator and convenor of the workshop, Anne was the only one allowed to visit the reception area and retrieve or take calls.
Anne called Judy. “Am about to enter the court room. I will let you know what transpires,” Judy told her friend.
“Thanks, Judy.” Anne sighed and then switched off her phone. She wanted to concentrate on her workshop.
11:00 am. Anne took a stroll to the reception area. As she was about to talk to the lady receptionist, the Hotel phone rang and the lady answered in the monotone characterised by many telephone operators. Anne watched as the lady’s face darkened, prompting her to press the Fire Drill bell.
“Bomb alert in the hotel!” the lady shrieked at the First lady as she scrambled to get out of her seat. From there the hotel security team took over, shouting orders and ushering guests out of the internationally renowned hotel. It took close to twenty minutes to empty all the rooms and get the guest out of the looming danger. For some strange reasons, the alarm at the bunker did not sound, hence enabling The Club to continue with its workshop, completely unaware of the unravelling drama outside.
Anne taking advantage of the confusion moved to the V.I.P lounge, from where she watched the mayhem downstairs. People were running up and down, screaming at the top of their voices. Somehow, after the Twin Tower’s bombing, the world had become paranoid to bomb alerts. Anne picked the phone and called The Gossip, giving the breaking news.
In less than ten minutes, the hotel had been completely surrounded by the dreaded crack unit code named Fiatua. It’s amazing how they had responded so fast.
Anne’s attention was suddenly drawn to the local TV station that had ‘Breaking News’. Anne turned, alarmed at how the newsmen had reacted to the news so fast. The face of the Government spokesperson appeared on the screen and Anne sneered. Her apathy towards some of the people who flocked around her husband was well known. She was a great admirer of people who lived by their own sweat, not off others’ sweat.
The footnote on the TV caught Anne’s attention and she knew that the news had nothing to do with the hotel. “The First Couple officially divorce,” said the spokesperson, as he went on to explain about the morning landmark court ruling. The clips showed Judy walking out of the court buildings and answering all questions with her trademark, “No comment.”
11:23 a.m. Anne made her way to the bunker to join her female friends. They were having group discussions on how to handle rudeness. Anne joined one of the groups and made her contribution on the heated debate on whether or not rudeness called for rudeness in reciprocation.
“You must fight fire with fire,” an angry woman whose face was full of scars was trying to convince her group members that the only way of being assertive was by fighting back. The debate swayed to and from, the facilitator making sure that the ladies remained on task.
It was close to lunchtime when the group had their first major break, allowing the ladies to start their first informal interaction since morning. Most of the ladies were itching to make phone calls, but somehow they knew the rules and chose to abide by them.
Lunch was served in the adjacent room and the ladies had their hearty meal, punctuated by wisecracks from one of the facilitators. Time flew and before they knew it, the half hour lunch break was over and the ladies had to go back for their afternoon session.
2pm. Anne made her way back to the VIP lounge. She had left the TV on and she got headline news flashing on the screen.
“Bomb Scare at Hotel,” announced the anchorwoman, detailing how the guests at the hotel had been evacuated and taken to other destinations. The picture, clearly taken from a distance, showed the Fiatua squad looking mean and ready to do battle. The bomb-squad team was also shown going into the hotel to do their business, as they knew best. No mention was made of the women in the hotel. Either no one remembered The Club or they chose to downplay the whole incidence.
Anne made it back to the bunker, and this time the ladies had been separated into two major groups: wives of cabinets were sent to one room while the wives of the military were sent to and adjacent room. This was going to be the final session of the afternoon: how to be assertive with your spouse.
2:45 pm. Anne strolled out of the ‘Military Wing’ and went to the VIP lounge again. She flipped channels and opted for Channel 007.
“The wives of cabinet ministers and top military brass are feared holed up at the Sheraton Hotel,” the young lady intoned in an annoying fake foreign accent. The lady elaborated on how there was no news of the ladies.
Anne was about to leave the room when the announcer screeched, “Bomb blast in down town!” She turned and paid attention to all the details on how an abandoned building on Hawkers Street had been blasted, leaving five people injured. The announcer rambled on, clearly waiting for more details on the story. None came and Anne, looking tired, made way to the bunker. She did not want to alarm The Club.
The excitement and animated session that the ladies were having convinced Anne that the session was going on well. One of the ladies was talking about the meekness of her husband in the house, despite being one of the most arrogant rulers of the country. Anne smiled, it was evident that some of the ladies needed another session on humility against submission. Later.
3.25 pm. Anne moved to the next room, whispered something to the facilitator and then walked out to the VIP lounge. The same lady, the same fake accent, greeted Anne as she sat on the couch. She strained to read the footnote: “A group calling itself Okoa Nchi Yetu has kidnapped the wives of top Cabinet ministers and top military chiefs. The 40 women were last seen at Sheraton Hotel attending a workshop. No one knows their whereabouts….”
The droning went on, the lady trying to explain some background information. Anne did not listen. Her mind was blank. She stayed a little bit longer and heard that the president had convened a full cabinet and military meeting to deliberate on the matter.
Anne wondered whether or not the president considered himself married to her, especially less than 4 hours after the divorce had been publicly declared. It would be interesting to talk to her former husband and pick his brains. The problem with politicians is that there was little to pick from. Ego, yes.
