Ek'abo Ebi! (Welcome Family!)
And so
it began. What was once unrequited love, bloomed into a forbidden love. A love that would change Folami and mark the
beginning of a dark future for the Ina
and awọn dudu. By embracing
her love for Modupe, Folami slowly began to lose the traits that separated her
from her people. At first, it did not
seem that obvious. Folami and Modupe were so caught up in each other that they failed
to see the differences.
By the moon's tenth cycle, Folami could hardly conjure
up a storm. If she wanted to hover above
ground, it now required concentration.
She found it more difficult to communicate with the animals and her
healing abilities began to dwindle. But the joy and love she experienced with
Modupe, made those losses seem minimal.
The real test began when Folami fell ill. She did not understand what was
happening. She was shaking with cold,
roasting with fever and her mouth was as dry as the desert sands. Folami’s body
had become victim to the very illnesses that sometimes invaded her people. It was never necessary for her to develop a
resistance to them and now she was unable to heal herself. Finally, the truth hit. It cut through Folami’s haze of love and
brought her crashing back to reality. “I
have lost my immortality.” she whispered.
Folami knew that this would be a consequence of her
decision. But it was hard to face. When Modupe held her hand, she had the
greatest urge to push him away both mentally and physically. But she knew that was wrong. “I cannot lay the blame solely upon his
shoulders. The only thing he is guilty
of is falling in love with me. I was
just tired of rebuilding my wall each time he knocked it down.” Sighing, Folami
looked away from Modupe. For the first
time, she began to question her decision.
***
The high god was saddened by what he saw. Folami now suffered as a human. There would
be no turning back for her. His vision
of the future was beginning to come to pass and Folami’s bad health was just
the start. He too questioned her choices. Though the high god created his people, he
did not truly understand them.
***
Temitope was deeply shaken. Were they about to lose their
sister? They did all they could to help
her; everything from healing herbs to deep prayer. Temitope and Ayotunde were not great healers
like Folami. The decision to save her
life would fall upon the Mother Goddess and the High God.
Though she felt a deep connection to her people, there
was nothing and no one in Aye that would compel Temitope to give up her godhood. Ayotunde on the other hand was not
surprised by Folami’s choice. She saw
the signs and she knew the exact moment when Folami lost to Modupe.
“Ayotunde we must speak to her!” Temitope yelled when she
realize what her sister had done. “Has she already forgotten the consequences
her decision will bring?” she cried.
“There is no point. Have you not seen
them together? The only thing that will separate them is death.” Ayotunde
responded.
After tending to their sister once more,
Ayotunde led Temitope to a nearby rock and motioned for her to sit beside her. “I have a
story to share. Perhaps this will give you some clarity. One day, and I am embarrassed to admit this. I actually felt something odd within my
soul. I could not understand what it was
or where it came from. And then it
dawned on me, it was a human emotion that I have felt and seen in different forms. They call it envy. I envied what I saw whenever I looked upon
Folami and Modupe together. Then I felt
anger. Angry that Folami would give up
so much for a human. Suddenly, I wanted
to know what was so special. I wanted to
know what was so important that Modupe would try to drown himself and Folami
would flee Aye to get away from it. I
wanted to experience love!” I knew that Temitope was shocked. Her brown eyes were wide and a slight gasp had
escaped from her lips.
“A few nights ago, I found Folami and Modupe by the
lake. It was the exact place where
Folami finally acknowledged her love for Modupe. They were talking quietly and laughing. Their lyrical sounds travelled towards
me. It made me think that perhaps they
were reminiscing about Folami’s stubbornness and the drastic measures Modupe
took to finally win her heart.”
“It was then that I made my decision. I would open myself to it.” “To what?” Temitope queried. “I would open myself to the emotion. I would
open myself to the feelings that they share.
I would open myself to their love. So while they spoke, I sat down in
the bushes behind a large boulder.
Closing my eyes, I took a few deep breaths and visualized myself opening
a door.” As she spoke, Ayotunde mirrored her actions from that night. “I was terrified. Terrified of what would happen if I did
this. I have kept my door, my emotions, under
control and closed for over 100 years. To
be an unbiased decision maker, to be fair to our people,
I needed to keep myself separate from them.”
Ayotunde laughed and continued. “I conveniently forgot
all the beautiful things that made humans, human. I was afraid that if I opened that door, I
might not want to return to Orun or to our family. Sister there are not enough words to tell you
what I felt, when I pushed open that door.
It was like a roaring flood of sensations. For a moment, I thought I
would drown in it. It was so deep, so
full, so rich and beautiful that I cried.
I cried so much, that I did not feel Folami and Modupe when they laid
their hands upon my shoulders. Modupe
picked me up and carried my weeping self, back to the village.
They brought me to my hut and placed me on my mat.
Folami kissed me on my forehead and cover me with a cloth. She had no questions. It was obvious what I had done. The farther away they were from me, the
easier it was for me to regain control.
By the time they reached the other side of the village, I was able to
close my door and batten down those feelings once more.” Temitope looked upon me with awe.
“Now I understand what she feels. Why she was willing
to give up so much. And yet in the deepest part of my soul, I still question
what she has done. It hurts me to see
her suffer,” Ayotunde went on “and I wonder, would I have taken the same path?”
***
For all
of you who have been visiting my blog each week, I greatly appreciate it. I hope that you’ll continue to do so. But I would really love to see more of your
comments. Whether it is today’s post or entries in the past. Tell me what you think of the direction I’ve
taken so far or any thoughts or suggestions you may have J
It has
come to my attention that some of my readers have been unable to comment as
they do not have google accounts. If you
would like to comment, I welcome you to e-mail me directly at amachi.is.hope@gmail.com.
Mari e
laipe!
See you
soon!
S-
No comments:
Post a Comment