|
|
“Across the river, that is where I stay with Mama.”
“I also stay across the river with my Mama and Papa,” I said.
She did not look at me. She picked a piece of grass and chewed absent-mindedly at its blade.
We walked on without talking to each other until the river came to our vicinity.
“Do you swim?” she finally broke the silence.
“No, I fear water” I replied honestly.
She did not comment, and I began to wonder why she had asked me the question.
“In the depth of this river, there are six one shilling coins, and four five shilling coins. That makes a total of twenty six shillings.”
I did not quite understand.
“How do you know?” I asked perplexed.
“I threw them in”, she said with no feeling at all.
I was amazed. I loved money. The highest amount of money my mother had ever given me was two shillings, and here she was, telling me that she had thrown twenty six shillings in the river, yet she could not even buy herself a piece of Maandazi for lunch!
“There is a man who comes to our house at night when my mother has gone out to sell herself. He touches me, then gives me the money”, she said to me without a hint of humanness.
“Does your mother know?” I asked concerned. My mother always told me to report to her any man who touches me.
“Yes, she does.”
Strangely, I felt my heart beating. And there was a searing pain in my chest.
When we reached the river, she groped for her pocket fished out a shinny ten-shilling coin, then, after studying it carefully, hurled it into the river with all her might. The waters swallowed the coin hungrily as we looked on.
I noticed the veins in her face. I noticed the tears in her eyes. I noticed the sorrowful look that consumed her face.
“Yesterday, the man gave me ten shillings, but yesterday, he did more than touch me.” she said with her gaze fixed in space.
I also took the fifty-cent coin that I had and dipped it in the flowing waters of the river. I do not know why I did it, but I found satisfaction in seeing it disappear in the river.
She lifted her dress and dipped her feet in the shimmering water. I did the same. Then, she removed her clothes and walked slowly into the river. I did that too.
That day, we swam and played in the river, until we reached the plateau that lies beyond childhood, beyond fear, beyond sorrows of this world…where one just soars like an eagle, one coats like a ghost, unaware of anything that is going on around them and around this corrupted world.
While in the water, Atieno held my hand tightly, looked into the depths of my eyes, then told me to be her friend…and I cried!
When I reached home later that night, my mother pinched my ear for having stayed out late. She served me Ugali and fish for supper.
“Mama, in the depths of River. Gol Richo there are so many coins; to be precise, amounting to thirty six shillings and fifty cents”, I told her after eating my meal.
She did not understand, and she did not bother to inquire. She just sent me to bed, and that night, I dreamt of nothing but Atieno, the river and I; and how I will seek the man who gives her the coins, and hurl him in the river, with so much might, just like Atieno had done to the ten shilling coin he had given her after destroying her!
Number of words: 1,451.
|
Tags
You must be logged in to add tags.
|
Writer Profile
Mercy Adhiambo Orengo
My name is Mercy Adhiambo Orengo from Kisumu, Kenya. I am 21 years old and I am a writer.
Most of my writing talks about the marginalized in the community.I write on topics that other people fear to talk about, topics that affect us as humanity.
|
Comments
You must be a TakingITGlobal member to post a comment. Sign up for free or login.
|
|