Anne had seen them all: bunch of thin greedy men and a few women scrambling for the country. She knew all of them, had been to school with some, and had worked with most. Brilliant at their jobs, until joining politics where their greed and ego often overtook their commitment to most of the causes they preached. She marvelled at how some had doubled their body weight in less than a year, a clear indication of poor eating habit. Problem is that they ate everything in sight. Swines!
4:06 pm. Two hours to the end of the workshop give or take thirty minutes. Anne moved from one room to the other making sure that the ladies in The Club were having an assertive time. The groups were in the process of winding up their discussion session, after which they would meet and present their proposals and findings to the bigger group. This would take another hour, punctuated with interruptions ranging from quality questioning to people who were more in love with their voices.
Anne moved to the VIP lounge. The latest news was that the president and the cabinet were holed up in a meeting with the military chiefs for more than two hours. The TV stations had nothing new; The First Club could still not be traced. The Sheraton Hotel was still out of bounds, the security personnel staying guard.
4:40 p.m. Speeches and appreciation time often made Anne sick. It was here that people lied through their noses, while others applauded. There were three speakers lined up to deliver speeches. Anne was to pass the vote of thanks, the final moment of the day. The first speaker was the wife of the Internal Security minister, a lady who could talk for hours if not checked. Anne moved out.
“The president will deliver a statement in the next twenty minutes,” was the announcement made by the chief Government spokesperson. Anne wondered how much of it was true. She couldn’t wait for the twenty minutes, so she walked back to the bunker. The first speaker was still waffling and spewing forth emptiness. Anne shut her mind.
5.30 p.m. “The First Club has the pleasure of sponsoring its members for a week long holiday in Seychelles,” was the announcement being made by the last speaker. The ladies had earlier been told to pack their belongings since they would all be going straight to the airport after the workshop. They were thanked for being such a good audience.
6.00 p.m. Anne rose to give her final speech, the last time she would be doing so as a First Lady. No one in The Club was aware of the transition.
Anne inhaled deeply, and removed a stack of papers: her speech. The ladies looked impatient but out of courtesy to Anne, they sat up to listen.
“We have come to the end of our workshop and as you go home I would like you to ponder on the following.
“How many of you here would survive without your spouse’s cabinet minister’s jobs or military salaries and perks?” Anne posed. The question stunned all, and they sat up ready to listen.
“Imagine a scenario whereby a coup takes place and all our spouses are replaced or displaced from their current positions,” Anne continued. “Put up your hand if you will be able to bring up the family on your own and service all the loans you have taken.” No hands went up.
Anger took over and one of the ladies could not take this kind of talk. She put her hand up, ready to interrupt. Anne waved her down. It was time for a reality check.
“Part of assertion demands that we are in total control of our financial situation as we all know that there is nothing as humiliating as financial blackmail. As we go on your trip to relax, let us all keep this in mind.”
With those words, Anne declared the workshop closed. There were murmurings as the women stood up to troop back to their lockers. Anne went back to the V.I.P lounge. “The president will address the nation at 7.00 p.m.”
6.45 p.m. The excited ladies trooped outside and they were shocked to find two huge ‘Cobra’ helicopters waiting for them outside the hotel. Some noticed the increased presence of security personnel but took it more as a case of importance rather than a crisis. After all, The Club were the dream of most women in the country. None of them even noticed that the all the three mobile phone companies had no signal. “Third World,” someone said. None of them noticed the absence of Anne.
The cabinet minister’s wives were separated from the military ladies and within minutes the two Cobras were airborne carrying a group of excited women.
7:00 p.m. Anne sat at the V.I.P lounge alone, opened her handbag and removed wad of papers. It was a speech. She looked at the T.V and within minutes the man she had called her husband for ten years appeared on T.V. He looked tired and haggard, but which politician ever looked fresh?
Anne looked at the speech in front of her and waited. The president read, “My countrymen and women, I hereby resign as the president of the country with immediate effect. The cabinet, parliament and all civic bodies are hereby dissolved, effectively today.”
Anne smiled. So far, the two speeches were identical to the letter.
“I will hand over the reigns of the country to the Attorney General who will be the legal advisor to the incoming Council of Elders to be chaired by The Chief of General Staff, Jairus Mango. General Elections will be held 6 months from today. However, anyone who has ever vied for a seat in the last two General Elections will not be eligible.”
The rambling went on, detailing the road map to recovery for the battered country. Anne waited for the final nail. “You asked for your country back, and today I am glad to give you back your country. Vote wisely.”
Anne stood up and looked outside the hotel. It was close to 9 p.m. No people were on the streets as a dawn to dusk curfew had been imposed to make the transition smoother. The night was quiet and she mused at what the poets would write about such a cool and calm night. Were it a movie she was directing, she would have added some special effects: prolonged thunderstorms and scary lightning across the dark skies; eerie music and crashing drums. But this was real life, consumed in the silence of a defining moment in the history of her country.
Whoever had said that a week is a long time in politics was definitely poor at arithmetic. In less than six hours, the destiny of a country had moved from known to unknown. There were many questions that Anne wanted to ask, many people that she wanted to talk to, but for now it sufficed that she was in the middle of a great transition that would either make or break the country.
The papers would have a field day for days on end. Anne thought of one half of The Club, the cabinet minister’s wives and the shock they had received at boarding the plane only to find their spouses seated on the same plane. And what about the military women who were taken back to the barracks to be told the news. She would miss them, honestly.
Anne thought of the crazy headlines the journalists would go for to outdo each other. “The First Revolution,” or “Divorcing the Country,” or “Give Us Back our Country!” But her favourite would be “From First Lady to First Mistress…….”